Special Activities Office
Strategic Overview
The Russian Federation maintains a geographically dispersed network of military sites aligned to strategic missions: nuclear deterrence, aerospace and air defense, naval sea-based deterrence and power projection, and ground forces training and mobilization. Strategic Rocket Forces garrisons span European Russia and Siberia, long-range aviation operates from central and northern airfields, early-warning and air defense assets ring the periphery, and major naval bases are concentrated on the Kola Peninsula, the Pacific coast of the Far East, the Baltic Sea, and the Black Sea. Since 2014 and especially after 2022, many facilities in the western and southern theaters have been expanded or hardened, with notable reinforcement of air defense, logistics nodes, and naval infrastructure.
Command and Control Architecture
National-level command and control is centered in Moscow at the National Defense Management Center (NDMC), which became operational in December 2014 and integrates real-time command, monitoring, and mobilization functions for the Ministry of Defense. Strategic command elements include the General Staff and specialized command posts supporting nuclear forces. As publicly announced in 2023–2024, Russia restructured its ground force administration by re-establishing the Moscow and Leningrad Military Districts from the former Western Military District; other district headquarters include the Southern Military District in Rostov-on-Don, the Central Military District in Yekaterinburg, and the Eastern Military District in Khabarovsk. The Northern Fleet operates as a separate Joint Strategic Command for the Arctic and North Atlantic approaches.
Strategic Rocket Forces Garrisons and Missile Fields
The Strategic Rocket Forces maintain both silo-based and road-mobile intercontinental ballistic missiles across multiple garrisons. Publicly documented locations include Teykovo in Ivanovo Oblast (mobile RS-24 Yars), Kozelsk in Kaluga Oblast (silo-based RS-24 Yars), Novosibirsk region (mobile Yars), Nizhny Tagil in Sverdlovsk Oblast (mobile Yars), Irkutsk region around Usolye-Sibirskoye and Mishelyovka (mobile Yars), Barnaul in Altai Krai (mobile Yars), Tatischevo in Saratov Oblast (silo-based Topol-M SS-27 Mod 1), Dombarovsky near Yasny in Orenburg Oblast (silo-based systems including UR-100NUTTH with Avangard hypersonic glide vehicles), and Uzhur in Krasnoyarsk Krai (silo-based R-36M2 with an announced transition toward RS-28 Sarmat). Specific silo configurations, dispersal routes, and readiness statuses are not publicly released in detail.
Nuclear Warhead Storage and 12th GUMO
Warhead storage, transportation, and technical maintenance are managed by the 12th Main Directorate of the Ministry of Defense. The locations, capacities, and configurations of operational nuclear weapons storage facilities are classified; open sources describe a distributed system of central and regional depots designed to support Strategic Rocket Forces, Long-Range Aviation, and the Navy’s ballistic missile submarines. Publicly available information confirms the existence of secure storage and handling infrastructure proximate to strategic garrisons and naval nuclear bases, but precise site-level details are not disclosed.
Long-Range Aviation Bases
Long-Range Aviation employs Tu-160, Tu-95MS, and Tu-22M3 bombers from a network of airfields. Key bases include Engels-2 in Saratov Oblast (Tu-160 and Tu-95MS), Dyagilevo near Ryazan (training and maintenance hub supporting bomber operations), Olenya in Murmansk Oblast (a forward base used for staging strategic bombers), Ukrainka in Amur Oblast (Tu-95MS), Shaykovka in Kaluga Oblast (Tu-22M3), and Soltsy-2 in Novgorod Oblast (Tu-22M3). Several of these airfields, notably Engels-2, Dyagilevo, and Soltsy-2, were subjected to long-range drone attacks in 2022–2023, after which hardened aircraft shelters, dispersal, and air defense deployments were visibly increased.
Tactical Aviation and Key Air Bases in Western and Southern Russia
Tactical aviation supporting western and southern theaters operates from airfields including Voronezh-Baltimor in Voronezh Oblast (Su-34), Morozovsk in Rostov Oblast (Su-34), Primorsko-Akhtarsk in Krasnodar Krai (Su-34), Millerovo in Rostov Oblast (fighter aviation), Kursk-Khalino in Kursk Oblast (fighter aviation), and Akhtubinsk in Astrakhan Oblast (929th State Flight Test Center). Yeysk in Krasnodar Krai hosts naval aviation training and mixed aircraft. Since 2022, many of these airfields have expanded revetments, decoys, short-range air defenses, and runway repair capabilities. Unit compositions may vary with rotations; aircraft types listed are those publicly and repeatedly documented at these bases.
Air and Missile Defense Network
Russia’s layered air defense integrates S-400 and S-300 variants with newer S-350 Vityaz systems, supported by Pantsir and Tor point defenses, and a network of command posts and sensors. The Moscow region is protected by the A-135 Amur missile defense system, centered on the Don-2N battle-management radar north of Moscow and silo-based 53T6 interceptors. The Ministry of Defense announced initial S-500 Prometey deliveries to air and missile defense formations responsible for the Moscow area beginning in 2021–2022; independent open-source confirmation of full operational deployment remains limited. Additional S-400 regiments are publicly reported in areas including Kaliningrad Oblast and Crimea, with S-350 fielding documented in the Leningrad region from 2020 onward.
Ballistic Missile Early-Warning Radars
Russia has fielded a new generation of Voronezh-class early-warning radars to replace legacy Soviet-era systems. Operational sites reported in open sources include Lekhtusi in Leningrad Oblast, Armavir in Krasnodar Krai, Kaliningrad near Pionersky, Orsk in Orenburg Oblast, Barnaul in Altai Krai, Yeniseisk in Krasnoyarsk Krai, Irkutsk region near Mishelyovka, and upgrades in the Murmansk region near Olenegorsk. These stations provide wide azimuth coverage for detection of ballistic missile launches. The Don-2N radar near Moscow provides precision tracking and fire control for the A-135 system. Additional projects and replacements have been periodically announced by the Ministry of Defense; specific construction timelines can shift and are not always publicly detailed.
Space Launch and Space Domain Facilities
Russia operates two principal spaceports: Plesetsk Cosmodrome in Arkhangelsk Oblast, which supports military and national launches including the Angara family, and Vostochny Cosmodrome in Amur Oblast, which supports Soyuz-2 and conducted its first Angara-A5 launch in April 2024. Space surveillance and tracking sites include the Krona radar-optical complex near Zelenchukskaya in the North Caucasus. The Titov Main Test Space Center commands tracking, telemetry, and control assets; additional deep-space and tracking infrastructure exist in Crimea and elsewhere, but precise technical configurations and readiness states are not comprehensively disclosed.
Northern Fleet Naval Infrastructure (Kola Peninsula)
The Northern Fleet’s headquarters is at Severomorsk, with major submarine bases and support facilities along the Barents Sea. Gadzhiyevo in Murmansk Oblast hosts ballistic missile submarines, including Project 667BDRM Delta IV and Borei-class units assigned to the Northern Fleet. Attack submarines and surface combatants operate from bases including Vidyaevo and Polyarny, with shipbuilding and repair concentrated at Severodvinsk, home to Sevmash (new construction, including Borei-class SSBNs and Yasen-class SSGNs) and Zvezdochka (repair and modernization). Coastal defense, air defense, and anti-submarine warfare sites are distributed around Kola bays, with air coverage supported by Northern Fleet Air and Air Defense units and the Olenya air base.
Pacific Fleet Naval Infrastructure
The Pacific Fleet’s SSBN base is at Vilyuchinsk near Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky on the Kamchatka Peninsula, supporting Borei-class submarines and associated nuclear weapons handling infrastructure. Surface and attack submarine forces operate from Vladivostok area bases and the Primorsky Krai littoral, with repair and construction capabilities at facilities including the Zvezda shipyard at Bolshoy Kamen and the Amur Shipbuilding Plant. Air and coastal defense elements cover approaches through the Sea of Japan and the North Pacific, integrated with regional early warning and air defense data.
Baltic Fleet Naval Infrastructure
The Baltic Fleet is headquartered at Baltiysk in Kaliningrad Oblast and operates from ports in Baltiysk and Kronshtadt near St. Petersburg. The fleet maintains corvettes, missile boats, landing ships, submarines, and auxiliaries, supported by coastal defense and a dense regional air defense network. Kaliningrad Oblast hosts S-300 or S-400 air defense regiments and Bastion coastal missile batteries, as publicly reported. Infrastructure upgrades since 2014 include pier extensions, ammunition storage enhancements, and expanded logistics to support higher operational tempos and missile-capable corvettes.
Black Sea Fleet Naval Infrastructure
The Black Sea Fleet traditionally centered on Sevastopol in Crimea, with a major new base at Novorossiysk on Russia’s Krasnodar coast. Since 2022, repeated long-range strikes against Sevastopol naval facilities have driven increased dispersal and sheltering measures, as well as more frequent basing and ship repair activity at Novorossiysk, Feodosiya, and other Crimean ports. The Kerch Strait bridge and rail links support logistics into Crimea. Coastal defense and air defense assets have been reinforced, and small missile ships and submarines have used multiple berths to complicate targeting. Public imagery and official statements confirm periodic relocations of submarines and surface units between Sevastopol and Novorossiysk.
Test and Training Ranges
Major ranges include Kapustin Yar in Astrakhan Oblast, used for ballistic missile and air defense testing; the Ashuluk range complex in Astrakhan Oblast for air and air defense live-firing; the Nenoksa naval test range in Arkhangelsk Oblast for sea-launched missile trials; the Kura impact range in Kamchatka Krai for intercontinental ballistic missile flight tests; and the 929th State Flight Test Center at Akhtubinsk for aircraft weapons integration and evaluation. Russia also continues to use the Sary Shagan test range in Kazakhstan under bilateral arrangements for air and missile defense testing. Range instrumentation, test schedules, and weapon telemetry are not publicly released in detail.
Ground Forces Training Areas and Mobilization Sites
Large training areas used for combined-arms exercises and mobilization include Mulino in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Pogonovo near Voronezh, Alabino in Moscow Oblast, Prudboy in Volgograd Oblast, Kadamovsky in Rostov Oblast, and Kapustin Yar and Ashuluk for missile and air defense troops. Since 2022, these sites have hosted expanded mobilization and refresher training cycles. Open-source imagery has shown additional tented accommodations, vehicle parks, and ammunition handling areas at multiple ranges to support rotational training and equipment regeneration.
Electronic Warfare and Signals Facilities
Electronic warfare units are distributed across all military districts, employing systems such as Krasukha, Zhitel, Murmansk-BN, and others. Fixed and semi-fixed sites augment maneuver EW brigades and battalions to cover key approaches, airbases, and naval installations. Specific site coordinates, orders of battle, and operating frequencies are not fully public. Space domain awareness and radar-optical tracking are supported by the Krona complex in the North Caucasus and additional radar assets; operational details remain limited in open sources.
Ammunition Depots and Munitions Production
Ammunition storage is distributed across central and regional arsenals coordinated by the logistics command; exact depot locations and holdings are sensitive and not fully disclosed. Munitions and weapons production and repair are concentrated at major defense-industrial plants, including Uralvagonzavod in Nizhny Tagil for main battle tanks, Omsktransmash for T-80 series, Kurganmashzavod for BMP infantry fighting vehicles, Arzamas Machine-Building Plant for BTR armored personnel carriers, Almaz-Antey enterprises for air defense systems, Sevmash in Severodvinsk for nuclear submarines, Admiralty Shipyards in St. Petersburg for diesel-electric submarines, and aviation plants such as KnAAZ in Komsomolsk-on-Amur and the Irkutsk Aviation Plant for fighter production. The Kazan Aviation Plant supports Tu-160M modernization and production restart. Output rates and precise production figures are not comprehensively published.
Logistics Hubs and Rail Connectivity
The Russian military relies on an extensive rail network linking production centers, depots, and front-line staging areas. Key hubs supporting western and southern theaters include railheads and transshipment points in Rostov Oblast, Krasnodar Krai, Voronezh Oblast, and Bryansk Oblast, with onward movement to Crimea via the Kerch Strait bridge. Many airbases and depots have dedicated rail spurs. Open sources since 2022 have documented new temporary storage yards, expanded fuel farms, and protective revetments near major rail-served bases; the precise throughput and schedules are not publicly released.
Security and Hardening Measures
Following increased stand-off attacks since 2022, numerous Russian sites have added point air defenses, radar decoys, camouflage netting, hardened aircraft shelters, blast walls, and dispersion pads. Naval facilities have deployed additional boom barriers, smoke-screen systems, and floating protective obstacles. Airfields in the western and southern regions have increased runway repair assets and constructed new bermed revetments. These measures are directly observable in commercial satellite imagery but their detailed effectiveness and rules of engagement remain undisclosed.
Observed Post-2014 Trends
Publicly observable trends since 2014 include systematic fielding of Voronezh early-warning radars, expansion of S-400 coverage and initial S-350 deployment, modernization of strategic missile garrisons to RS-24 Yars, introduction of Avangard at Dombarovsky, delivery and operation of Borei-class SSBNs in the Northern and Pacific Fleets, and revitalization of production and overhaul lines for aircraft, armor, and submarines. After 2022, reinforcement of air defenses and dispersion at western and southern sites accelerated, and Black Sea Fleet basing patterns diversified between Sevastopol and Novorossiysk. Many technical specifics, including unit-level inventories and readiness rates, are not fully available in open sources.