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Warsaw Pact Forces opposite NATO, NIE 11-14-79, Volume II, the Estimate, CIA/NFAC, 31 January 1979

Central Intelligence Agency · 201 pages · text from the file's own layer

This is Volume II of National Intelligence Estimate 11-14-79, Warsaw Pact Forces Opposite NATO, issued by the Director of Central Intelligence and dated January 1979. The National Foreign Intelligence Board concurred with it. It was the first comprehensive estimate of Pact forces facing NATO since 1971. It covers Pact doctrine, the ground, air, naval, nuclear and chemical forces, command and control, and campaign plans for war in Europe. It judges that Central Europe would be the decisive arena, and it lists Pact weaknesses in pilot training and antisubmarine warfare. The document contains no UFO material.

  • p. 114 …recently halted Soviet air operations from Conakry. These developments will obviously force the 257. Many officers…
  • p. 115 …order to keep other in establishing effective air cover over supporting lines units operational. of communication…
  • p. 185 …The Soviets could elect to provide combat forces scale commitment of manpower and materiel which to…
  • p. 187 …This force is occasionally aug- forces could not be safely transported by sea or air to…
  • p. 188 …a war, but they couldsome naval and air force weapons (including a few recently introduced Flogger…
Top
Soviet Command Authorities: Transition to Wartime Figure 11-2
Politburo a Politburo
13 Voting 13 Voting
National Members
Political Defense Council
Authority Brezhnev (Chairman) Defense Council
Kosygin or Equivalent Body
Ustinov (Minister of Defense)
and a few others
Supreme High Command
Supreme Commander in Chief
National Minister (Party General Secretary)
of Collegium Stavka
Military Defense 11 to 20 Members
Authority
Gener ",j
Armed A
Unclassified
579034 -
include numerous separate combat and combat-sup-
port elements such as tank, artillery, missile, and air
defense units. Large service-support elements would
provide the front with transport, maintenance, engi-
neering, supply, and medical support. The Soviet front Armies and Divisions
in East Germany could total more than 500,000 men 12. The headquarters staffs and communications
after full mobilization; a more typical front would support elements of armies and divisions also routinely
have some 300,000 to 400,000 men. participate in exercises. When these commands are
1. The Pact has made advance preparations to activated, their signal support units establish the con-
man front headquarters in wartime. Since the late munications for their command posts. Most armies and
1960s, Soviet military district staffs have been aug- independent divisions would be subordinate to fronts,
mented in order to be able to provide staff for front but some may be withheld as strategic reserves under
headquarters when created. East European front staffs the control of the VGK or theater commanders. All
have been predesignated in Poland, Czechoslovakia, Soviet armies have direct communications with the
and probably Bulgaria. These front command and General Staff and normally receive communications
control elements are routinely tinder national control support from signal units of the Committee of State
in peacetime_ Security (KGB) and of the Reserves of the Supreme
High Command (RVGK). 3
- -_ lll-4

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FOIA release, from the cia-readingroom collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. 201 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.