It is one of the five military districts of the Russian Armed Forces, with its jurisdiction primarily within the central Volga, Ural and Siberia regions of the country and Russian bases in Central Asian post-Soviet states.

The district began operation on October 21, 2010, under the command of Lieutenant-General Vladimir Chirkin.

[1] The Central Military District is the largest military district in Russia by geographic size at 7,060,000 square kilometers (2,730,000 sq mi) (40% of Russian territory) and population at 54.9 million people (39%).

[2] It was reported that a new mountain motorised rifle brigade, the 55th, would be formed in Kyzyl, Tyva Republic, in 2015.

[4] In June 2015, Leslie H. Gelb wrote that the role of the Central Military District is to "orchestrate Russian engagement in local conflicts within Central Asia, to manage Russia’s bases in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, and to supply reinforcements from its two armies either to the east or the west in the event of war" and that their purpose is to "forestall instability that might spill over into Russia and to remind everyone that Russia’s Armed Forces are mightier than China’s".