MILITARY REFORM DOCUMENTS DRAFTED.

Military and civilian defense experts, operating under the leadership of acting Russian defense minister Mikhail Kolesnikov and first deputy defense minister Andrei Kokoshin, are reported to have completed work on an array of documents that present various choices for future Russian military reform and development of the armed forces. According to Defense Ministry sources, the specific reform programs ultimately selected will depend upon the nature of the geopolitical tasks set by the government (presumably based on threat assessments contained in Russia’s military doctrine, also reportedly being drafted anew) and by the financial resources made available by the state. The documents are said to single out three areas of high priority: informational (including electronic) warfare; precision weaponry; and nuclear deterrence forces. The reform plans also reportedly envision significant changes in the training of officers and in the manning of the armed forces (although no specific mention was made by the Defense Ministry sources of Boris Yeltsin’s earlier announced plan to transform Russia’s military into an all-volunteer force by the year 2000). Emphasis was said to have been placed on "the creation of a nucleus of capably functioning multi-purpose units and formations." (Interfax & Itar-Tass, July 2)

Russian Support for CIS Exports Proposed.