Denis Vetchinov
Encyclopedia
Denis Vasiliyevich Vetchinov ' onMouseout='HidePop("2855")' href="/topics/Stepnogorsk">Stepnogorsk
– 9 August 2008 in South Ossetia
) was a Russian Ground Forces
major killed in action during the 2008 South Ossetia war
and posthumuously awarded with Russia's highest military award, Hero of the Russian Federation
, for his role in the conflict.
(now Kazakhstan
), he graduated from the Omsk Officers' Academy in 1999. He participated in the Second Chechen War
.
, a column of Russian vehicles with a few journalists and 58th army
commander Anatoly Khrulyov
onboard was ambush
ed by Georgian
special forces in the outskirts of Tskhinvali
. Khrulyov was wounded in the ensuing firefight. Vetchinov, armed with a trophy Georgian machine gun, organised defence but was wounded in both legs. He continued firing at the enemy and killed a Georgian soldier. Vetchinov kept covering fire until he was hit in the head by Georgian fire. He died on the way to hospital. On 15 August Denis Vetchinov was posthumuously awarded the Hero of the Russian Federation
golden star "for courage and heroism while fulfilling his duty in the North Caucasus region". He is survived by his wife and little daughter.
Stepnogorsk
Stepnogorsk is a town in Akmola Province, Kazakhstan. It was established in 1959, and has been a town since 1964. It is located about 200km North-East of Astana. It was first established as a secret town with code names Tselinograd-25 , Makinsk-2 . The town is known as a nuclear and biochemical site...
– 9 August 2008 in South Ossetia
South Ossetia
South Ossetia or Tskhinvali Region is a disputed region and partly recognized state in the South Caucasus, located in the territory of the South Ossetian Autonomous Oblast within the former Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic....
) was a Russian Ground Forces
Russian Ground Forces
The Russian Ground Forces are the land forces of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, formed from parts of the collapsing Soviet Army in 1992. The formation of these forces posed economic challenges after the collapse of the Soviet Union, and required reforms to professionalize the force...
major killed in action during the 2008 South Ossetia war
2008 South Ossetia war
The 2008 South Ossetia War or Russo-Georgian War was an armed conflict in August 2008 between Georgia on one side, and Russia and separatist governments of South Ossetia and Abkhazia on the other....
and posthumuously awarded with Russia's highest military award, Hero of the Russian Federation
Hero of the Russian Federation
Hero of the Russian Federation is a Russian decoration and the highest honorary title that can be bestowed on a citizen by the Russian Federation. The President of the Russian Federation is the main conferring authority of the medal, which is bestowed on those committing actions or deeds that...
, for his role in the conflict.
Biography
Born 23 June 1976 in StepnogorskStepnogorsk
Stepnogorsk is a town in Akmola Province, Kazakhstan. It was established in 1959, and has been a town since 1964. It is located about 200km North-East of Astana. It was first established as a secret town with code names Tselinograd-25 , Makinsk-2 . The town is known as a nuclear and biochemical site...
(now Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
), he graduated from the Omsk Officers' Academy in 1999. He participated in the Second Chechen War
Second Chechen War
The Second Chechen War, in a later phase better known as the War in the North Caucasus, was launched by the Russian Federation starting 26 August 1999, in response to the Invasion of Dagestan by the Islamic International Peacekeeping Brigade ....
.
Death
On 9 August 2008, the second day of Russian involvement in the Battle of TskhinvaliBattle of Tskhinvali
The Battle of Tskhinvali was a fight for the city of Tskhinvali, capital of South Ossetia. It was the only major battle in the 2008 South Ossetia War. Georgian ground troops entered the city on early 8 August 2008, after an extensive artillery barrage. Their advance was stopped by South Ossetian...
, a column of Russian vehicles with a few journalists and 58th army
58th Army (Russia)
The 58th Army is a field army; first of the Soviet Union's Red Army and subsequently of the Russian Ground Forces....
commander Anatoly Khrulyov
Anatoly Khrulyov
Lieutenant General Anatoly Khrulyov is a Russian general who was the commander of the Russian 58th Army in South Ossetia during the 2008 South Ossetia War. He was wounded when his military column moving into Tskhinvali was destroyed by Georgian special forces on 9 August 2008.- References :...
onboard was ambush
Ambush
An ambush is a long-established military tactic, in which the aggressors take advantage of concealment and the element of surprise to attack an unsuspecting enemy from concealed positions, such as among dense underbrush or behind hilltops...
ed by Georgian
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
special forces in the outskirts of Tskhinvali
Tskhinvali
Tskhinvali , is the capital of South Ossetia, a disputed region which has been recognised as an independent Republic by Russia, Venezuela, Nicaragua and Nauru, and is regarded by Georgia and the rest of the world as part of the Shida Kartli region within Georgian sovereign territory.It is located...
. Khrulyov was wounded in the ensuing firefight. Vetchinov, armed with a trophy Georgian machine gun, organised defence but was wounded in both legs. He continued firing at the enemy and killed a Georgian soldier. Vetchinov kept covering fire until he was hit in the head by Georgian fire. He died on the way to hospital. On 15 August Denis Vetchinov was posthumuously awarded the Hero of the Russian Federation
Hero of the Russian Federation
Hero of the Russian Federation is a Russian decoration and the highest honorary title that can be bestowed on a citizen by the Russian Federation. The President of the Russian Federation is the main conferring authority of the medal, which is bestowed on those committing actions or deeds that...
golden star "for courage and heroism while fulfilling his duty in the North Caucasus region". He is survived by his wife and little daughter.