Russian Nuclear Weapons: Past, Present, and Future - Strategic ...

2005, two more are close to completion). These and other
submarines are equipped with dual-capable cruise
missiles, both those intended against other ships and
against land targets. As mentioned above, the Navy
seeks to maintain its nuclear capability, especially visà-vis
U.S. Navy, but conventional assets play an increasingly
visible role in the long-term plans.
The pace of conventional rearmament is set to increase
following the “5-day war,” the conflict between
Russia and Georgia in August 2008. Russia won this
conflict largely due to the sheer size of the army it sent
to battle. Speaking in September 2008, Dmitri Medvedev
declared:
We must achieve superiority in the air, in high-precision
strikes against land and sea targets, in quick
relocation of troops. . . . By 2020, we must solve the
problem of . . . comprehensive equipment of forces
with new models of arms and reconnaissance assets. 77
More than 2 decades of work on GLONASS, which
should allow precision guidance for conventional
weapons, is gradually coming to completion as well.
It currently features 21 satellites allowing coverage
of Russia’s own territory, with two or three satellites
for each location; launch of six additional satellites is
planned for 2010. The system is still inferior to GPS—
the accuracy of its coordinates in Russian territory is
reported to be six meters, several times worse than
for GPS, but on the other hand its characteristics are
gradually improving—in 2009 it was 10 meters. 78 One
of the main drawbacks of Soviet satellites that necessitates
frequent replacement of satellites in orbit—short
life span—is also slowly improving. A new satellite
was introduced several years ago, and in 2010 Russia
plans to launch the first satellites that will last 7
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