__NOTOC__ The 2nd Far Eastern Front () was a

Front Front may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''The Front'' (1943 film), a 1943 Soviet drama film * '' The Front'', 1976 film Music * The Front (band), an American rock band signed to Columbia Records and active in the 1980s and ...

—a formation equivalent to a Western

Army Group An army group is a military organization consisting of several field army, field armies, which is self-sufficient for indefinite periods. It is usually responsible for a particular geographic area. An army group is the largest field organizatio ...

—of the

Soviet Army The Soviet Ground Forces () was the land warfare service branch of the Soviet Armed Forces from 1946 to 1992. It was preceded by the Red Army. After the Soviet Union ceased to exist in December 1991, the Ground Forces remained under th ...

. It was formed just prior to the

Soviet invasion of Manchuria The Soviet invasion of Manchuria, formally known as the Manchurian Strategic Offensive Operation or simply the Manchurian Operation () and sometimes Operation August Storm, began on 9 August 1945 with the Soviet Union, Soviet invasion of the Emp ...

and was active from August 5, 1945, until October 1, 1945.

History

Shortly after its creation, the 2nd Far East Front was committed to the fighting against the Japanese

First First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

and Fifth Area Armies and the Japanese Fourth Army in

Manchuria Manchuria is a historical region in northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day northeast China and parts of the modern-day Russian Far East south of the Uda (Khabarovsk Krai), Uda River and the Tukuringra-Dzhagdy Ranges. The exact ...

Sakhalin Sakhalin ( rus, Сахали́н, p=səxɐˈlʲin) is an island in Northeast Asia. Its north coast lies off the southeastern coast of Khabarovsk Krai in Russia, while its southern tip lies north of the Japanese island of Hokkaido. An islan ...

and the

Kuril Islands The Kuril Islands or Kurile Islands are a volcanic archipelago administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast in the Russian Far East. The islands stretch approximately northeast from Hokkaido in Japan to Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia, separating the ...

. In Manchuria, soldiers of the front swiftly crossed the

Amur The Amur River () or Heilong River ( zh, s=黑龙江) is a perennial river in Northeast Asia, forming the natural border between the Russian Far East and Northeast China (historically the Outer Manchuria, Outer and Inner Manchuria). The Amur ...

and

Ussuri The Ussuri ( ; ) or Wusuli ( ) is a river that runs through Khabarovsk and Primorsky Krais, Russia and the southeast region of Northeast China in the province of Heilongjiang. It rises in the Sikhote-Alin mountain range, flowing north and formi ...

rivers, destroying all Japanese resistance. On August 20, the front's 15th Army took

Harbin Harbin, ; zh, , s=哈尔滨, t=哈爾濱, p=Hā'ěrbīn; IPA: . is the capital of Heilongjiang, China. It is the largest city of Heilongjiang, as well as being the city with the second-largest urban area, urban population (after Shenyang, Lia ...

. Later, the

2nd Red Banner Army The 2nd Red Banner Army () was a Soviet field army of World War II that served as part of the Far Eastern Front. The army was formed at Khabarovsk in the Soviet Far East in 1938 as the 2nd Army. After the Far Eastern Front was split in Septembe ...

entered the Kalochzhan and Lyunchzhen regions, the 15th Army entered the Sansin region, and the

5th Rifle Corps The 5th Rifle Corps was a corps of the Soviet Union's Red Army, formed twice. Formed in 1922, the corps was based at Bobruisk in Belarus for most of the interwar period. It fought in the Soviet invasion of Poland in September 1939, with elements ...

entered the Boli region. The Japanese armies failed to offer significant resistance in these regions, and by August 20, they began to surrender and move into Soviet captivity. On August 11, elements of the 16th Army began an offensive in Southern

and by August 18 they had captured most of the island. From August 19 to 25 the front conducted amphibious assault operations near the port of

Kholmsk Kholmsk (), known until 1946 as Maoka (), is a port town and the administrative center of Kholmsky District of Sakhalin Oblast, Russia. It is located on the southwest coast of the Sakhalin Island, on coast of the gulf of Nevelsky in the Strait o ...

, and combined amphibious and airborne assault operations near the port of Korsakov. By August 25, Soviet forces had captured the administrative centre of Sakhalin,

Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk (, , ) is a city and the administrative center of Sakhalin Oblast, Russia. It is located on Sakhalin Island in the Russian Far East, north of Japan. Gas and oil extraction as well as processing are amongst the main industries on ...

. By early September, Japanese forces ended their resistance, but due to slow Soviet advances on Sakhalin, the planned operation on the Japanese island of

Hokkaidō is the second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by railway via the Seikan Tunnel. The ...

was never carried out. Meanwhile, an operational group composed of the 101st Rifle Division captured the

Kurile Islands The Kuril Islands or Kurile Islands are a volcanic archipelago administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast in the Russian Far East. The islands stretch approximately northeast from Hokkaido in Japan to Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia, separating the ...

. On 1 October 1945, by a directive of the Stavka VGK dated 10 September 1945, the Front was disbanded and reorganised as the

Far Eastern Military District The Far Eastern Military District () was a military district of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. In 2010 it was merged with the Pacific Fleet and part of the Siberian Military District to form the new Eastern Military District. Histo ...

(2nd Formation).

Composition August 1945

The 2nd Far Eastern Front included the following units on 9 August 1945: *

* 15th Army * 16th Army *

10th Air Army The 10th Air Army was a unit of the Soviet Air Forces during World War II and the Cold War years. World War II The unit was originally formed on Sakhalin Island on August 15, 1942, on the basis of the Air Force of the 25th Army of the Far East ...

Kamchatka The Kamchatka Peninsula (, ) is a peninsula in the Russian Far East, with an area of about . The Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Okhotsk make up the peninsula's eastern and western coastlines, respectively. Immediately offshore along the Pacific ...

Defensive Region ** 101st Rifle Division **198th Rifle Regiment **5th, 7th Rifle Battalions *

Amur Military Flotilla The Amur Military Flotilla (AMF; ) was a military flotilla on the Amur River in the Russian Far East. History In 1900, the Russians formed a temporary flotilla on the Amur from private steamers and barges. Initially, it served transportation pu ...

* North Pacific Military Flotilla

References

{{Fronts of the Red Army in World War II Far East Front, 2nd

History

Composition August 1945

See also

References