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Chief of Russian General Staff checks readiness of naval strategic nuclear forces

The chief of the Russian General Staff boarded a nuclear submarine as part of a surprise inspection of the Russian Armed Forces' combat readiness
Project 667BDRM sub at Northern Fleet’s Gadzhiyevo submarine base ITAR-TASS/Lev Fedoseyev
Project 667BDRM sub at Northern Fleet’s Gadzhiyevo submarine base
© ITAR-TASS/Lev Fedoseyev

GADZHIYEVO, Murmansk Region, March 18. /TASS/. Valery Gerasimov, the chief of the Russian General Staff, has inspected the readiness of the country’s naval strategic nuclear forces, the Defense Ministry’s press service said on Wednesday. He has inspected the Northern Fleet’s Gadzhiyevo submarine base and boarded a nuclear submarine of Project 667BDRM.

"Within a surprise combat readiness inspection, the Gadzhiyevo base of the submarine forces of the Northern Fleet has been checked. Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces - First Deputy Defense Minister, General Valery Gersimov has conducted the inspection," the ministry said.

According to the ministry, the General Staff chief visited a strategic missile submarine of Project 667BDRM. "During the exercise the strategic missile submarine combat crews drilled operational tasks according to the scenario determined by the General Staff officers that are inspecting the fleet’s combat readiness," the Defence Ministry said.

The results of the exercise have confirmed the submarine crew’s readiness to fulfil its combat tasks, the press service said.

In accordance with the decision of the Supreme Commander of the Russian Armed Forces, Vladimir Putin, a surprise inspection of the Northern Fleet and separate formations of the Western Military District is conducted in the period from March 16 to 21. The snap check involves some 38,000 troops, 41 warships, 15 submarines, 110 warplanes and helicopters.

This is not the first large-scale inspection of the Armed Forces’ combat readiness. Since the beginning of the year, inspections have been conducted in the Western, Central and Eastern Military District, including with large-scale exercises involving the newest serial military equipment of the forward strike forces. The drills include the mobilisation of reservists, checks of operational readiness of the aerospace forces, special task forces, groupings of all service arms, the Air Force, as well as the surface and submarine fleet.