Officers appointed to senior command positions were presented and had their senior military (special) titles conferred at a ceremony held in the Grand Kremlin Palace’s St George Hall.
President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Comrade officers,
I am happy to welcome you at our meeting in the Moscow Kremlin and to congratulate you on your appointment to senior positions and on the conferral of your new military titles. I hope the experience you have already acquired and your new status would allow you to achieve greater success in serving Russia.
Russia’s reliable protection against potential threats and ensuring our national interests depend directly on the efficient, coordinated and precise work of the officers’ corps.
We see that the situation in the world is far from being stable. International terrorism, as we all know, poses a global threat.
By creating a stronghold in Syria and a number of other Middle East countries, the terrorists have been making plans to expand their activities and to destabilise entire regions; they have been hiring mercenaries from many countries, including, unfortunately, Russia and the CIS.
To prevent this threat, to take preventive measures, Russia, as you may know, has launched a combat operation in Syria. I would like to stress that the military assistance we are providing to the Syrian Arab Republic at the request of the country’s leadership fully meets Russia’s Military Doctrine and the norms of international law.
Since September 30, the air group of the Russian Aerospace Forces has been destroying the militants’ infrastructure in Syria. We are also using the Caspian Fleet in this operation and have carried out a cruise missile strike from the Caspian area. This operation has proved that Russia is capable of giving an adequate and efficient response to terrorist or any other threat to this country. I would like to thank the personnel who took part in the operation for their professionalism and courage.
We will further strengthen the state military organisation – Russia’s Armed Forces. Our army and navy remain a reliable guarantor of the country’s sovereignty and play a key part in ensuring global and regional security.
The introduction of modern command systems and achieving greater quality and intensity of combat training are among the priority areas in the development of our military capability.
In the course of more than 3,000 exercises and training sessions, including the Centre-2015 strategic exercises, forces have trained in performing complicated and large-scale missions. The complex snap inspections demonstrated a high degree of readiness and growing combat capability of units from all military districts.
I would also like to note the reliable implementation of the State Armament Programme: this year practically all state defence orders have been completed in full and within schedule.
The Federal Security Service is facing special tasks here. Since the beginning of the year, its personnel have prevented 20 terrorist crimes. In the course of special operations, they destroyed 112 militants, including 26 ringleaders, while 560 militant group members have been detained. I would like to thank you for your work.
We need to continue operating with the same efficiency and energy. However, it is of principal importance to reveal ties between Russian militants and international terrorist groups and their sponsors.
The Foreign Intelligence Service has a great responsibility here. Besides, we need to have a precise idea of the course of military political processes in the conflict zones and in the world at large. I expect Russia’s Foreign Intelligence officers to further provide fair and timely analyses and forecasts of probable developments.
Serious and important tasks are facing the law enforcement agencies today, primarily Russia’s Interior Ministry. It is necessary to improve crime detection rates, to give a tough response to any signs of extremism, ethnic or religious intolerance and antagonism, to more actively use modern technical equipment to control order in public places.
As before, the prosecution agencies should focus on protecting citizens’ rights and ensuring the rule of law and order in the social sphere. There should be an immediate reaction to cases of delayed salary payment or failure to ensure social protection of citizens, and uncover violations of law at all levels, primarily in housing and the utilities sector.
Just as other law enforcement agencies, the prosecutor’s office should be more active in defending the rights of the business community and in putting an end to any attempts at creating obstacles for businesses.
The Investigative Committee staff should ensure a high quality of their work. The detection rate of complex crimes depends on your efforts, your professionalism, and your ability to put together a complete set of conclusive evidence.
Complicated tasks are also facing the Federal Drug Control Service. Russia continues dealing with active external drug aggression: not only traditional drugs, but also new chemical substances are being brought to this country. Your service, in close coordination with other structures should more actively resist this threat.
The large-scale forest fires in Eastern Siberia, the natural calamities on Sakhalin required extreme courage and commitment on the part of Russia’s rescue workers. Thanks to your coordinated professional action, we managed to reduce the damage from these natural disasters and quickly proceed to remedial action.
I would like to thank the Emergency Situations Ministry personnel and all those who took part in the special operations for the responsible performance of their obligations. I am certain that you will act as selflessly in the future.
Among the priority tasks facing the Federal Penitentiary Service is further modernisation of correctional facilities. We need to raise the reliability and efficiency of the security system, ensuring proper confinement conditions to those who have breached the law, conditions that meet modern standards. True, they have breached the law, but let us not forget that they remain our citizens.
High demands are made to the Special Facilities Service, primarily in terms of ensuring smooth and reliable work of state agencies in emergency situations.
Comrades, allows me to once again congratulate you on your new appointments and titles. I am certain that each one of you fully realises the scale of the tasks facing us and the personal responsibility for handling them.
I wish you success, and health to you and your families.
