| Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan Қазақстанның Қарулы Kүштері |
|
|---|---|
| Current form | 1992 |
| Service branches | Ground Forces Air and Air Defence Forces Naval Forces Republican Guard |
| Headquarters | Astana, Almaty |
| Leadership | |
| Commander-in-Chief | Nursultan Nazarbayev |
| Minister of Defence | Adilbek Dzhaksybekov |
| Manpower | |
| Military age | 18-45 years old; |
| Conscription | Two years |
| Active personnel | 65,800-100,000 |
| Reserve personnel | 237,000 |
| Expenditures | |
| Budget | $1.125 billion U$D (FY10) |
| Percent of GDP | 0.8% (2010 est.) |
| Industry | |
| Foreign suppliers | Russia United States Belarus Turkey Ukraine Israel Latvia France Lithuania Estonia |
The Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan (Kazakh: Қазақстанның Қарулы күштері Qazaqstannyñ Qarūly küshteri), is the name of the unified armed forces of Kazakhstan. The Kazakhstani military is a defence force consisting of the Ground Forces, Air and Air Defence Forces, Naval Forces, Republican Guard. The national defence policy aims which are based on the Constitution of Kazakhstan are to guarantee the preservation of the independence and sovereignty of the state and the integrity of its land area, territorial waters and airspace and its constitutional order. The armed forces of Kazakhstan are performed under the authority of the Kazakhstan Ministry of Defense. The national defence policy aims which are based on the Constitution of Kazakhstan are to guarantee the preservation of the independence and sovereignty of the state and the integrity of its land area, territorial waters and airspace and its constitutional order. The armed forces of Kazakhstan are performed under the authority of the Kazakhstani Ministry of Defense.
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On May 7, 1992, the President of Kazakhstan took a number of actions regarding defence. He signed a decree on the 'establishment of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan', the transformation of the State Committee of Defence of the Republic of Kazakhstan into the Ministry of Defence, on the attribution of Sagadat Nurmagambetov the military rank of Colonel General, and the appointment of General-Colonel Sagadat Nurmagambetov as Defence Minister of Kazakhstan. Mukhtar Altynbayev served as the Minister of Defence twice, most recently from December 2001 to 10 January 2007.
On July 6, 2000, a Presidential Decree "On the structure of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan" changed the structure: The Armed Forces returned to a dual structure (general-purpose forces and air defense forces). The Air Mobile Troops were created, the transition to the new military-territorial structure, established military districts, harmonized structure and deployment of troops. On August 7, Lieutenant-General A. B. Dzharbulov was appointed commander of the Southern Military District and Lieutenant-General E. Ertaev became commander of the Eastern Military District.
In February 2001 a Presidential Decree divided the functions of the Ministry of Defence and General Staff. According to the decree, the head of the General Staff subordinates all kinds of aircraft and type of troops and military districts, while the Minister of Defence has a mostly administrative and political functions. On March 30, Major General M. K. Sihimov was appointed commander of the Western Military Region. On October 12, M. Saparov was appointed to Chief of the General Staff and First Deputy of the Defence Minister. V. B. Elamanov became commander of the Air Mobile Troops. On December 8, a new Defense Minister was appointed: General K. Altynbayev, and on December 27, Major General K. K. Akhmadiev was appointed commander of the Air Defense Forces.
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 Troops with four brigades, and the Artillery and Missile Forces (formed as a separate branch on 7 May 2003).[1]
Kazakhstan has an Individual Partnership Action Plan with NATO & strategic cooperation with the Turkish Armed Forces.
On November 1, 1992, the First Army Corps was created in Kazakhstan, with its headquarters in Semipalatinsk.[2] Later, at its base was established the Eastern Military District, retitled on 13 November 2003 as Regional Command East.
Immediately prior to its dissolution, the 32nd Army consisted of the 78th Tank Division (Ayaguz); the 5202nd Base for Storage of Weapons and Equipment (BKhVT) Semipalatinsk; the 5203rd BKhVT Ust-Kamenogorsk; and the 5204th BKhVT at Karaganda.
In the middle of the 1990s Kazakhstan's land forces included the 1st Army Corps (HQ Semipalatinsk), with the 68th Motor Rifle Division (Sary-Ozek, in Kyzylorda Province) – 2 motor-rifle and one tank regiment and the 78th Tank Division (Ayaguz).[3] 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 6,000 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).
Some of Kazakhstan's officers have trained at the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Today the Ground Forces include four regional commands:[4]
Ground forces equipment includes:[7]
Infantry Fighting Vehicles
Towed Artillery
Self-propelled Artillery
Rocket Artillery
Mortars
There are a number of special forces units reporting to various Kazakh security agencies which are not part of the Armed Forces. The National Security Committee of the Republic of Kazakhstan has the Arystan commando unit, KNS' Border Guards has a unit, the Police have units, and the Presidency is reported to have its own units also.
Additionally, a small Republican Guard exists, with 2,500 soldiers (1994), but this force is not considered a part of the Army. The Republican Guard was established on March 6, 1992, when the President of Kazakhstan signed a decree on their creation. The Republican Guard was established on the basis of a separate brigade of operational designation of the Internal Troops deployed in the village of Kaskelen district of Almaty region.[9] Two Republican Guard regiments were created, stationed in Astana and Almaty.
Today the Kazakh Air and Air Defence Force has four fast jet bases:[10]
As of November 2008 the Kazakh Air Force fielded the following equipment:[11]
| Aircraft | Type | Versions | In service[12] | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fighter Aircraft | ||||||
| Mikoyan MiG-25 | fighter | MiG-25 | 16 | |||
| Mikoyan MiG-29 | fighter | MiG-29/-29UB | 15 | |||
| Mikoyan MiG-31 Foxhound | interceptor | MiG-31/-31B | 42 | Ten aircraft to be refurbished by RSK MIG, Sept 2007.[13] | ||
| Sukhoi Su-27 Flanker | fighter | Su-27/-27UB | 47 | |||
| Ground-Attack Aircraft | ||||||
| Sukhoi Su-24 Fencer | bomber | Su-24 | 40 | |||
| Sukhoi Su-25 Frogfoot | attack | Su-25/-25UB | 14 | |||
| Mikoyan MiG-27 Flogger | attack | MiG-27M/-27D | unk | An estimated 40 MiG-23UB/MiG-27 are still operational[14] | ||
| Mikoyan MiG-23 Flogger | combat-trainer | MiG-23UB | unk | |||
| Transport and Liaison Aircraft | ||||||
| Antonov An-12 Cub | tactical transport | An-12 | 3 | |||
| Antonov An-26 Curl | tactical transport | An-26 | 5 | |||
| Attack Helicopters | ||||||
| Mil Mi-24 Hind | attack helicopter (Russian modernisation) | Mi-24P/-24V | 36 | |||
| Transport and Utility Helicopters | ||||||
| Mil Mi-8 Hip | transport helicopter | Mi-17/-17V-5 | 14 | |||
| Mil Mi-26 Halo | transport helicopter | Mi-26T/-26TZ | 22 | |||
Surface-to-Air Missiles include:
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.[15]
Nezavisimoye Voyennoye Obozreniye said in 2010 that the Kazakh navy consists of 9 patrol boats, including one Turkish-built boat, 4 1950s vintage German boats, 2 new Saigak boats built in Russia (13 tons(?)), 1 Dauntless class boat built in the US, and 1 Berkut-class boat built in Kazakhstan.[16]
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