Armed Forces of Turkmenistan


The Armed Forces of Turkmenistan, known informally as the Turkmen National Army is the national military of Turkmenistan. It consists of the Ground Forces, the Air Force and Air Defense Forces, Navy, and other independent formations.

History

After the fall of the Soviet Union, significant elements of the Soviet Armed Forces Turkestan Military District remained on Turkmen soil, including several motor rifle divisions. In June 1992, the new Russian government signed a bilateral defence treaty with Turkmenistan, encouraging the new Turkmen government to create its own armed forces but stipulating that they were to be placed under joint command.
The Library of Congress Country Studies said that 'the Treaty on Joint Measures signed by Russia and Turkmenistan in July 1992 provided for the Russian Federation to act as guarantor of Turkmenistan's security and made former Soviet army units in the republic the basis of the new national armed forces. The treaty stipulated that, apart from border troops and air force and air defense units remaining under Russian control, the entire armed forces would be under joint command, which would gradually devolve to exclusive command by Turkmenistan over a period of ten years. For a transitional period of five years, Russia would provide logistical support and pay Turkmenistan for the right to maintain special installations, while Turkmenistan would bear the costs of housing, utilities, and administration.'
The Centre for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies's Moscow Defence Brief said that in 1992-1993 Turkmenistan attempted to create a small national armed force based on the former 52nd Army, which was located in the country and depended on support from Russia. Of the 300 formations and units, numbering 110,000 people, 200 were transferred to the command of Turkmenistan, 70 remained under Russia's jurisdiction, and 30 were either withdrawn or demobilized.''
In 1994, the chief of staff and first deputy minister of defense was Major General Annamurat Soltanov, a career officer who had served in Cuba and Afghanistan; another deputy minister of defense, Major General Begdzhan Niyazov, had been a law enforcement administrator prior to his appointment. Russian commanders included Major General Viktor Zavarzin, chief of staff and first deputy commander of the Separate Combined-Arms Army of Turkmenistan, and commander of the Separate Combined-Arms Army of Turkmenistan and deputy minister of defense Lieutenant General Nikolai Kormiltsev. Russian Major General Vladislav Shunevich served together with Turkmen Major General Akmurad Kabulov as joint commanders of the border troops in the Turkmen Border Guard.
Turkmenistan consistently has refused to join multilateral CIS military groupings, but Russia maintains joint command of the three motorized rifle divisions in the Turkmenistani army. Under a 1993 bilateral military cooperation treaty, some 2,000 Russian officers serve in Turkmenistan on contract, and border forces are under joint Russian and Turkmenistani command. Altogether, about 11,000 Russian troops remained in Turkmenistan in mid-1996.' From V.I. Feskov et al. 2013 and Michael Holm's data, it appears that the three divisions were the 58th, 88th, and 209th District Training Centre at Ashkhabad.
Jane's Information Group said in 2009 that "Turkmenistan's military is, even by the standards of Central Asia, poorly maintained and funded."

Military doctrine

Turkmenistan's first military doctrine was adopted in 1994. Weeks after he was inaugurated for a first term, President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov announced his decision to endorse the country’s second military doctrine, officially declaring neutrality and stating that the border with Afghanistan will be a national security priority. In 2016, a new military doctrine was adopted by Berdimuhamedov. In November 2018, President Berdimuhamedov reiterated this at a session of the State Security Council.

Military hierarchy

Defense Ministry

The Ministry of Defense of Turkmenistan is a government agency of the armed forces which is the executive body in implementing defense policies in Turkmenistan. It was founded in January 1992 with the assistance of the Russian Armed Forces. Most of the original employees were retired Soviet officials in the Communist Party of the Turkmen SSR.

State Security Council

General Staff

Structure

The Chief of the General Staff of Turkmen Armed Forces is the highest-ranking military officer in the military, being responsible for maintaining the operational command of the military and its three major branches.

Military organization

The territorial Armed Forces of Turkmenistan are divided into 5 military districts in accordance with the administrative division of the country into 5 regions:
Each military district includes district military command and control bodies, military units, individual military units and subunits, military commissariats of etraps and cities with etrap rights. The Territorial Defence Troops of Turkmenistan also serve regional purposes.

Ground Forces

The Turkmen military inherited several motor rifle divisions from the Soviet Armed Forces Turkestan Military District, forming the basis of the Turkmen ground forces. Among them was the 58th Motor Rifle Division at Kyzyl-Arvat. Interim Russian commanders in the first half of the 1990s included Major General Viktor Zavarzin, chief of staff and first deputy commander of the Separate Combined-Arms Army of Turkmenistan, and commander of the Separate Combined-Arms Army of Turkmenistan and deputy minister of defence Lieutenant General Nikolai Kormiltsev.
Today the ground forces include the 2nd, 3rd, 11th, and 22nd Motor Rifle Divisions.
The 11th Motor Rifle Division is the former Soviet 88th Motor Rifle Division. The 11th MSD behalf of Sultan Sanjar.
It was reported in January 2007 that on the Caspian Sea and the coastal zone to a depth of 350 kilometers, and on the Turkmen-Iranian border is located about 90% of the Army.
The military ranks have reverted to traditional names and structure, and are now:
The rank of a marshal has also apparently been reintroduced. The real cash payment to the warrior rank in the army is about US$1.5 - 3 per month. Only some of the conscript's time in the military is occupied with military service, the rest being occupied with "labour" and "self-improvement" by reciting traditional Turkoman texts, learning songs and playing music.

Equipment

The number of vehicles is around 2,000, the number of tanks is around 700 and the number of artillery pieces is around 560.
Turkmen ground forces equipment includes 702 T-72, and
10 T-90, ordered in 2009 for approximately $30 million.
AIFV / APC include BTR-60/BTR-70/BTR-80 - 829, BMP-1/BMP-2 - 930, BRM-1 12, and BRDM-2 - 170.

Artillery

Self-Propelled
Multiple launch Rocket Systems
Towed Guns
Mortars

Air Force

The IISS in 2012 said the Air Force had 3,000 personnel with 94 combat capable aircraft. The total number of aircraft is around 120. It said there were two fighter/ground attack squadrons with MiG-29/MiG-29UB, Sukhoi Su-17 Fitter-Bs and two Sukhoi Su-25 Frogfoots. It reported one transport squadron with Antonov An-26 'Curl', and Mi-8s and Mi-24s. Training units had Sukhoi Su-7 Fitter-As and L-39 Albatross. Air defence missile units had SA-2, SA-3, and SA-5.
Units:

Current inventory

Naval Forces

Turkmen naval forces are currently directed by the defense ministry and consist of around 700 servicemen and sixteen patrol boats. The Congressional Research Service, citing the International Institute for Strategic Studies, reports a number of six patrol boats.
The International Institute for Strategic Studies reported in 2007 that Turkmenistan intended to form a navy and had a minor base at Turkmenbashy with one USCG Point class cutter and five Kalkan-class patrol vessels. Jane's Fighting Ships 2001-2002 reported that the Point-class cutter was the Merjin, PB-129,, which was transferred on 30 May 2000.
The country acquired four missile boats in 2011. In 2014 they acquired 10 Tuzla-class patrol boats which were all delivered by 2015.
In 2012, Turkmenistan announced its first naval exercises in the Caspian Sea programmed for early September. Named Khazar-2012, these tactical exercises came after a summer of somewhat heightened tensions with Azerbaijan over natural gas fields in a contested part of the sea.

Other security forces

The Presidential Security Service is responsible for ensuring the protection and security of the president. Established in November 1990, it is an directly reporting body of the President of Turkmenistan s not part of the ministry of defnese. During state visits to foreign countries, the service provides at least 10 agents to protect the president. The Presidential Security Service is currently composed of 2,000 employees.

Border Guard

The State Border Service of Turkmenistan is a public service department in the government of the country and is under the command of the Ministry for National Security of Turkmenistan. The main tasks of the service include the following: protecting of the national border of the country, combating international terrorism and drug trafficking, targeting illegal migration and human trafficking, and protecting oil and gas platforms and pipelines in the Caspian Sea. The head of the service is a member of the Council of Border Guard Commanders of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

Internal Troops

The Internal Troops is under the auspices of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. It is designed to maintain law and order and enforce the status quo in terms of state sovereignty. It aides the Turkmen National Police in its everyday activities, being organized similarly to the ground forces.

Ranks

Founded in 1993 and 2007 respectively, the Military Institute of the Ministry of Defense of Turkmenistan and the Military Academy of Turkmenistan are the seniormost military academies of their kind in Turkmenistan. Other military academies include the Turkmen Police Academy, the Turkmen National Security Institute, and the Turkmen Naval Institute. Border guards are trained at special institutes in military universities.