MOSCOW - Russia has planned to deploy its first motorized Arctic brigade in 2015, said a senior military official on Tuesday.

According to the Russian ground force commander-in-chief, Col. Gen. Alexander Postnikov, the brigade could be set up when the troops receive necessary weapons and equipment.

"The Ground Forces are ready to form such brigades in the very near future, but to achieve the optimal mobility and protection, they need to get the special equipment and gear first," Postnikov was quoted by the Interfax news agency as saying at a press conference in Moscow.

The Arctic brigades will receive a multipurpose armored gun transporter MT-LBV, he added.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has called for measures to better protect Russian interests in the Arctic by 2020.

The Russian Defense Ministry said in 2011 that two Arctic brigades would be established in Murmansk or Arkhangelsk in northern Russia.

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