The word Comrade is actually French and not Russian. In fact, I'm not sure that Russians used it much.
I checked Dictionary.com and found the following:
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/comrade
com·rade (k
m
r
d
, -r
d)
Pronunciation Key
n.
- A person who shares one's interests or activities; a friend or companion.
- often Comrade A fellow member of a group, especially a fellow member of the Communist Party.
[French camarade, from Old French,
roommate, from Old Spanish camarada,
barracks company, roommate, from camara,
room, from Late Latin camera. See
chamber.]
com
rade·ship
n. Word History: A comrade can be socially or politically close, a closeness that is found at the etymological heart of the word comrade. In Spanish the Latin word camara, with its Late Latin meaning “chamber, room,” was retained, and the derivative camarada, with the sense “roommates, especially barrack mates,” was formed. Camarada then came to have the general sense “companion.” English borrowed the word from Spanish and French, English comrade being first recorded in the 16th century. The political sense of comrade, now associated with Communism, had its origin in the late-19th-century use of the word as a title by socialists and communists in order to avoid such forms of address as mister. This usage, which originated during the French Revolution, is first recorded in English in 1884.
In fact, the Russians are more apt to use Tovarish (friend), so I looked that up as well to find:
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/tovarish
to‧va‧rishch /tʌˈvɑ
ryɪʃtʃ; Eng. toʊˈvɑr
ɪʃ/Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[tuh-vah-ryishch; Eng. toh-vahr-ish]Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–noun Russian. comrade (used as a term of address in the Soviet Union).
Also,
to‧va‧rich, to‧va‧rish, to‧va‧risch.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.0.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
It is a great history lesson, and I'm sure you'll remember it if the topic comes up again

BZ to the Admiral (or whomever wrote it)!