Soviet Troop Reductions in Europe: The Changing Face of Engineer Force Structure and Operations.

摘要

Communist Party General Secretary Mikhail S. Gorbachev's December 7, 1988 announcement of unilateral Soviet troop reductions gave Western defense specialists new factors to consider in the NATO/Warsaw Pact balance. It also highlighted what military planners had long known: that the implications of any troop cuts depend as much on the status of specialized units and combat support formations as they do on tanks, artillery, aircraft, and other traditional combat power measures. Central to Gorbachev's announcement was to promise to reduce certain types of landing and engineer assault units, together with ground maneuver units and weapons systems. These reductions, and a concurrent restructuring of other Soviet forces in Eastern Europe, will result in what Gorbachev asserted will be a defensive posture. While the stated Soviet cuts and changes have many dimensions, the important implications for Soviet engineer force structure and operations are particularly intriguing and little studied. These implications must be considered in the context of Soviet perceptions and military developments, and in the recognition that there are many uncertainties in what is to come. Keywords: Arms control; Force structure; Combat support; Mine warfare; Fortifications; Assault detachments; River crossing; Defensive positions; Reprints.