Gunsmith's Day Events

Nowadays, even drone production is considered a gunsmith’s output according to Russia. What was once an individual craft is now high-tech industrial mass production. This somewhat short article covers three events that began in the evening prior to Gunsmith’s Day with Putin having a short (for us) conversation that the Kremlin described thusly:

Meeting on the development of the Armed Forces in the context of a special military operation

Vladimir Putin held a meeting on topical issues of the development of the Armed Forces in the conditions of a special military operation.

After Putin’s short introductory remarks, we can only guess at the discussion’s content:

President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Colleagues, good afternoon.

We meet and work on the eve of the Gunsmith's Day. We will divide our work into two parts: we will talk about issues related to strengthening and increasing the combat readiness of the Armed Forces, today and tomorrow we will continue this work at one of the defence enterprises in St Petersburg.

I would like to emphasize that we pay great attention to the technical re-equipment of the army and navy. We are talking about both the modernization and improvement of the tactical and technical characteristics of weapons and equipment in service, and the prospects for the development of new high-tech models, including taking into account the experience gained by our troops during a special military operation. This experience is comprehensively studied in design bureaus and specialized research institutes. And on the basis of the conclusions made, the optimal steps to improve weapons systems and increase the combat power of the Russian army are determined.

We are implementing a program for the comprehensive rearmament of the army and navy, which means that the troops will no longer receive single, but serial samples of modern high-precision weapons and armored vehicles, aviation, detection and countering the enemy, control and communication systems.

And, of course, unmanned aerial systems of various types: from strategic and heavy to small and ultra-small. And these are reconnaissance and strike systems, patrol, counter-battery, sapper systems, miners and fighters. We will discuss these issues in detail, as I have already said, and we will continue to discuss these issues at a meeting of the Military-Industrial Commission.

However, the effective use of these weapons requires highly qualified calculations. That is, we need people who are ready to work on this equipment. The effectiveness of the use will directly depend on the personnel of the Armed Forces, on the level of their training and, first of all, on the quality of combat training.

We need to use all available resources, including modern training bases for pre-conscription organisations, military universities, training and methodological centres and training grounds, and both the Defence Ministry and the regional authorities should work together in this important area. We will also talk about this in detail today.

In close cooperation between the federal and regional authorities, we need to solve the key task of ensuring that the Armed Forces are staffed with trained and qualified people, trained and qualified personnel. I mean units and formations of constant combat readiness of the new military districts.

It is to solve this problem of establishing the staffing table of the Armed Forces that the recently published Decree was directed. It will come into force on December 1 of this year.

We will also talk about other issues related to the development of the Armed Forces.

Let's get to work. I give the floor to Defense Minister Andrei Belousov. Welcome. [My Emphasis]

The Decree mentioned above follows:

In accordance with Article 4 of Federal Law No. 61-FZ of May 31, 1996 "On Defense" I decree:

1. To establish the staff strength of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation in the amount of 2,389,130 units, including 1,500,000 Military personnel.

2. The Government of the Russian Federation shall provide for allocation to the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation of budget allocations from the federal budget necessary for the implementation of Clause 1 of this Decree.

3. To recognize the Decree of the President as invalid of the Russian Federation of December 1, 2023 No 915 "On the Establishment of the Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation" (Sobranie of the Legislation of the Russian Federation, 2023, No 49, art. 8727).

4. This Decree shall enter into force on December 1, 2024.

Eventually, we’ll see how this new staffing level is distributed. During Putin’s visit to Tuva, I reported there was discussion about expanding the number of cadet and other training courses which are in high demand. When one watches video of Russians in the SMO, it can be seen why the retention of the Russian version of Capture the Flag is still widely practiced at children’s camps. More high-tech equipment means soldiers must be smart/intelligent along with being physically capable. Putin’s national program for healthy Russians is also pragmatic from a national security POV. And one big issue with anything military is it must be robust and somewhat easy to repair, which is a challenge for high-tech equipment as they ae prone to be fragile. IMO, it’s also important for readers to think about the why behind these discussions given NATO’s attempts to escalate the conflict beyond the SMO.

Prior to the next meeting, Putin and some of his team visited the Special Technology Center in St. Petersburg, which is an enterprise specializing in the production of unmanned aerial vehicles, electronic warfare and communication systems. The Kremlin described the visit as follows:

The Head of State visited the exhibition of samples robotic systems supplied by the Ministry of Defense and the People's Front. The president, in particular, was shown tracked platforms, kamikaze drones, reconnaissance systems with unmanned aerial vehicles apparatus, a sample of loitering ammunition.

Unfortunately, there’s no video and the photos that accompany the visit show very little hardware, plus the textual description is essentially limited to the above. The “People’s Front” is the great mass of volunteer organizations producing drones and other equipment for the troops, some of which have become small to medium businesses in the process. The amount of material the Home People’s Front has produced is exceptional and many have contributed expecting only a Большое спасибо! and no more. Needless to say, such support is vital and makes a big difference for soldiers on the line.

The final event was the Military-Industrial Commission meeting on the development of special-purpose UAVs after the factory visit where many examples of such UAVs were seen and discussed:

Vladimir Putin: Dear colleagues, good afternoon!

Before we start working, I would like to congratulate all veterans and employees of the military-industrial complex on their professional holiday-Gunsmith's Day, and thank them for their conscientious work, dedication, and really high performance in their work.

Our country has always been proud of its defense industry, designers, engineers, workers, managers who created unique weapons and equipment and thereby helped our soldiers defeat the enemy, made a significant contribution to ensuring the defense capability and security of Russia.

Even today, the defense industry enterprises work rhythmically, clearly, and do everything necessary to supply the troops participating in a special military operation with modern weapons, equipment, ammunition and equipment.

Thanks to this work of industry workers, the production of particularly popular samples has been increased many times, and their tactical and technical characteristics have been improved and adapted based on the specifics of combat use.

I would especially like to mention the defense industry specialists who, taking risks along with military personnel, risking their health and lives in the war zone, not only repair equipment and return it to service in the shortest possible time, but also, having unique knowledge, offer design solutions to improve it: in terms of firing range, accuracy, and so on. I note this and would like to express my special gratitude.

It is very important that the so-called people's defense industry has joined the ranks of powerful defense enterprises today. Representatives of this group of defense specialists are present here today - representatives of small and medium-sized businesses, talented young engineers and specialists.

I once again congratulate all employees of the industry on their professional holiday and wish you all the best.

Dear colleagues! Dear comrades,

Our agenda includes a range of issues related to the development of special-purpose unmanned aircraft systems. The topic is important and in demand, as we all know very well, and it is now becoming clear to everyone around the world that it is directly related to ensuring the country's security. Drones of various classes have already become an integral part of modern combat operations. The effectiveness of the multi-purpose use of unmanned systems on the battlefield was confirmed during a special military operation.

Just now, at the site of the Special Technology Center, we and our colleagues who are present here looked at modern unmanned aircraft systems developed and produced by the domestic industry with target loads and special software, including artificial intelligence technologies, as well as other types of weapons and equipment.

In their production, advanced technologies and new engineering solutions are used, thanks to which our units gain an advantage on the battlefield. I want to say a big thank you to the managers and employees of the company for high-quality and reliable equipment.

Many other military-industrial complex organizations are also working in the same direction, and their products have also proven themselves well during the special military operation. In total, about 140 thousand unmanned vehicles of various types were delivered to the Armed Forces in 2023. This year, the production of UAVs is planned to increase significantly, and to put it more precisely, almost 10 times. In addition, the line of unmanned systems is being expanded and crewless boats are being created - we also looked at this today – multi-purpose robotic platforms. At the same time, most of them will be sent to the troops located on the line of contact.

I would like to emphasize that we need to fully meet the needs of the Armed Forces, and to do this, we need to consistently increase the production of unmanned vehicles, improve their tactical and technical characteristics (including actively introducing elements of artificial intelligence, which I have already mentioned), and constantly modernize them taking into account combat experience. Now my colleagues and I have said that almost every week there are certain updates, and whoever responds faster to these requirements on the battlefield wins.

Simultaneously with the development of drones, we really need to look for means of their electronic and fire destruction. This will save the lives of our servicemen and civilians, and more reliably protect military equipment and civilian infrastructure, as well as critical facilities.

As I have repeatedly noted, the key task is to produce a wide range of aerial unmanned vehicles, to establish serial production of such promising equipment as quickly as possible. And of course, we need to create groundwork for the future. In other words, we can already predict what tasks drones will solve tomorrow.

It is important that along with large companies and concerns, mass production of UAVs, as already mentioned, is being established by organizations of the so-called people's defense industry, the people's military-industrial complex. At the same time, products are often not inferior in terms of reliability and efficiency of use to large enterprises.

I know that the Ministry of Defense and the People's Front have done a lot to unlock the potential of the national defense industry: the testing base for testing the quality and functionality of new samples is being expanded, and a technical council is working on an ongoing basis, according to which deliveries of the most popular samples through the Ministry of Defense and the Popular Front are being organized in a short time.

I would like to thank the volunteer organizations that provide the units participating in the special military operation with reconnaissance drones and electronic countermeasures.

It is important to further develop such cooperation, help organizations of the national defense industry to launch their developments in production, and remove any obstacles that hinder the delivery of drones to the troops.

I would like to note that the national project "Unmanned Aircraft Systems" has been operating since this year, which is designed to last until 2030. Among its priority areas is to promote the development and production of domestic components and materials for UAVs. This is the key to technological sovereignty in the most important area for us.

Now some colleagues have talked about how this is happening in practice: to be honest, this cannot but please. But not all the tasks have been solved yet, and we all need to work actively in this direction. It is clear that small and medium-sized enterprises cannot solve some problems on their own, and, of course, there is a need for synergy between large research centers, large enterprises and small businesses.

Work on the design, testing and serial production of UAVs will be carried out on the basis of special research and production centers. By 2030, it is planned to create 48 such sites in different regions.

Let's talk about all these topics.

Please let's get started. The floor to Andrey Belousov. [My Emphasis]

It was noted that currently there are 16 Special Technology Centers of the type Putin and team visited spread across Russia; so, the aim is to add another 32 such centers by 2030. Russia clearly anticipates conflict with NATO to continue beyond the SMO. That Russia will field a million drones for all 2024 is an incredible number. Drones are easily as important as artillery ammo of all types and perhaps even more so since they greatly enhance the accuracy of artillery and missiles. Imagine being in a trench and confronted with a swarm of 20 drones that your EW systems can’t influence. Well, that’s close to what Ukie troops now face in some areas along the FEBA. And FPV drones are being armed with more powerful explosives. There may come a point in the future where traditional artillery will be supplanted by UAVs. And being first to adopt new tactics and equipment is paramount as Putin noted. Note the emphasis on workability, production quality and quantity, speed of production, and ability to rapidly modernize based on combat conditions. So far, NATO hasn’t shown any ability to do that. By the time NATO’s able to construct 100,000 drones annually, Russia will be able to produce 5 million.

The bottom line with Russia’s military complex is to win battles and wars, not to make massive profits for shareholders and corporate board members. I fully expect Russia to be the first to develop and field droid soldiers of the sort seen in Star Wars. And its allies won’t be far behind either.

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