The 4th Guards Military Base in Tskhinval is the Red Banner of the Orders of Kutuzov and Suvorov, Vapnyarsko-Berlin Compound, owned by the RF Armed Forces. This is an extremely important object for the Russian geopolitical presence in the region, created to strengthen state independence and protect the interests of South Ossetia, as well as to strengthen friendly relations with this partially recognized republic. There is 4 military base in Tskhinval and the village of Java.
History of creation
When the Georgian-Ossetian war ended in 1992, the Dagomys agreement was signed on the peaceful settlement of the conflict, and in accordance with this there was a need to create a JCC (Mixed Control Commission) with representatives of four parties: North and South Ossetia, Russia and Georgia. Until 2008, peacekeeping mixed forces were deployed on this territory, consisting of three battalions - Ossetian, Georgian and Russian, and OSCE observers were stationed in Tskhinval.
Before the Georgian-Ossetian war of 2008, the Georgian peacekeepers who were part of the joint headquarters ceased to obey him and left his territory. With the outbreak of war, mixed forces could not maintain peace and ceased to exist. After the hostilities ended, Russia recognized the Republic of South Ossetia, and, according to the agreement, a permanent 4 military base was established in Tskhinval.
This compound is subordinate to the Southern Military District of the RF Armed Forces. The 4th military base in Tskhinval was fully formed only in February 2009. It was based on the 693rd and 135th motorized rifle regiments and the 19th motorized rifle division. In 2010, the ministers of defense of the two countries signed an agreement according to which the 4 Guards military base incorporated all the facilities of Tskhinvali, formerly peacekeeping, as well as a training ground in Dzarcem, an air base in Java and a joint airfield in Kurt, a military town for a radar company . Payment of rent was not expected, since the use of all these objects is joint. The Republic of South Ossetia agreed to use the base for forty-nine years. It is also planned to automatically prolong for fifteen-year periods, which will follow after the expiration of the first lease term.
Short description
In December 2011, military unit 66431 received letters from the President of the Russian Federation and the St. George Banner for excellent service. According to the number of Russian troops deployed in Tskhinval, we can talk about four thousand people, armed with forty T-72 tanks, one hundred and twenty BMP-2, thirty-six 2CZ Akatsiya (self-propelled howitzers), twelve 2C12 (mortars "Sled") . Of the base’s latest weapons, there is the Tochka-U missile complex division and the Smerch MLRS division. The Georgian Foreign Ministry is confident that the S-300 air defense system is located at the military base in Tskhinvali, but this fact is denied by the Russian Ministry of Defense.
The commanders of military unit 66431 were military personnel verified by military operations. This is Major General Alexander Valeryevich Shushukin from 2009 to 2013, Colonel Mikhail Ivanovich Poleshchuk from 2013 to 2016, and now Alexander Alexandrovich Kravtsov commands the military unit.
Since 2009, only Russian servicemen have come to serve in Tskhinval. In 2012, South Ossetia added its own battalion of peacekeepers to them, and now it is this unit that has become the main military force of the partially recognized republic. And today the 4th military base is one of the main guarantees of the security of these territories, this is its main military and political task.
Thus, Russia not only helps maintain the independence of the republic, but also defends its strategic interests, since the city of Tskhinval now controls the fragile peace in the Caucasus.
Composition
The military unit 66431 in Tskhinval contains five diverse structures. First of all, these are a few objects left from the activities of the peacekeeping forces. All of them are in the city of Tskhinval. South Ossetia has provided territory for a training ground in Dzartsem, and now it is also part of the structure of a military base. There is also an air base with a military town located in Java, and another separate military camp, recently built, where a radar company is deployed and resides. In addition, there is an airfield shared by Russia and South Ossetia. Of course, all these objects cannot be found on the map. Moreover, the military base does not even have its own website.
It seems that it would be in vain to wait for the opening of such an information resource on the Web. Military unit 66431 (Tskhinval) - a strategic connection, it is unlikely that someday detailed information about it will appear in the public domain. All military personnel are required to keep secret data. But the most basic, where there is no military secret, can still be found on the Internet. So, everyone knows that servicemen of military unit 66431 (Tskhinval) perform not only in this city, but also in Java, at outposts (including in Kanchaveti), roadblocks, and in camps. You can even talk about the deployment of units.
Dislocation
South Ossetia on the map takes up very little space, and even looking at the map, you can understand that these territories are mostly mountainous. Corresponding and climate in this area. A lot of snow, from time to time threatening avalanches, the temperature in winter is up to minus twenty degrees. Nevertheless, in these harsh conditions, the military unit 66431 South Ossetia allowed to equip accordingly assigned tasks. Tskhinval has many units. First of all, artillery. To help her, the RZSO is a jet battery. There, as expected, EW troops with "jammers" ( electronic warfare troops ). Also in Tskhinval are a unit of T-72 tanks, a company of drones (UAVs), air defense forces and a medical company.
In Java, a tent camp for anti-aircraft gunners and rocket launchers, located near Upper Java, as well as several other units. The main thing here, of course, is the training ground, where all military personnel trained by military unit 66431 are trained, and exercises and tests of equipment are also held there. In Java, artillery radiotelephonists, signalmen, a motorized rifle unit and engineer and engineer troops are deployed.
It so happened that the 4th military base in Tskhinval has reviews only from those already demobilized, and even those do not differ in specifics. However, the town of Kanchaveti, where the outpost is located, is repeatedly mentioned. There are also a sufficient number of units: artillery and jet batteries, mortar batteries, tank units and reconnaissance. In addition, an air defense unit is deployed in Gorka.
How to serve in Tskhinval
The construction of the military camp was completed several years ago, and now the military will not overjoy at the new barracks. Each room for soldiers is designed for up to eight people, many less. The furniture is comfortable and in full availability. Each has a bed, bedside table and wardrobe, and almost every bed has a power outlet. Everything is new and modern. There are even cubes with televisions, simulators and sports equipment, but naturally, not all.
However, televisions are present in absolutely all household rooms, as well as in the halls. Very well equipped household rooms. Usually, if there is a standard set of ironing boards, dryers for clothes and shoes, thread needles and other things needed in the household, this is already wonderful. There is even a shoe tool and hairdryers. (Shoes, admittedly, have almost no repairs, since they issue a new one every six months.)
Life, leisure, food
Even the bathrooms are equipped modernly and with all imaginable amenities. Washbasins are all with mirrors, showers, even equipped with sinks for washing feet. If a soldier has free time (which, of course, does not happen very often), it can be spent with interest, pleasure and benefit in the leisure room. Here the soldier is waiting for a small library, guitar, backgammon, even a living corner in the form of an aquarium with fish and a parrot. The dining room is simply huge, a thousand people can dine there at the same time, and civilians provide food to the soldiers - mainly from the local population or from North Ossetia.
Officers eat separately, however, on the same soldier’s menu. Which, incidentally, is noted in all reviews - both military personnel and their parents visiting them - as magnificent, very high quality and varied. The dining room design pleases the eye. There is also a large aquarium and a TV. Officers and live separately in cockpits for two or three people, although rooms are designed for five. The conditions here are even more comfortable - there are more furniture, including armchairs, computer desks and bookcases. The kitchen is separate, a bathroom with a bath and a washing machine. The military unit has its own sports complex with simulators, there are immediately held hand-to-hand combat training. Athletes in the military unit are of a very high level - in all competitions there are always three winners. For lovers there is table tennis and billiards. Orthodox believers attend services in a chapel located on the territory of the unit.
Outpost
At remote outposts, accommodation is also quite comfortable. Not so big rooms, but the furniture is all new and complete. The change house is equipped with almost the same principle, even mirrors are there. Washrooms and showers are combined in one, and this is where the local barracks differ from those built in Tskhinval. Meals in the dining room are on the same menu, in the lounge there are newspaper sets (always fresh), books, a TV, soft sofas and armchairs. First-aid posts at remote outposts are separate.
A word of praise must be said about the landscaping of the territory. There is no dirt, the whole space is covered with prefabricated structures, a circle of bins, benches, greens. The servicemen themselves write in reviews that they even miss being demobilized, because in civilian life there is much less cleanliness and order, including in the relationship of people to each other. Catering is highly praised - this applies to all units, at outposts and in Tskhinval itself. They also write about the situation at the exercises - there, too, almost always the organization is at its best, and there is concern for every soldier.
Pros and cons
In this military unit, judging by the reviews, the normal situation doesn’t smell like hazing, on the contrary, mutual assistance is considered the main thing in the service. In Tskhinvali, the military unit is divided into two parts, based on Gorka and at the Base. The missile defense department is Gorka. There are significantly fewer bosses, but also a little less amenities because of the remoteness from the city. And with the Base, everything is in order - the city is nearby, you can take a walk, go shopping (on occasion), although those located on the territory of the unit are even better in terms of assortment and prices.
There are no ATMs at all - neither in the military unit itself, nor in the city. The closest only in Vladikavkaz. Yes, the soldiers do not have bank cards, there is a different financing system. There is a field office of the Central Bank in which each recruit receives a personal account, but more than two thousand are not handed out. However, according to the application, money is transferred to any other Russian bank, if the parents take care to send the details to their son. The account at the Central Bank field office is closed before being dismissed from the Armed Forces .
In exercises, military personnel are most often in Java, but field exercises are also held in other places. And according to this information, it is necessary to note some disadvantages. This, of course, is the climate. It has already been said that the mountains have a very great influence on weather conditions. In the mountains, everything is much more difficult, almost every step. Trouble can bring not only avalanches. North and South Ossetia is connected by only one road, which is constantly covered with snow, then mudflow, then stones. And if there is a way ahead, and the weather has not set, the difficulties cannot be counted. Sometimes the water supply fails (also for weather reasons), as a result, the appearance of linen lice was noted several times. It was possible to overcome this scourge quickly, since cleanliness is the key to health, and a red-hot iron is the first remedy. This is perhaps the biggest test that military unit 66431 (Tskhinval) experienced in peacetime.
Address
Letters and parcels here must be sent to two different addresses, be sure to indicate the letter of the desired unit. Otherwise, any mail will go as long as you like. It should be noted that resourceful military personnel operate through local residents who willingly provide such services and transmit packages. For letters, the address is: 362006 (this is the index), Alania (Republic of North Ossetia), Vladikavkaz-6, military unit 29202 (be sure to indicate: for military unit 66431), then the name of the soldier and the letter of his unit.
Parcels are sent directly to Tskhinval. The address is: 500200 (this is the main index, but another one is also used - 100001), the Republic of South Ossetia, the city of Tskhinval, Hristofor Pliev Street, Building 47, Building 1, then the name of the soldier and the letter of his unit. The difference with the indexes is as follows: for the first of them, each mailing is processed automatically, but for the second - in a manual way, which, of course, is longer. Parcels are sent to the outpost at the same address, but it must be indicated in brackets that this, for example, is Kanchaveti. All shipments are international, and therefore are issued at the General Post Office with customs duty and a declaration in triplicate. If postal workers deny the existence of such a country, they need to argue that an agreement on South Ossetia has been adopted.
Letters
- A - 1st motorized rifle battalion;
- B - 2nd motorized rifle battalion;
- G - 3rd motorized rifle battalion and commandant platoon;
- D - 1st artillery division and NA (platoon control);
- E - 2nd artillery division;
- F - signalmen;
- And - anti-aircraft gunners, company RLR, platoon RLR (NGO);
- K - intelligence;
- L - tankers;
- M - missile divisions;
- N - military band and snipers;
- P - company mat. security;
- R - engineer-sapper company;
- C - EW company;
- T - platoon RHR, flamethrower company;
- U - a company of doctors;
- F - repair company;
- Sh - UTK, SPSPS;
- Yu - firefighters, instructors;
- X - UAV company.
Conscripted servicemen can use their telephones purely on weekends; it happens that they remove the communications equipment from the soldiers. During trips and exercises, of course, military personnel are inaccessible. If the jammer is working, communication is not possible. Parents: you do not need a passport to enter South Ossetia. The local population knows the Russian language, they are friendly. You can travel by train to Vladikavkaz or by plane. Next - on the bus, which depart from the bus station as filling. Since these are minibuses, you won’t have to wait long.