Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan

Kazakhstani Armed Forces
Current form	1992
Service branches	Ground Forces Air and Air Defense Forces Naval Force Border Services Republican Guard
Personnel
Military age	18; minimum age for volunteers N/A (2004)
Conscription	Two years
Available for military service	3,758,255 males, age 15–49 (2005 est.), 3,822,845 females, age 15–49 (2005 est.)
Fit for military service	2,473,529 males, age 15–49 (2005 est.), 3,168,048 females, age 15–49 (2005 est.)
Reaching military age annually	173,129 males (2005 est.), 168,697 females (2005 est.)
Active personnel	150,000
Expenditure
Budget	$1.3 billion (FY08)
Percent of GDP	1.5% (2006 est.)

The Military of Kazakhstan is derived from a remnant force of the former Soviet Union. On June 30, 1992, the Soviet Armed Forces' Turkestan Military District disbanded, following the collapse of the Soviet Union.

The most powerful grouping of forces from the Turkestan Military District then became the core of Kazakhstan's new military which acquired all the units of the 40th Army (the former 32nd Army) and part of the 17th Army Corps, including 6 land force divisions, storage bases, the 14th and 35th air-landing brigades, 2 rocket brigades, 2 artillery regiments and a large amount of equipment which had been withdrawn from over the Urals after the signing of the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe.

Kazakhstan maintains naval forces operating on the Caspian Sea with a strength of 3,000, equipped with 12 inshore patrol craft; including 4 Almaty, 1 Dauntless, 5 Guardian, and 2 Zhuk class vessels.

Today there are four regional commands: Regional Command Astana, Regional Command South at Taraz, Regional Command East at Semipalatinsk, Regional Command West at Aktobe, as well as the Air Defence Forces, the Air Mobile Forces of three brigades, and the Artillery and Missile Forces (formed as a separate branch on 7 May 2003).

1992

• January 13 - Law «On the Border Troops of the Republic of Kazakhstan» was adopted.
• January - Internal troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Kazakhstan were formed.
• March 6 - President of Kazakhstan signed a decree on the Creation of the Republican Guard. Two Republican Guard regiment stationed in Astana and Almaty.
• May 7 - President of Kazakhstan signed a decree on the 'establishing the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan', the transformation of the State Committee of Defense of the Republic of Kazakhstan Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Kazakhstan, on the attribution of SK Nurmagambetovu military rank of colonel-general and the appointment of General-Colonel SK Nurmagambetova Defense Minister of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
• November 1 - on the basis of connections and parts of the former 32nd Army of the Turkestan Military District the First Army Corps was created, with its headquarters in Semipalatinsk. Later, at its base was established the Eastern Military District, reorganized 13 November 2003, as the Regional Command East.

Ground forces

Members of the Kazakhstan Republican Guard perform precision drill routines during CENTRASBAT (Central Asian Peacekeeping Battalion) 2000 opening ceremonies

In the middle of the 1990s Kazakhstan's land forces included the 1st Army Corps (HQ Semipalatinsk), with the 68th (the former 372nd Red Banner Novgorod Rifle Div) Motor Rifle Division (Sary Ozek, in Kyzylorda Province) – 2 motor-rifle and one tank regiment and the 78th Tank Division (Ayaguz). While the 68th Division was called a motor-rifle formation, in equipment terms it had almost 300 tanks and about 500 armoured fighting vehicles. The 78th Tank Division had 350 tanks, 290 armoured fighting vehicles and 150 artillery pieces. The 210th Separate Training Center (a former motor rifle training division) had 6000 soldier and officers and 220 tanks and 220 artillery pieces, so was a strengthened division. (It was often called the Division of Guards by Kazakh sources).

Since 2000, the Kazakhstan Army has been rapidly expanded. Many of the systems are Russian made, with a small number of American systems also entering service in the Kazakh inventory.

Additionally, a small Republican Guard exists, with 2,500 soldiers (1994), but this force is not considered a part of the Army. Some of Kazakhstan's officers have trained at the United States Military Academy at West Point.

The largest expansion of the Kazakhstan Army has been focused on armored units in recent years. Since 1990, armored units have expanded from 500, to and 1,613 or more in 2005-2008.

Commando units

• Arystan ('Lions') - a Kazakhstani main battle commando (former USSR Turkestan's ALFA Spetsnaz group), locations: Almaty, Astana, Aktau (including battle swimming fighters);
• Border Service Commando Groups: Buran, Orlan, special paratroops brigade - "Ak-Barys" (army groups of KNB);
• Police special operations: Bron and Berkut groups; Sunkar;
• Presidential commando forces: SoP, Kokzhal ('Wolves')
• Army commando:
  • 1st paratroops of Kapshagai brigade;
  • paratroops of Taldykorgan brigade;
  • 3d Kazakh Caspian marines brigade;
  • Kazakh mountain brigade;

Current inventory

Gen. Maj. Adilbek Aldaberpenov (left), Kazakhstan Air Mobile Forces commander, greets Lt. Gen. William G. Webster, Third Army/U.S. Army Central commanding general

Third Army/USARCENT Maintenance noncommissioned officer in charge, lay a wreath at a war memorial in honor of fallen heroes from the World War II and the Afghanistan War, in Almaty, Kazakhstan, Sept. 25.

Light equipment

• AK-74;
• AKS-74U;
• RPG-7;
• PK machine gun;
• SVD rifle;
• NSV (machine gun);

Tanks

4900, in service - 1550.

• T-62 - 250
• T-72B - 1372
• T-80U - 290

Infantry Fighting Vehicles

APC units: 5179; in service - 2806;

• BMP-1-BMP-2 - 2702;
• MT-LB-200

• HMMWV - 40;
• BRDM - 140;
• BTR - 104;
• BTR-50-300
• BTR-60-300
• BTR-70-45
• BTR-80-BTR-80A-94

Artillery

Towed Artillery

• 100 mm MT-12 - 230;
• 122 mm D-30 - 440;
• 130 mm M-46 - 585;
• 152 mm D-20 - 330;
• 152 mm 2A36 - 300;
• 152 mm 2A65 - 290;

Self-propelled Artillery

• 122 mm 2S1 - 50;
• 152 mm 2S3 - 119;
• 170 mm M-1978 - 80;

Rocket Artillery

• 107 mm Type-63 - 220;
• 122 mm BM-21 - 190;
• 122 mm BM-14 - ~80;
• 220 mm 9P140 Uragan - 130;
• 240 mm M-1985 - 13;

Helicopters

Attack helicopters:

• 85 Mi-24 Hind

Transport Helicopters:

• 45 Mi-8 Hip/Mi-17 Hip-H

Air and Air Defense Forces

Template:Standard table ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Aircraft ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Origin ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Type ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Versions ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|In service ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Notes |- ! style="align: center; background: lavender;" colspan="7" | Fighter Aircraft |----- | Mikoyan MiG-27K || Soviet Union || fighter || MiG-27 || 120 || |----- | Mikoyan MiG-25 || Soviet Union || fighter || MiG-25 || 29 || |----- | Mikoyan MiG-23 || Soviet Union || fighter || MiG-23 || 100 || |----- | Mikoyan MiG-29 || Soviet Union || fighter || MiG-29 || 41 || |----- | Mikoyan MiG-31 Foxhound || Soviet Union || interceptor || MiG-31 || 44 ||Former 356th Fighter Aviation Regiment, flying from Semipalitinsk Airport; aircraft in storage. Ten aircraft to be refurbished by RSK MIG, Sept 2007. |----- | Sukhoi Su-27 Flanker || Russia || fighter || Su-27 || 60 || |- ! style="align: center; background: lavender;" colspan="7" | Ground-Attack Aircraft |----- | Sukhoi Su-24 Fencer || Soviet Union || bomber ||Su-24
Su-24MR || 37
12 || |----- | Sukhoi Su-25 Frogfoot || Russia || attack || Su-25
Su-25UB || 25
12 || |- ! style="align: center; background: lavender;" colspan="7" | Transport and Liaison Aircraft |----- | Antonov An-26 Curl || Soviet Union || tactical transport || An-26 || 16 || |----- | C-130 Hercules || United States || transport || C-130 || 2 || |- ! style="align: center; background: lavender;" colspan="7" | Attack Helicopters |----- | Mil Mi-24 Hind || Soviet Union || attack helicopter (Russian modernisation) || Mi-24V || 42 || |- ! style="align: center; background: lavender;" colspan="7" | Transport and Utility Helicopters |----- | Bell UH-1 Iroquois || United States || multi-role helicopter || UH-1H Huey II || 20 || |----- | Mil Mi-8 Hip || Russia || transport helicopter || Mi-17 || 24 || |----- | Mil Mi-26 Halo || Soviet Union || transport helicopter || Mi-26 || 17 ||-- |----- |}

Surface-to-Air Missiles include many of:

• Lavochkin SA-2 Guideline
• Isayev SA-3 Goa
• Almaz SA-5 Gammon
• S-300 missile systems
• S-300 MPU-2 FAVORIT missile systems

References

• CIA World Factbook, 2003 edition.

External links

• Building National Armies - Kazakhstan
• Kazakhstan army video
• Photogallery of kazakhi army
• Commando forces video
• Kazakh armored forces parade
• Military drill in Kazakhstan
• Biz Türküz (Turkic Military Union)