Covering Army

a part of the armed forces of a state which, until the middle of the 20th century, was entrusted with the protection of its borders from sudden enemy attack on land, from the sea, or from the air and was also responsible for the mobilization, concentration, and deployment of the main forces. The composition of a covering army was determined by the length of the borders, by their accessibility, and by the degree of external threat. A covering army was usually supported by a system of frontier fortifications. In 1941 the Soviet covering army put up a determined resistance in the face of the fascist German troops which attacked the USSR. Today, because of the threat of a nuclear war, both sides continually maintain in peacetime large forces of the strategic assault echelon in a state of complete combat readiness. To support the activities of these forces, separate units of various sizes called covering troops are moved up to the border. Covering armies are not used at the present time.