The new battalion of the internal troops of Dagestan is formed from the natives of the republic. According to experts, it can be used, in particular, to protect the security of the leadership of Dagestan, as well as operations in the mountains on the border with Georgia, BBC reports.
The special battalion will be stationed in Kaspiysk, where a fortified base is already being built for it. The new formation is being created on behalf of the President of Russia in response to the request of the head of Dagestan Magomedsalam Magomedov in August 2010 to form national divisions in the republic within the structure of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia.
Colonel Vasily Panchenkov, head of the press service of the Main Command of the Interior Ministry of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, said: "We hope that the servicemen who will serve in the battalion will be helped in the performance of their service and combat tasks by their good knowledge of the languages of the peoples of the republic, mentality, and customs of the peoples. Dagestan ".
The battalion has already recruited 300 people. In the future, up to 700 fighters will serve in it, who will be recruited from representatives of all the peoples of Dagestan. According to Panchenkov, the experience of several years of actions of two similar special battalions formed from residents of Chechnya was taken as a basis.
The emergence of a fundamentally new military unit for Dagestan, according to a number of experts, may lead to an increase in the influence of that part of the local elite that can control the leadership of the battalion.
