Resolution No. 1384-615 on the Establishment of the Office of Chief Commander of Rocket Forces within the Armed Forces of the USSR

Top secret

Subject to return within 24 hours
to the special section of the Operations Administration
of the USSR Council of Ministers

USSR COUNCIL OF MINISTERS
RESOLUTION

17 December 1959

# 1384-615                                              Moscow, Kremlin

On the establishment of the office of
Chief Commander of Rocket Forces
within the Armed Forces of the USSR

The USSR Council of Ministers resolves:

1. To establish the office of Chief Commander of Rocket Forces - Assistant Minister of Defense of USSR.

The Chief Commander of Rocket Forces - Assistant Minister of Defense of USSR will maintain full responsibility for the condition of rocket forces:  their use in battle, battle and mobilization readiness, material and technical maintenance, further development of rocket weaponry, management of the construction and use of military complexes and special objects, responsibility over military discipline and political-moral condition of rocket forces personnel, as well as coordination on the questions of the establishment, development and introduction of special weapons and rocket technology in all areas of the Armed Forces.

2. The Chief Commander of Rocket Forces will have an apparatus consisting of 896 military personnel and 280 personnel... [sic]

For the purpose of managing rocket forces and directing them in battle, a command headquarters (with a communications center) will be established under the Chief Commander of Rocket Forces, in addition to one or two computer centers.

The establishment of the Chief Commander of Rocket Forces apparatus must be carried out without increasing the size of the central apparatus of the USSR Ministry of Defense.

3. All formations and detachments armed with strategic missiles (intercontinental and medium-range), military-training institutions, scientific-research and experimental institutions, arsenals, bases and storage areas of special and rocket weapons will be under the command of the Chief Commander of Rocket Forces.

4. In order to ensure management, rocket detachments armed with strategic missiles must contain the following in their organizational structure:

- rocket brigades (medium-range) of 3-4 regiments and divisions of five-six regiments, depending on the number of rocket units in one or another direction;

- intercontinental missile brigades consisting of six-eight launch pads.  In the future, in order to increase the number of launch pads, these brigades can be merged into a corps.

5. Appoint the Assistant Minister of Defense of USSR, Chief Marshal of the Artillery, Nedelin Mitrofan Ivanovich as the Chief Commander of Rocket Forces.

Chairman of the USSR Council of Ministers

N. KHRUSHCHEV

Director of Operations of the USSR Council of Ministers

G. STEPANOV