Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan

Military of Kazakhstan
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	Unknown
Expenditure
Budget	$175 million (FY01)
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and 35th air-landing brigades, 2 rocket brigades, 2 artillery regiments and a large amount of equipment which had been withdrawn from over the Urals after the signing of the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe.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).

Kazakhs and NATO

Kazakhstan sent 49 military engineers to Iraq under US command as part of Multinational Division Central-South. These engineers were sent to assist the US occupation in Iraq in order to provide a show of support to the West, while maintaining a cost-effective force.

Ground forces

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

Kazakhstani soldier with AK-74 (CENTRASBAT 2000)

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) – 4 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 600 tanks and about 500 armoured fighting vehicles. The 78th Tank Division had 550 tanks, 390 armoured fighting vehicles and 190 artillery pieces. The 210th Separate Training Center (a former motor rifle training division) had 15000 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 Elite Republican Guard exists, with 3,500 soldiers (1997), but this force is not considered a part of the Army and positioned like a U.S. national guard. Some of Kazakhstan's officers learned in 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. Many of these are Soviet-era in russian's modern prodaction MBT's.

Commando units

• Arystan (en:Lions) - a Kazakstani main battle commando (former USSR Turkestan's ALFA spetsnaz gruop), distonation: Almaty, Astana, Aktau (including battle swiming fighters);
• Border Service Commando Gruops: Buran, Orlan, special paratroops brigade - "Ak-Barys" (army gruops of KNB);
• Police spec-ops: Bron and Berkut gruops;
• Presidental commando forces: SoP, Kokzhal (en:Wolfs);
• Army commandos:

-1st paratroops of Kapshagai brigade; -paratroops of Taldykorgan brigade; -3d kazakhi caspian marines brigade; -khazakhi mountain brigade;

Current inventory

Light equipment

• AK-74;
• AKS-74U;
• AK-101;
• AK-103;
• AK-107;
• RPG-7;
• RPG-32;
• bazalt;
• PK machine gun;
• SVD rifle;
• NSV (machine gun);

Tanks

• T-72 - 650

Infantry Fighting Vehicles

A Kazakstani BTR-80 driver sits atop his troop carrier vehicle.

• BMP-1 - 940;
• BMP-2 - 965;
• BMP-3 - 4
• HMMWV - 40;

Armored Personnel Carriers

• BTR-80 - 99
• BRDM-2 - 350;

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 - 130;
• 120 mm 2S9 - 122;
• 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

Kazakhstan Mi-8MT helicopter.

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-23 || Soviet Union || fighter || MiG-23 || 90 || |----- | Mikoyan MiG-27 || Soviet Union || fighter || MiG-27 || 90 || |----- | Mikoyan MiG-29M || Russia || fighter (russian modernisation) || MiG-29 || 40 || |----- | Mikoyan MiG-31 Foxhound || Soviet Union || interceptor || MiG-31 || 33 ||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 || {{{s}}}, [[{{{slan}}}]] || 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 || 25
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.
• see also - http://www.cacianalyst.org/?q=node/4472
• see also - Building National Armies - Kazakhstan