Western Military District | |
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Западный военный округ | |
![]() Emblem of the Western Military District | |
Active | 20 October 2010–26 February 2024 |
Country | ![]() |
Branch | ![]() |
Part of | Ministry of Defence |
Headquarters | General Staff Building, Saint Petersburg |
Decorations | ![]() |
Website | Official website |
Commanders | |
Final Commander | Colonel General Yevgeny Nikiforov |
Insignia | |
Flag | ![]() |
Russian Armed Forces |
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Staff |
Services (vid) |
Independent troops (rod) |
Special operations force (sof) |
Other troops |
Military districts |
History of the Russian military |
The Western Military District (Russian: Западный военный округ, romanized: Zapadnyy voyennyy okrug) was a military district of Russia, in existence from 2010 until its abolishment as a unitary military command on February 26, 2024, succeeded by the newly reconstituted Moscow Military District and Leningrad Military District.[1]
It was one of the five military districts of the Russian Armed Forces, with its jurisdiction primarily within the western central region of European Russia. The Western Military District was created as part of the 2008 military reforms, and founded by Presidential Decree №1144 signed on 20 September 2010, as an amalgamation of the Moscow Military District, Leningrad Military District and Kaliningrad Special Region.[2] The district began operation on 20 October 2010, under the command of Colonel-General Valery Gerasimov. General Lieutenant Roman Berdnikov took over command on 3 October 2022,[3] but two further command changes would take place by the end of the year, under the pressure of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The Western Military District was the second smallest military district in Russia by geographic size. The district contained 26 federal subjects of Russia: Belgorod Oblast, Bryansk Oblast, Ivanovo Oblast, Kaliningrad Oblast, Kaluga Oblast, Karelia, Kostroma Oblast, Kursk Oblast, Leningrad Oblast, Lipetsk Oblast, Moscow, Moscow Oblast, Nizhny Novgorod Oblast, Novgorod Oblast, Oryol Oblast, Pskov Oblast, Ryazan Oblast, Saint Petersburg, Smolensk Oblast, Tambov Oblast, Tver Oblast, Tula Oblast, Vladimir Oblast, Vologda Oblast, Voronezh Oblast, Yaroslavl Oblast. On 1 December 2014, the Arctic Joint Strategic Command was split off from the Western Military District, removing Arkhangelsk Oblast, Murmansk Oblast, Komi Republic, and the Nenets Autonomous Okrug, as well as the Russian Navy's Baltic Fleet and Northern Fleet, from the district's command.[4][5]
The Western Military District was headquartered in the General Staff Building in Saint Petersburg.
The Western Military District, until its abolishment in February 2024, was led by Colonel General Yevgeny Nikiforov, who was previously Chief of Staff of the Eastern Military District.[6]
Military units of the internal troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Border Troops of the FSB, as well as units of the Ministry of Emergency Situations (Russia) and other ministries and departments of the Russian Federation performing tasks on the territory of the district are under its operational subordination.[7]