Japan and Russia: Contemporary Political, Economic, and Military Relations Speaker: Yu Koizumi, Project Assistant Professor, University of Tokyo Presentation: Russian Military Posture in Northern Territory

1. RUSSIAN MILITARY
POSTURE IN
NORTHERNTERRITORY
Yu KOIZUMI (Assistant Professor, RCAST, UT)

2. Brief History
■ 1945, Occupation of islands
■ 1950’s
– Withdrawal of Ground Forces
– An air regiment remained in Etorofu
■ 1970’s
– Redeployment of Ground Forces (Kunashiri, Etorofu, Shikotan)
– Deployment of nuclear submarines in Kamchatka (“nuclear bastion” in Okhotsk)
■ 1990’s
– Dismantlement of air regiment deployed in Etorofu
– Withdrawal of Ground Forces from Shikotan
– Shrinking force size: from 10k strong troops to around 3500 troops
– Collapse of ”bastion”

3. Department of Defense, Soviet Military Power 1989: Prospects for
Change (US Government PrintingOffice, 1989), p. 116.
Nuclear Bastions in the Arctic and Okhotsk

4. Re-emergence of
“Bastion”
■ 2011, Serdyukov’s visit to Kunasiri
and Etorofu
■ 2012, Force modernization plan
– Infrastructure
– Territorial defense (Ground Forces)
– Anti-Access and Area Denial
(A2/AD)
■ Big picture
– Demonstration of will to retain
islands
– Countering the US military
supremacy across Russian border
Russia’sA2/AD network in European theatre
(Strengthening the Defense of NATO’s Eastern Frontier (CSBA, 2019), p. 10.

5. ★ HQ 18PulAD
-49th Machinegun Artillery
Regiment
-Independent Tank Battalion
★
Airport “Yasnyi”
-Su-35S fighter jets (3)
★
AFB Burevestnik
-Mi-8 helicopter (5-6)
★
-46th Machinegun Artillery
Regiment
-Independent Rocket Artillery
Battalion
★★
-Coastal Missile Battalion
(3K60 Bal)
Current
Posture
in Northern
Territory
-Coastal Missile Battalion
(3K55 Bastion)
★Ground Force
★Navy
★Aerospace Force
Etorofu (Itrup)
Kunashiri
(Kunasir)
Shikotan
Habomai

7. Yasnyi
（July 2018）
Su-35S×3
Su-25×2
Burevestnik
（August 2018）

8. A2/AD ASSETS AROUND OKHOTSK
(2019)
■3K55 Bastion
■3K60 Bal
■S-400（w/48N6）
■S-400（w/40N6）
■S-300

9. A2/AD ASSETS AROUND OKHOTSK
(2020〜？)
■3K55 Bastion
■3K60 Bal
■S-400（w/48N6）
■S-400（w/40N6）