Turkestan Military District
Encyclopedia
The Turkestan Military District was a military district
Military district
Military districts are formations of a state's armed forces which are responsible for a certain area of territory. They are often more responsible for administrative than operational matters, and in countries with conscript forces, often handle parts of the conscription cycle.Navies have also used...

 of both the Imperial Russian Army
Imperial Russian Army
The Imperial Russian Army was the land armed force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian army consisted of around 938,731 regular soldiers and 245,850 irregulars . Until the time of military reform of Dmitry Milyutin in...

 and the Soviet Armed Forces
Soviet Armed Forces
The Soviet Armed Forces, also called the Armed Forces of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and Armed Forces of the Soviet Union refers to the armed forces of the Russian SFSR , and Soviet Union from their beginnings in the...

, with its headquarters at Tashkent
Tashkent
Tashkent is the capital of Uzbekistan and of the Tashkent Province. The officially registered population of the city in 2008 was about 2.2 million. Unofficial sources estimate the actual population may be as much as 4.45 million.-Early Islamic History:...

. The District was first created during the 1874 Russian military reform when by order of Minister D.A. Milyutinym the territory of Russia was divided into 14 military districts. Its first commander was Konstantin Petrovich von Kaufman
Konstantin Petrovich Von Kaufman
Konstantin Petrovich von Kaufman was the first Governor-General of Russian Turkestan.-Early life:His family was Austrian in origin, but had been in the service of the Tsars for over 100 years, and had long since converted to Orthodoxy...

, who was also Governor-General of Russian Turkestan
Russian Turkestan
Russian Turkestan was the western part of Turkestan within the Russian Empire , comprising the oasis region to the south of the Kazakh steppes, but not the protectorates of the Emirate of Bukhara and the Khanate of Khiva.-History:-Establishment:Although Russia had been pushing south into the...

 at the time.

From 1918 to 1926 the District was referred to as the Turkestani Front as its forces were conducting active operations, against the Basmachi Revolt
Basmachi Revolt
The Basmachi movement or Basmachi Revolt was an uprising against Russian Imperial and Soviet rule by the Muslim, largely Turkic peoples of Central Asia....

, throughout practically all the District's territory. By USSR Order No.304 of June, 4th, 1926 the Turkestani front was renamed as the Central Asian Military District (САВО), included territories Turkmen and Uzbek SSRs, Kirghiz and Tadjik ASSRs. In connection with changes of administrative-territorial division of republics and areas of Central Asia as of August, 1940 the district included the Kazakh, Kirghiz, Tadjik, Turkmen, and Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republics. On 22 June 1941 the Central Asian Military District included the 4th Cavalry Corps, the 27th Mechanised Corps, the 58th Rifle Corps, and the independent 238th Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

 Rifle Division, as well as air forces and district troops.

1945 Onwards

The District was re-created on 9 July 1945 after the division of the Central Asian Military District into the Turkestan and Steppe Military Districts. The new Turkestan and Steppe District were formed from the headquarters of the 1st
1st Shock Army
The 1st Shock Army was a field army established by the Soviet Union's Red Army during World War II.The 1st Shock Army was created in late 1941 and fought in the northern areas of Russia and the Baltic States until the defeat of Germany in 1945...

 and 4th Shock Armies respectively. In January 1958 from the abolished South Ural Military District the Turkestan District gained the territories of Aktyubinsk, Guryev and the West-Kazakhstan areas of the Kazakh SSR
Kazakh SSR
The Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Kazakh SSR for short, was one of republics that made up the Soviet Union.At in area, it was the second largest constituent republic in the USSR, after the Russian SFSR. Its capital was Alma-Ata . Today it is the independent state of...

.

In 1957 5th Guards Motor Rifle Division, the former 5th Guards Mechanised Corps that had ended the war in Germany with 4th Tank Army, moved to Kushka
Kushka
Kushka may refer to:*Serhetabat, Turkmenistan*Kushka, Balkh, Afghanistan...

 in the Uzbek SSR
Uzbek SSR
The Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Uzbek SSR for short, was one of the republics of the Soviet Union since its creation in 1924...

.

Initially it covered most of Soviet Central Asia
Soviet Central Asia
Soviet Central Asia refers to the section of Central Asia formerly controlled by the Soviet Union, as well as the time period of Soviet administration . In terms of area, it is nearly synonymous with Russian Turkestan, the name for the region during the Russian Empire...

, but on June 24, 1969 the Central Asian Military District was reformed following difficulties between the USSR and the People's Republic of China, covering the Tajik SSR
Tajik SSR
The Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Tajik SSR for short, was one of the 15 republics that made up the Soviet Union. Located in Central Asia, the Tajik SSR was created on 5 December 1929 as a national entity for the Tajik people within the Soviet Union...

, the Kyrgyz SSR, and the Kazakh SSR
Kazakh SSR
The Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Kazakh SSR for short, was one of republics that made up the Soviet Union.At in area, it was the second largest constituent republic in the USSR, after the Russian SFSR. Its capital was Alma-Ata . Today it is the independent state of...

 with headquarters at Alma-Ata. (The Central Asian Military District had also been active before the Second World War, being first formed in 1926.) 73rd Air Army was reestablished to provide air support for the Central Asian Military District. 32nd Army's Second Formation was established at Semipalatinsk in 1969 on the basis of the 1st Army Corps(?) almost simultaneously with the creation of the Central Asian Military District as a result of the tensions with China. The 32nd Army initially combined the former Ukraine-based 167th MRD, the Тurkmenistan-based 155th MRD (was the 16th Mech Div, then 15th Tank Division) and 78th Тank Division (was the 78th Rifle Division
78th Rifle Division (Soviet Union)
The 78th Rifle Division was an infantry division of the Red Army, formed in 1932, in Novosibirsk, in the Siberian Military District. After being used to provide cadres for new divisions, in September 1939 the division was reformed for the second time...

, then 19th Мech Div. and 15th Тank Div), being in east Kazakhstan 203rd MRD (was 203rd and 30th Rifle Division, then 102nd MRD).

Thus the Turkestan Military District covered only the Uzbek SSR
Uzbek SSR
The Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Uzbek SSR for short, was one of the republics of the Soviet Union since its creation in 1924...

 and the Turkmen SSR
Turkmen SSR
The Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic , also known as the Turkmen SSR for short, was one of republics of the Soviet Union in Central Asia. It was initially established on 7 August 1921 as the Turkmen Oblast of the Turkestan ASSR. On 13 May 1925 it was transformed into Turkmen SSR and became a...

. In the 1980s the District became part of the Southern Strategic Direction alongside the North Caucasus and Transcaucasus Military Districts. General Igor Rodionov
Igor Rodionov
Igor Nikolayevich Rodionov is a Russian general and Duma deputy. He is best known as a hardline politician, and for his service heading the Defence Ministry of the Russian Federation....

 commanded the District in 1985-6. Within the District's territory and under its command was the 40th Army
40th Army (Soviet Union)
The 40th Army of the Soviet Union's Red Army was an army-level command active from 1941 to 1945 and then again from 1979 to circa 1990.It was first formed, after Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union, had commenced, from elements of the 26th and 37th Armies under the command...

, in Afghanistan, the 36th Army Corps, and other forces, totalling one VDV
VDV
The Russian Airborne Troops or VDV is a military branch of service of the Russian Military, on par with the Strategic Rocket Forces and the Russian Space Forces...

 airlanding (the 105th Guards Airborne Division at Fergana
Fergana
Fergana is a city , the capital of Fergana Province in eastern Uzbekistan, at the southern edge of the Fergana Valley in southern Central Asia, cutting across the borders of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan...

) and 8 motor rifle divisions. Aviation support for the district was provided by the 49th Air Army, and air defence by the 12th Army of the Voyska PVO.

In 1988-9, these forces included the:
  • 40th Army (Kabul)
    • 5th Guards Motor Rifle Division
      5th Guards Motor Rifle Division
      The 5th Guards Zimovnikovskaya order Kutuzov II degree Motor Rifle Division , named on the 60th anniversary of the USSR, was a military formation of the Soviet Ground Forces. It traces back to the 6th Mechanised Corps created in 1940, and destroyed in 1941 in the beginning of Operation Barbarossa...

       (Shindand
      Shindand
      Shindand may refer to:*Shindand, Herat, Afghanistan**Shindand Air Base, north of the city*Shindand, Farah, Afghanistan*Shindand, Pakistan, village in FATA, Pakistan...

      )
    • 103rd Guards Air Assault Division (Bagram
      Bagram
      Bagram , founded as Alexandria on the Caucasus and known in medieval times as Kapisa, is a small town and seat in Bagram District in Parwan Province of Afghanistan, about 60 kilometers north of the capital Kabul. It is the site of an ancient city located at the junction of the Ghorband and Panjshir...

      )
    • 108th Motor Rifle Division
      108th Motor Rifle Division
      The 108th Nevelskaya Twice Red Banner Motor Rifle Division was a military formation of the Soviet Ground Forces. During the Great Patriotic War, the 360th Rifle Division Nevelskaya Order of the Red Banner, the predecessor to the 108th MRD, was created...

       (Bagram
      Bagram
      Bagram , founded as Alexandria on the Caucasus and known in medieval times as Kapisa, is a small town and seat in Bagram District in Parwan Province of Afghanistan, about 60 kilometers north of the capital Kabul. It is the site of an ancient city located at the junction of the Ghorband and Panjshir...

      )
    • 201st Motor Rifle Division (Kunduz
      Kunduz
      Kunduz also known as Kundûz, Qonduz, Qondûz, Konduz, Kondûz, Kondoz, or Qhunduz is a city in northern Afghanistan, the capital of Kunduz Province. It is linked by highways with Mazari Sharif to the west, Kabul to the south and Tajikistan's border to the north...

      )
  • 36th Army Corps (Ashkabad)
    • 58th Motor Rifle Division (Kyzyl-Arvat
      Kyzyl-Arvat
      Serdar is a location in Turkmenistan, located north-west of the capital, Ashkhabad on the road to the Caspian Sea. The population of Serdar is 50,000 people, mainly Turkmen. The languages spoken in the region are mainly Turkmen.Serdar is close to the old Persian city of Farava...

      )
    • 84th Motor Rifle Division (Ashkabad)
    • 88th Motor Rifle Division (Kushka
      Kushka
      Kushka may refer to:*Serhetabat, Turkmenistan*Kushka, Balkh, Afghanistan...

      )
  • District Troops
    • 4th Guards Motor Rifle Division (Termez
      Termez
      Termez is a city in southern Uzbekistan near the border with Afghanistan.Some link the name of the city to thermos, "hot" in Greek, tracing its name back to Alexander the Great. Others suggest that it came from Sanskrit taramato, meaning "on the river bank". It is the hottest point of Uzbekistan...

      )
    • 61st Training Motor Rifle Division (Ashkabad)
  • 12th Army of the PVO (HQ Tashkent)
    • 24th and 37th Corps of the PVO

Fighter Regiments of the 12th Army PVO in 1988
Regiment Base Equipment Remarks
9th Guards Fighter Aviation Regiment Chirchik Su-27
152nd Fighter Aviation Regiment Ak-Tepe MiG-23M Formed 1950
356th Fighter Aviation Regiment Zhaneysmey MiG-31 356 IAP 1945
179th Fighter Aviation Regiment Krasnovodsk MiG-23M 179 GvIAP 1945
712th Fighter Aviation Regiment Lugovoe (Dzhambul) MiG-23M


However from June 1, 1989, the Central Asian Military District was disbanded and its territory again incorporated into the Turkestan Military District, as part of the unilateral reductions which Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Gorbachev
Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev is a former Soviet statesman, having served as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1985 until 1991, and as the last head of state of the USSR, having served from 1988 until its dissolution in 1991...

 had announced at the United Nations on 7 December 1988.

After the withdrawal from Afghanistan 40th Army was disbanded. But in June 1991 it was reformed at Semipalatinsk from 32nd Army. Immediately prior to its dissolution, the 32nd Army consisted of the 78th Tank Division (Ayaguz); the 5202nd Base for Storage of Weapons and Equipment (VKhVT) Semipalatinsk, (prior to 1989 - the 167th Sumy-Kiev Motor Rifle Division); the 5203rd VKhVT Ust-Kamenogorsk (prior to 1989, the 155th Motor Rifle Division); and the 5204th Base for Storage of Weapons and Equipment at Karaganda (prior to 1989 - the 203rd Zaporozhye Khingan Motor Rifle Division).

The District was finally dissolved on June, 30th, 1992 with the demise of the Soviet Union, when its forces were distributed between 5 new Central Asian countries — 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...

, Kirghizia, Tajikistan
Tajikistan
Tajikistan , officially the Republic of Tajikistan , is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and China to the east....

, Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan
Turkmenistan , formerly also known as Turkmenia is one of the Turkic states in Central Asia. Until 1991, it was a constituent republic of the Soviet Union, the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic . Turkmenistan is one of the six independent Turkic states...

 and Uzbekistan
Military of Uzbekistan
Uzbekistan's armed forces form the state organisation charged with the defence of Uzbekistan. They are reported to be the largest in Central Asia...

.

The most powerful grouping went to become the core of the Military of Kazakhstan
Military of Kazakhstan
The Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan , is the name of the unified armed forces of Kazakhstan...

 which acquired all the units of the 40th (the former 32nd) Army
40th Army (Soviet Union)
The 40th Army of the Soviet Union's Red Army was an army-level command active from 1941 to 1945 and then again from 1979 to circa 1990.It was first formed, after Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of the Soviet Union, had commenced, from elements of the 26th and 37th Armies under the command...

 and part of the 17th Army Corps, including 6 land force divisions, storage bases, the 14th and 35th air-landing brigades, 2 rocket brigades, 2 artillery regiments and a large amount of equipment which had been withdrawn from over the Urals after the signing of the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe
Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe
The original Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe was negotiated and concluded during the last years of the Cold War and established comprehensive limits on key categories of conventional military equipment in Europe and mandated the destruction of excess weaponry...

.

The Museum of history of The Turkestan Military District is on Gorki Avenue in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
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