Russian MiniLessons: Armed Forces – Вооружённые силы

Note, the following excerpt was written by Dr. Lawerence Mansour, West Point. It was originally published in The Russian Context: The Culture behind the Language, edited by Genevra Gerhart and Eloise M. Boyle. It originally appeared on SRAS.org in 2005. 

The armed forces are the most important and the largest of the power agencies. In the Russian Federation they are under the direct control of the министр обороны (Minister of Defense). The minister is advised by members of the Генеральный штаб, генштаб (general staff), as well as his civilian assistants. The president of the Russian Federation is the главнокомандующий (commander-in-chief).

All Russian young men must spend one to two years performing either военная служба (military service) or альтернативная служба (alternative service). Military service is notoriously dangerous and often deadly. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to get permission for alternative service so that avoiding the draft becomes a family affair: the family emigrates, or pays a large bribe; thousands of young men hide from the authorities, becoming дезертиры (deserters).

At sixteen all young men in Russia have to становиться/стать на учёт (register). At seventeen, the районный военкомат (regional draft board) присылает повестку (sends a registration form) informing them that they are subject to the draft and must show up at the local draft board office. They are then subject to a biannual призыв (draft) which takes place from 1 April to 30 June and again from 1 October to 31 December, depending on how many призывники (draftees) are needed for full комплектование (manning) of the various branches. Starting in December 1992, young men and women have had the right to join as добровольцы (volunteers), but women generally serve only as медсёстры (nurses), телефонистки (telephone operators), переводчицы (interpreters) and the like.

You can put off service only if you get a отсрочка, (deferment) usually for получение высшего образования. (obtaining a college degree) Those with an advanced degree are not called up. Some major universities have an военная подготовка (obligatory course for men only on military skills). Completing this course exempts one from the draft. Young men can also get an exemption from the draft altogether по семейным обстоятельствам (for family reasons), for example, if a brother has been killed in service, or if the draftee is не годен к военной службе (judged unfit for military service) after the obligatory медицинское обследование, медобследование (medical exam).

Новобранцы (recruits) serve eighteen months if they are sent to the сухопутные войска (land-based units), two years if sent to the военно-морской флот, ВМФ (navy), but only one year if drafted after receiving a college degree. If they like it they may остаться на сверхурочную/службу (stay on for another hitch).

Начальная военная подготовка, НВП (basic military training) for recruits is led by профессиональные военнослужащие (professional military men), the офицеры (officers) and старшины. (noncommissioned officers) Each is generally a выпускник военного училища (graduate of a military academy). Training takes place at a полигон (training ground). There new conscripts live в казармах (in barracks) with about 100 soldiers to a building and eat what is jokingly called похлёбка (chow) – a potato or grain soup served up by the дежурные по кухне (kitchen police), and at night sleep on a койка (cot). At around six in the morning soldiers rise to подъём (reveille), stand for поверка (roll call), do their физзарядка (calisthenics), go through заправка (ordering quarters) to get ready for осмотр (inspection), which is different from a торжественный смотр (military review). Breakfast and supper offer the same food, usually tea, about one pound of bread and a bowl of hot cereal with butter. Lunch is the main meal: soup, 100 grams of meat (about a quarter pound), black bread and potatoes.

Day is not done till вечерняя поверка (evening roll call) and отбой (taps) at around 10 pm.

The recruit learns how properly to put on a форма (uniform), which consists of a фуражка (forage cap), a гимнастёрка (service blouse), perhaps a мундир, китель (jacket) and, if it’s cold, a ушанка (hat with ear-flaps) and a ватник (quilted work coat); there’s a ремень (waist-belt), and, usually, кирзовые сапоги (canvas-topped boots); sometimes портянки (foot-wrappings) are worn instead of носки (socks). Whatever the ботинки (boots) used, they must be до блеска (spitshined; literally, until they sparkle). A soldier must know not only how to маршировать (march) in a колонна (formation), he must also take part in полевые учения (field-training exercises). During down time he can bone up on the устав (regulations).

He also needs to learn marching commands:

The armed forces are the most important and the largest of the power agencies. In the Russian Federation they are under the direct control of the министр обороны (Minister of Defense). The minister is advised by members of the Генеральный штаб, генштаб (general staff), as well as his civilian assistants. The president of the Russian Federation is the главнокомандующий (commander-in-chief).

All Russian young men must spend one to two years performing either военная служба (military service) or альтернативная служба (alternative service). Military service is notoriously dangerous and often deadly. Unfortunately, it is very difficult to get permission for alternative service so that avoiding the draft becomes a family affair: the family emigrates, or pays a large bribe; thousands of young men hide from the authorities, becoming дезертиры (deserters).

At sixteen all young men in Russia have to становиться/стать на учёт (register). At seventeen, the районный военкомат (regional draft board) присылает повестку (sends a registration form) informing them that they are subject to the draft and must show up at the local draft board office. They are then subject to a biannual призыв (draft) which takes place from 1 April to 30 June and again from 1 October to 31 December, depending on how many призывники (draftees) are needed for full комплектование (manning) of the various branches. Starting in December 1992, young men and women have had the right to join as добровольцы (volunteers), but women generally serve only as медсёстры (nurses), телефонистки (telephone operators), переводчицы (interpreters) and the like.

You can put off service only if you get a отсрочка, (deferment) usually for получение высшего образования. (obtaining a college degree) Those with an advanced degree are not called up. Some major universities have an военная подготовка (obligatory course for men only on military skills). Completing this course exempts one from the draft. Young men can also get an exemption from the draft altogether по семейным обстоятельствам (for family reasons), for example, if a brother has been killed in service, or if the draftee is не годен к военной службе (judged unfit for military service) after the obligatory медицинское обследование, медобследование (medical exam).

Новобранцы (recruits) serve eighteen months if they are sent to the сухопутные войска (land-based units), two years if sent to the военно-морской флот, ВМФ (navy), but only one year if drafted after receiving a college degree. If they like it they may остаться на сверхурочную/службу (stay on for another hitch).

Начальная военная подготовка, НВП (basic military training) for recruits is led by профессиональные военнослужащие (professional military men), the офицеры (officers) and старшины. (noncommissioned officers) Each is generally a выпускник военного училища (graduate of a military academy). Training takes place at a полигон (training ground). There new conscripts live в казармах (in barracks) with about 100 soldiers to a building and eat what is jokingly called похлёбка (chow) – a potato or grain soup served up by the дежурные по кухне (kitchen police), and at night sleep on a койка (cot). At around six in the morning soldiers rise to подъём (reveille), stand for поверка (roll call), do their физзарядка (calisthenics), go through заправка (ordering quarters) to get ready for осмотр (inspection), which is different from a торжественный смотр (military review). Breakfast and supper offer the same food, usually tea, about one pound of bread and a bowl of hot cereal with butter. Lunch is the main meal: soup, 100 grams of meat (about a quarter pound), black bread and potatoes.

Day is not done till вечерняя поверка (evening roll call) and отбой (taps) at around 10 pm.

The recruit learns how properly to put on a форма (uniform), which consists of a фуражка (forage cap), a гимнастёрка (service blouse), perhaps a мундир, китель (jacket) and, if it’s cold, a ушанка (hat with ear-flaps) and a ватник (quilted work coat); there’s a ремень (waist-belt), and, usually, кирзовые сапоги (canvas-topped boots); sometimes портянки (foot-wrappings) are worn instead of носки (socks). Whatever the ботинки (boots) used, they must be до блеска (spitshined; literally, until they sparkle). A soldier must know not only how to маршировать (march) in a колонна (formation), he must also take part in полевые учения (field-training exercises). During down time he can bone up on the устав (regulations).

Given that Russia still employs universal conscription, military life (or the avoidance of it) represents a large part of the Russian collective experience. Not surprisingly, jokes and terminology from military life are common in popular culture.

Given that Russia still employs universal conscription, military life (or the avoidance of it) represents a large part of the Russian collective experience. Not surprisingly, jokes and terminology from military life are common in popular culture.

Всех отсутствующих построить в одну шеренгу!(Line up all the missing men in one column!)

И не делайте умное лицо, не забывайте, что вы будете офицеры. (Don’t try to look intelligent. Don’t forget that you are future officers.)

Курсант, если вы хотите что-нибудь сказать, то лучше молчите. (Cadet, if you want to say something, you’d better keep quiet.)

Все в окопы, остальные за мной! (Everyone into the trenches! The rest follow me!)

Note: due to formatting concerns, the above text slightly differs from that found in the original book. However, all information is still the same.