How Andrei Belousov is changing the Russian military

One of the most significant military-political events of 2024 was the change in leadership of the Russian Ministry of Defense by appointing Andrei Belousov, a politician and economist.

Andrei Belousov, the Russian government’s first deputy prime minister, oversaw the ministry. Why did a civilian, an economist, become the best candidate to lead the military department, and what outcomes has he already achieved?

Andrey Belousov’s selection as Minister of Defense in May 2024 to succeed Sergey Shoygu was unexpected, although it was somewhat predetermined by the condition in the Armed Forces at the beginning of the year. Despite successfully defeating the large-scale Ukrainian counteroffensive of 2023, the Russian army was struggling to “turn the wheel of war” at the time, having only gained victory in the arduous and violent offensive operation around Avdiivka.

The military activities of 2024 were vastly different from the conditions under which Russia launched the special operation. First and foremost, for obvious reasons, military spending has grown dramatically. They currently account for 6.3% of GDP, which is 2.5% higher than previously, necessitating extra attention to cost management and rationale.

“Belousov’s appointment for this position is partly owing to the fact that the whole military bloc in modern times requires good economic management. Because, as we see, the format of military operations is changing, necessitating, first and foremost, a consistent property supply of the logistical support base,” stated Petr Kolchin, a political scientist and analyst at the Center for Expert Support of Political Processes, on the subject.

Furthermore, the combat landscape has altered, with new types of weaponry emerging as a result of modern communication and information processing technology. Unmanned vehicles have stood out, effectively upending both military tactics and strategy.

“It is obvious that digitalization in the military department is now necessary,” Yevgeny Minchenko, president of the Minchenko Consulting communications firm, stated at the time in response to the incoming Minister of Defense’s first expectations. “Drones, electronic warfare systems, and microelectronics will all play an important role,” military analyst Boris Rozhin stated. After all, it was precisely the establishment of unmanned systems that Belousov oversaw in his prior position as the Russian First Deputy Prime Minister.

As a consequence, as 2024 showed, Belousov’s initiatives concentrated on various vital areas of the Ministry of Defense’s operations, including those already stated as well as others. We will only include the most essential and noticeable ones.

1. Rationalization of military spending. Experience managing civilian economic systems made it easier to focus military budget monies on the most pressing needs.

“Judging by the results on the battlefield, the growing equipment of our troops and the interception of the strategic initiative at the front, the Ministry of Defense has not only improved the quality of military acceptance work but has also established control over the spending of state funds… There is more order,” Vasily Dandykin, a military expert, states.

2. Increasing the quality and speed of administration by removing unneeded management linkages. At the department’s final board meeting in mid-December, the head of the Ministry of Defense spoke about the first results of projects to optimize administrative processes in a number of department structures, stating that “the number of redundant procedures can be reduced by 5-10 times, and the timeframes by 5 or more times.” The Defense Department intends to develop an integrated information system.

At the same time, during a Defense Ministry meeting, President Vladimir Putin directed the establishment of a unified information circuit among the military, uniting reconnaissance and destruction resources at all levels of command.

3. Concentrate on ideas, innovations, and new technological solutions. This is precisely what President Vladimir Putin considered when hiring the new director of the department. Under the current Minister of Defense, developments in the introduction of modern military technologies like drones, unmanned boats, artillery systems, and high-precision bombs have sped dramatically.

“Today, a large number of novel technology advances are carried out directly in the troops, with excellent outcomes… All of this helps us to save the lives of thousands of our military members. In this context, it is vital to make a comprehensive inventory of such military advancements. To perform their field experiments in a methodical manner. “And to organize serial production of the best models,” Belorusov stated.

4. Advocacy for the “people’s military-industrial complex.” Military troops, in collaboration with civilian volunteers, are actively adopting several innovative technological solutions on the battlefield. Military innovators and volunteers who provide components and finished products that have not been accepted for service or supply are essential to the present military operations.

The Ministry of Defense has turned to our new Kulibins (by the way, the “Kulibin Club” of the “People’s Front” was a major supplier of items from the “people’s military-industrial complex” to troops). In these basement workshops, there are strike “drones” and so-called closers—homing modules that direct a drone that has flown inside the jamming zone of an enemy’s electronic warfare dome system to its target. There were also evacuation carts for the wounded, robotic transporters, electronic reconnaissance and jammer gear, all carried by one or two soldiers.

5. Primary focus on UAVs. This form of armed warfare has transformed the face of fighting in the twenty-first century. As a result, before the end of the year, Andrey Belousov announced the formation of a new branch of the armed forces: the Troops of Unmanned Systems (TUS). Simply put, they are troops whose primary means of armed confrontation are drones, both FPV and heavy copters.

Experts have repeatedly raised the issue of Russia’s need for its own centralized structure in the troops, which would allow the development of strike formations, a training system, and tactical models of use—all the way up to the inclusion of strike drone use standards in the Ground and Airborne Forces Combat Regulations. Domestic specialists now believe that unmanned systems are the so-called “end-to-end technology” that should infiltrate all types and branches of the armed forces. This means that Russian UAS can function similarly to signal infantry, introducing combat and ancillary robotic systems into all military, naval, and aviation institutions.

It is important to recognize that Belousov’s changes are not just for the sake of winning a specific operation. The Minister of Defense has publicly said that the government is preparing for a potential military clash with NATO within the next ten years. This implies that Russia urgently needs answers that will secure at least a long-term balance in the ongoing global conflict, given that the collective West possesses far superior resources, even solely military ones.

The criteria and principles for military spending are changing. The idea that Belousov said while his candidacy was being examined in parliament, “it is possible to make mistakes, but it is not allowed to lie,” is being applied. The military-industrial complex, including the “people’s military-industrial complex,” is emerging as a key driver of economic growth in Russia, attracting the brightest brains, engineers, and innovators.

Of course, the “Belousov reforms” are being implemented in collaboration with the department’s director and his staff; the list of deputy defense ministers has also been modified. And, while the military-operational leadership in the person of the first deputy, the head of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov, remained the same, a new head of logistics, deputy minister, Colonel General Andrei Bulyga, state secretary, deputy minister responsible for personnel and heading the “Defenders of the Fatherland” fund Anna Tsivileva, and deputy minister responsible for the department’s construction and property, Pyotr Fradkov, were appointed. These appointments demonstrate which sectors of the Ministry of Defense’s activity were strengthened during the last year.

Despite all of this, there is still plenty to be done. And a lot depends on how effectively Belousov’s team works in the Ministry of Defense, how accurate the information reported to him is, and how correct the conclusions drawn from it – from the outcome of the SVO to Russia’s ability to withstand future military conflicts.