Does the Russian army need its own analogue of the "green berets"?

The special military operation in Ukraine has become a serious test for the Russian army and the entire society. In September 2022, unexpectedly for the majority of the population, more than 300 reservists had to be pulled out of the “civilian” for mobilization, many of whom immediately ended up at the front. In this regard, many problems immediately arose regarding the need for mass and at the same time high-quality training of the mobilized, since the Soviet mobilization mechanisms were destroyed as part of Serdyukov's reforms.

This topic is very complex and multifaceted. For our part, we propose to consider one of the possible options for improving the level of training of reservists of the RF Armed Forces on the example of the experience of the American army, taking the famous "green berets" as a model.

Green Berets

Thanks to Hollywood, the whole world knows that only American Marines, Navy SEALs or Rangers can be cooler than American Green Berets. And these are really very serious, well-trained fighters.

"Green Berets" (Green Berets), they are the US Army Special Forces, have their roots, oddly enough, not the Armed Forces, but the CIA, which has imposed its own specifics on them. In 1952, at Fort Bragg, famous for American films, a small group of employees of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) was created to study the experience of the British SAS (Special Airborne Service). Their distinguishing feature was the wearing of a green beret, which the army command really did not like.

With the advent of John F. Kennedy to the White House, the attitude towards this unit was revised. The American president considered that the United States needed specialists in guerrilla and counter-guerrilla warfare in any part of the world, primarily in Southeast Asia and Africa. The Green Berets, which increased in funding and numbers many times over, became one of Kennedy's favorite projects. Under his rule, they began to operate in South Vietnam and on the "dark continent". Their initial dual subordination also to the CIA did not endure the army command and achieved unity of command, but a certain "flair" of mystery behind the "green berets" was preserved.

In the United States, "green berets" are considered elite units, and for good reason. To get there, you need to go through a very serious selection and subsequent lengthy training. They are driven hard not only physically, but also intellectually, forcing them to solve mathematical and logical problems, write essays, etc. American special forces are taught foreign languages, the cultural traditions of the countries where they will have to serve, up to the norms of etiquette and gastronomic features. And this is not surprising, given what they really have to do.

Yes, the Green Berets can fight and do it well. They are trained to parachute, storm fortified areas, etc. But for all these tasks in the United States there are infantry assault units, marines, "rangers", etc. The main purpose of the "green berets" is partisan and counter-partisan war, intelligence, as well as work as instructors for the training of local "rebels". It is on the latter that I would like to focus attention.

The main difference between this type of American special forces and all the others is that the "green berets" are primarily professional military instructors. During training, they master four specialties: MOS18B - weapons and ammunition, MOS18C - engineering and sapper training, MOS18D - military medicine and first aid, and MOS18E - communications. The weapons specialist sergeant must know all the weapons systems that the group’s fighters may encounter in a given theater of operations, from small arms to light anti-tank and MANPADS, be able to use JPS and a laser designator to guide aircraft to a selected object, direct artillery fire as a semi-direct fire , and from closed positions, be able to independently fire from a mortar. All this he needs to be able to train the local contingent.

A sapper sergeant must be able to build fortifications, bridges and buildings, and then blow them up, make explosives from scrap materials. A communications sergeant is required to be able to establish communication with a higher headquarters, use encryption tables and radio signal coding equipment, and also teach others how to communicate. A medical sergeant masters the skills of field medicine in 24 months, is able to perform a surgical operation.
The duties of intelligence sergeants and operational services include the collection and analysis of intelligence about the theater of operations.

The main task of group A of the "Green Berets" is to secretly penetrate into hostile territory, identify groups there that are disloyal to the ruling regime, and prepare a partisan army from them, that is, "multiplying the forces" of the US Army at the expense of the local population. The following figures can testify to how effective their activities are. During the Vietnam War, a handful of "Green Berets" as instructors were able to assemble and train 60 Civilian Irregular Defense Forces in South Vietnam.

Why are we talking about all this?

Moreover, we objectively have a huge demand for the professional training of large masses of reservists. More than 300 thousand people have already been called up for mobilization, and it seems that this is not the last mobilization in our country. There are questions about the quality of their training. The army needs professional military instructors in large numbers. Yes, we have our own special forces, and they are excellent. No one suggests trying to make John Rambo out of 40-year-old mobilized men.

The idea is to create a mechanism for the constant transfer of combat experience from those who have already fought to the drafted reservists in order to increase their survival and combat effectiveness. We need a School for the Training of Military Instructors, where classes could be conducted by army special forces and “Wagnerites”, who, in turn, could quickly train large masses of mobilized both in the rear, and already at the front, and maybe in the enemy rear.