"The ideal length is one year," Kasyanov said, breaking down periods of service into six months of instruction, and six months of practical training.

The 1.16 million Russian teens enlisted in the armed forces currently serve two years in the army, and three in the navy.

Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov supported this measure, though he could not fix the exact length of time served before the full reform plan is implemented by 2007.

Ivanov is examining a plan to eliminate the unpopular army conscription before the end of the decade, proposing to set up a small fully professional force as the backbone of the country's defenses by 2007.

Ivanov has said a new professional force of some 176,000 servicemen, among them 136,000 dedicated to the interior ministry and special forces, "will become the main force of the army."

He additionally proposed a plan to open military service to women and citizens of former Soviet republics.

SPACE.WIRE