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Document No. 10: Conclusions from the Operational Exercise of the Czechoslovak Army, March 31–April 7, 1959 ——————————————————————————————————————————— Command post exercises have always been an important part of military preparedness training. These drills were carried out on maps, mostly by officers, with the basic purpose of preparing the command structure for actual war. Maneuvers involving large numbers of troops were a different undertaking with their own specific objectives, for example training soldiers for combat conditions and gauging their performance, as well as impressing the putative enemy. While obviously important from a military point of view, these maneuvers are not as useful as command post exercises for understanding actual leadership plans and intentions. This particular command exercise, run by Soviet Marshal Ivan S. Konev (see Document No. 9), is typical for this early period before the change to an offensive orientation later during the Berlin crisis. Some of the basic concepts of Warsaw Pact exercisesarehere —asurpriseattackbyNATOisassumed,andthegoalisstatedaspreventing enemy entry into one’s own territory as well as achieving air superiority. Although these operations are conceived as including other Warsaw Pact armies, those forces would not reach Czechoslovakia for 5–6 days, meaning the latter’s army would have to fight alone for a significant period of time. ____________________ Conclusions from the Operational Exercise The command post operational exercise was carried out at the Ministry of Defense from March 31–April 4, under the command of Unified Armed Forces Marshal of the USSR [Ivan S.] Konev and his staff. […] The following conclusions resulted from the exercise, and Marshal of the USSR Konev made the following analysis: […] The time difference between the commencement of the enemy’s attack and the execution of a retaliatory strike must be as short as possible. The retaliatory strike shall be executed as soon as the commencement of the enemy’s attack shall be made known. The struggle for air superiority shall be carried out from the very first moments after the beginning of the war. Its major aim should be the annihilation of the enemy’s air forces and stocks of nuclear weapons, disruption of fuel supplies, and disorganization of operations in rear areas. Thus, advantageous conditions for the activities of armed forces on land, in the air and on the sea shall be guaranteed. In the struggle for air supremacy, an active part shall be played by air defense troops, the tactical air force, the navy, airborne units, special forces and partisans, in addition to long-range air forces and missiles of all kinds. In the coming war, the struggle for air supremacy shall be of strategic significance. Concentrated effort must be exerted by all Warsaw Treaty armed forces. 100 The retaliatory strike shall be carried out and directed according to the Unified Armed Forces plan. During the exercise, the Czechoslovak Army was reinforced by the commencement of war operations by air force units and missile regiments. Combat activities were also supported by a certain quantity of nuclear weapons. The deployment of Unified Armed Forces attached to joint combat activities with the Czechoslovak Army can be expected according to terms stipulated by Unified Command plans. During this exercise, they arrived on Day 5–6. […] Transition from countrerstrike to attack The organization of an attack after a successful counterstrike is very complex. It possesses numerous peculiarities since, along with the preparation of an attack operation , combat with an enemy who is attacking and has not yet been halted must be continued. Under conditions of early war time, the transition to an attack cannot be delayed until all enemy attack capabilities have been exhausted. As soon as the striking formations take advantageous starting positions and are ready to attack, the attack should be kicked off bravely, thus relocating combat activities to enemy territory. With ample forces and other means, several strikes can be delivered in order to annihilate the enemy’s main forces, one part after the other. The main attack should be led against the weakest and most threatening of the enemy’s points, thus allowing penetration in depth while utilizing the movement of armored units. The formation of assault units for initiating an attack under conditions of an enemy invasion of our territory is a complicated matter. It will usually take place during operations by enemy air and missile forces, with the possibility of an armored enemy breakthrough into the depth of our territory. That calls for secure coverage of the armed forces against air strikes, plus a firm...

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