Situation in Afghanistan strengthens military cooperation between Kazakhstan and Russia
After the collapse of the USSR, Kazakhstan received an Armed Forces grouping consisting of small and mostly cropped units of the former Soviet army. The possibilities of the republican military-industrial complex were also very limited.
But on the territory of Kazakhstan there was a huge amount of equipment withdrawn from Eastern Europe: about five thousand tanks, about four thousand armored combat vehicles, more than two thousand artillery systems and 500 combat aircraft.
Arsenals inventory
Over the post-Soviet period, the country has built sufficiently capable armed forces, and the capabilities of the defense industry have significantly increased. Kazakhstan has retained a special relationship in the military sphere with Russia, as well as with Belarus, while rather successfully developing ties with the Western world. Advanced models of military equipment (interceptor MiG-31, fighter-bomber Su-30SM, BMPT "Ramka", MLRS TOS-1A "Solntsepek") are operated and purchased. The level of combat training of personnel is very high. At the moment, the Armed Forces of Kazakhstan are among the five strongest in the post-Soviet space.
The ground forces are divided into four regional commands (RK): "Astana", "West", "East", "South". The first two are reserve training and logistics, the other two are focused on countering threats from China, the countries of Central Asia and Afghanistan.
RK "Astana" (headquarters in Karaganda) includes the 7th mechanized brigade (the place of deployment is Karaganda), the 401st artillery brigade, the 402nd MLRS, the 403rd ATO (all three - Priozersk) brigades.
RC "West" (Atyrau): 100th artillery (Aktobe) and 390th marines brigade (Aktau, in fact - a coastal defense brigade due to the lack of landing ships in the Navy).
RC "Vostok" (Semipalatinsk): 3rd (Usharal) and 4th (Ust-Kamenogorsk) mechanized, 11th tank (Ayaguz), 101st rocket and artillery (Semey), 34th (Usharal) and 103rd (Semey) artillery, 102nd MLRS (Semey) brigade.
RC "South" (Taraz): 6th (Shymkent), 9th (Zharkent) and 12th (Guards) mechanized, 43rd tank (Sary-Ozek), 5th mountain rifle (Taraz), 44- I (Sary-Ozek) and 54th (Guards) artillery, 23rd (Guards) and 232nd (Kapchagai) engineer-sappers, 221st communications (Taraz) brigades.
In addition to the Republic of Kazakhstan, the ground forces have airmobile troops. They include the 35th (Kapchagai), 36th (Astana) and 37th (Taldy-Kurgan) airborne assault, 38th motorized rifle (Alma-Ata) brigades, peacekeeping Kazbrig, designed to participate in UN operations …
In service there are 45 launchers TR "Tochka". The tank fleet includes up to 1,300 T-72s, some of which have been modernized in Kazakhstan itself, at least 280 T-62 and 50 T-64, about 100 T-80. There are up to 3,000 tanks of the same types in warehouses, most of them, however, are non-combatant and can only serve as a source of spare parts.
There are 10 Russian BMPT "Frame" (better known as "Terminator"), which are not in service in any country in the world, even in our country. There are about 260 BRDM-2, up to 140 BRM-1, up to 730 BMP-1, up to 800 BMP-2. Except for the latter, all cars are seriously outdated. The most numerous class of armored vehicles are traditionally armored personnel carriers: 40 Turkish "Cobra", up to 150 very old Soviet BTR-50 and the same number of BTR-60PB, at least 45 BTR-70, 141 BTR-80, 93 BTR-80A, 74 BTR-82A (of which 30 are in the marines), up to 686 MTLB, 2 Ukrainian BTR-3U (Kazakhstan refused further purchases of these vehicles). The BTR-80A and BTR-82A fleet is being replenished with supplies from Russia. There are more than 400 self-propelled guns: 26 2S9, up to 120 2S1, 6 "Semser" of local production according to Israeli technology (howitzer D-30 in the back of a KamAZ), up to 120 2S3. Towed guns: 183 D-30, up to 350 M-46, 180 2A36, 90 2A65, 74 D-20. Mortars: 18 self-propelled "Aybat" (2B11 on MTLB chassis, again Israeli technology), 145 Soviet 2B11, 19 self-propelled 2S4. Rocket artillery has significant potential - over 300 MLRS: up to 150 Soviet BM-21 (about 50 more in storage) and 180 Uragan, 3 newest TOS-1A, 15 Smerch, 18 own multi-caliber MLRS Niza, created by Israeli technology. There are ATGMs "Fagot", "Konkurs" and "Shturm-S", from 68 to 125 ATM MT-12, SAM "Strela-10", at least 20 MANPADS "Igla".
The Air Force and Air Defense (the official name is the Air Defense Forces) include nine main air bases: 600 (Zhetigen-Nikolaevka), 602 (Shymkent), 603 (Alma-Ata), 604 (Taldy- Kurgan), 607th (Ucharal), 609th (Balkhash), 610th (Karaganda), 612th (Aktau), 620th (Astana). The "branches" of the Air Force are de facto aviation of the border troops and the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
As part of the Air Force, in addition to MiGs, Su and transport aircraft, there is an An-30 optical reconnaissance aircraft (in the Ministry of Emergencies) and up to 18 Czechoslovak training L-39s. All Soviet cars are seriously outdated. Of the helicopters, only the EC145 and Mi-17 are modern.
Ground-based air defense includes 9 divisions (at least 100 launchers) of the S-300P air defense system and at least 18 divisions (from 72 launchers) of the S-125 air defense system, up to 10 divisions (60 launchers) of the S-200 air defense system, 5 divisions (20 launchers) of the Kvadrat air defense system.
The navy and the border service fleet are located in common bases and are equipped with the same equipment, therefore, they are considered as a single whole. They include only patrol boats: 5-6 of the Oral type (project 0200M Burkit-M, based on the Soviet project 1400M), 3 Kazakhstan (project 0250 Bars-MO), 4 Sardar”(Project 22180“Bars”), 2“Shapshan”(South Korean“Sea Dolphin”). Except for the latter, all were built in Kazakhstan.
Bratsk polygon
The capabilities of the defense industry complex were initially rather limited, and, paradoxically, the republic, which has access only to the Caspian Sea, specialized in naval technology. But during the period of independence, the country has created a fairly balanced industry, which now produces, under licenses, Russian cars and combat boats, Turkish armored personnel carriers, Belarusian automated control systems, European helicopters, South Korean boats, etc. weapons and ammunition. Joint ventures for the production of communication equipment have been opened; in the near future, UAVs, optoelectronic and radar systems, new models of aircraft and helicopters will be created. It is planned to start production of artillery systems for various purposes, an armored repair and recovery vehicle based on the T-72, an autonomous Igla-S anti-aircraft module on the BRDM chassis, universal self-defense launch modules based on the Igla-S and Shturm-Attack missiles, electronic intelligence equipment, etc.
The Sary-Shagan training ground is home to a Russian Dnepr-type early warning radar. There are no other foreign troops and military facilities in the country. But the RF Armed Forces regularly use the local training grounds left over from the USSR.
Kazakhstan is a member of all pro-Russian organizations in the post-Soviet space, including the CSTO and Moscow's most important unifying project, the EAEU. But this union, as Astana constantly emphasizes, is purely economic, it does not imply any political integration. Relations with Moscow are close, but by no means idyllic. They are most closely related to the military field. In particular, the CSTO CRRF for a long time was de facto Russian-Kazakh, now Belarusian forces have been added to them, thus repeating the configuration of the EAEU.
By many socio-economic indicators, Kazakhstan has become the most successful of all post-Soviet states with complete political stability. From the countries of Central Asia, only here Russians and other non-indigenous nationalities were not subjected to direct persecution during the collapse of the USSR and did not flee en masse to Russia, leaving property. Therefore, the share of Russians in the population is quite high. However, now Kazakhstan is the leader in the number of people leaving for Russia. There is a “glass ceiling” effect: all the top positions in state structures and the economy are held by representatives of the indigenous nation. For many economically active non-titular natives, this situation is unacceptable.
There is no one closer to us
Our conflict with Ankara became a problem for Astana. Kazakhstan's relations with Turkey were almost as close as with Russia. This also extended to military construction. It was with Turkish help that Kazakhstan created its own version of the T-72 "Shagys" tank. At the KADEX 2012 exhibition, it was striking that of the four huge hangars-pavilions provided to foreign participants, two were mixed, and of the two mono-national ones, one was Russian, the second was Turkish. At the entrance to the latter, an ad for air defense equipment from Aselsan was spinning endlessly. On it, Turkish air defense systems famously shot down Russian Su-30 and Ka-52. It was in the spring of 2012 when the bilateral relationship seemed just fine.
However, unlike the Transcaucasian countries, Kazakhstan is not in danger of being drawn into a theoretically still possible Russian-Turkish war. Astana can just wait for the situation to somehow resolve. The inevitable aggravation of the situation in Afghanistan, which will almost certainly be projected onto Central Asia, will naturally strengthen military cooperation between Moscow and Astana. Thus, despite the problems and frictions, Kazakhstan will remain Russia's closest ally, at least for the foreseeable future.
