Armed Forces of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria

Chechen National Army
Chechen National Army
Chechen: Nóxçiyn Respublik Içkeri Qoman Eskar
Active	1991–2000 (end of the main combat phase of the Second Chechen War); 2014–present (under the Ukrainian Armed Forces)
Country	Chechen Republic of Ichkeria
Type	Army
Role	Land warfare
Headquarters	Grozny (1991–2000); Kyiv, Ukraine (2022–present)
Sub-branches	General Staff; ∟ Army; ∟ Air Force
Commanders
Commander-in-Chief	Dzhokhar Dudayev (until 1996) ; Akhmed Zakayev (current)
Deputy Commander-in-Chief	Rustam Azhiev

The Chechen National Army (Chechen: Noxçiyn Respublika Içkerin Theman Niċq̇aş, Нохчийн Республика Ичкерин ТӀеман НицӀкъаш; Russian: Национальная Армия Чеченской Республики Ичкерия, romanized: Natsionalnaya Armiya Chechenskoy Respubliki Ichkeriya) or Chechen Armed Forces are the united militarized formations of the former de facto Chechen Republic of Ichkeria.

On October 15, 2022, the Armed Forces of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria were officially resurrected in Ukraine by the Government of Ichkeria in exile, with a center being on the units contributing to the Chechen involvement in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, such as Separate Special Purpose Battalion,^[1] which has seen combat in Bakhmut and Belgorod.

Defence Ministers of Chechnya

Magomed Khanbiev (1998—2004)
Rustaman Makhauri (2004—2007)

Branches

Ground Forces

Dudayev spent the years from 1991 to 1994 preparing for war, mobilizing men aged 15–55 and seizing Russian weapons depots. This was seen as a bid to prop up Chechnya's independence and sovereignty.^[2] Major weapons systems were seized from the Russian military in 1992, and on the eve of the First Chechen War they included 23 air defense guns, 108 APCs and tanks, 24 artillery pieces, 5 MiG-17/15, 2 Mi-8 helicopters, 24 multiple rocket launchers, 17 surface to air missile launchers.^[3] The ground forces counted 10,000 troops in December 1994, rising to 40,000 soldiers by early 1996.^[3]

Structure:

General Staff
Special Purpose Regiment
Tank Regiment
Separate Aviation Detachment
Military college
Civil defense units

Air Force

As a result of the withdrawal from the Chechen Republic in 1992, parts of the Russian army were left with almost all weapons, including aircraft and air defense systems. At the Kalinovskaya Airbase, the Armavir Aviation School left 39 combat training aircraft L-39 Albatross, 80 L-29 Dolphin, 3 MiG-17 fighters, 2 MiG-15UTI training aircraft, 6 An-2 aircraft and 2 Mi-8T helicopters (tail numbers "23 Yellow" and "39 Yellow"). The military also had 94 L-29 trainer aircraft, 52 L-39 trainer aircraft, 6 An-22 transport aircraft, and 5 Tu-134 transport aircraft.^[3] Most of the Chechen aviation equipment was destroyed at airfields in the very first days of the Chechen campaign. The air defense of the air bases consisted of 10 Strela-10 air defense systems, 23 anti-aircraft artillery installations of various types and 7 Igla MANPADS. In addition, according to some media reports, the units of the Mujahideen who fought in Chechnya had a certain number of American-made Stinger MANPADS.

Roundel of the Chechen Air Force
Roundel of the Chechen Air Force (alternative variant)
Coat of Arms of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria (on Mi-8T helicopters painted with simplified wolf and yellow stars, without black background)

Bases

Three air bases were used to base the Chechen aviation forces:

Airbase "Grozny - Severny"
Airbase "Kalinovskaya"
Khankala airbase

It was also reported about the ongoing work on the adaptation of several sections of highways for the basing of aircraft.

National Guard

Cadets of the Ichkeria Chechen National Guard in 1999

The Chechen National Guard (Chechen: Nóxçiyn Respublik Içkeri Qoman Gvardi; Russian: Национальная гвардия Чеченской Республики Ичкерия) was a major formation in Chechnya and its military. On March 13, 1997, President Aslan Maskhadov, established the National Guard of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, which was to become the only regular armed formation, on the basis of the Armed Force s of the CRI. Brigadier General Magomed Khanbiev was appointed commander of the CRI National Guard. The number of the National Guardsmen was 2,000 and it included the autonomous Presidential Guard, which was directly subordinate to the President. In addition, individual battalions were subordinate to the General Staff and the chairman of the government.^[4]

Organizational structure

National Guard Units
- 1st Battalion of the National Guard named after Umalt Dashaev^[5]
- 2nd Battalion of the National Guard named after Khamzat Khankarov^[5]
- 3rd Battalion of the National Guard named after Dzhokhar Dudayev^[5]
- 8th Argun National Guard Battalion^[6]
- 10th Shali Armored Battalion of the National Guard^[6]
- Engineer Battalion^[5]
Presidential Guard
Security Battalion of the General Staff of the Armed Forces
Special Battalion under the Cabinet of Ministers of the CRI

Other paramilitary/security formations

Interior Ministry
Department of National Security - Based on the former Soviet KGB
Anti-terrorist Center under the President of the CRI - In May 1997, the Anti-Terrorist Center was created under the President of the CRI, headed by the field commander Khunkar-Pasha Israpilov.^[4]

Publications

Владислав Морозов. «Одинокие волки». ВВС Чеченской Республики Ичкерия в 1992-1994 гг. / Морозов В.Ю. // Авиация и Время : наук.- попул. авіац. журн. України/ ВЦ "АероХобі" ; голов. ред. О. М. Ларіонов. - Київ : АероХобі, 2013. – 1 (132). – С. 40-44. ISSN 2304-1501
Владислав Морозов. У страха глаза велики (ВВС Чеченской Республики Ичкерия в 1992-1994 гг.) / Морозов В.Ю. // М-Хобби : журнал любителей масштабного моделизма и военной техники. – М.: Цейхауз, 2013. – 3 (142). – С. 38-41. ISSN 0236-0586

References

^ "odessa-journal.com – Odessa news portal". Retrieved 2023-07-18.
^ "Chechnya: Ten Years After -- The Logic Behind The First Chechen War". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty. Retrieved 2021-02-21.
^ ^a ^b ^c Lutz, Raymond R. (April 1997). "Russian Strategy In Chechnya: a Case Study in Failure". Archived from the original on 27 October 2016. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
^ ^a ^b Тимур Музаев — ЧЕЧЕНСКАЯ РЕСПУБЛИКА ИЧКЕРИЯ. Общий обзор.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Чеченский кризис-99 Тимур МУЗАЕВ Archived 2011-11-09 at the Wayback Machine
^ ^a ^b Чеченская Республика Ичкерия в мае 1999 года Тимур МУЗАЕВ. 1999 г. Из серии «Политический мониторинг».

[1] "odessa-journal.com – Odessa news portal". Retrieved 2023-07-18.

[2] "Chechnya: Ten Years After -- The Logic Behind The First Chechen War". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty. Retrieved 2021-02-21.

[lutz97-3] Lutz, Raymond R. (April 1997). "Russian Strategy In Chechnya: a Case Study in Failure". Archived from the original on 27 October 2016. Retrieved 9 December 2017.

[общий_обзор2-4] Тимур Музаев — ЧЕЧЕНСКАЯ РЕСПУБЛИКА ИЧКЕРИЯ. Общий обзор.

[Чеченский_кризис-99-5] Чеченский кризис-99 Тимур МУЗАЕВ Archived 2011-11-09 at the Wayback Machine

[в_мае_1999-6] Чеченская Республика Ичкерия в мае 1999 года Тимур МУЗАЕВ. 1999 г. Из серии «Политический мониторинг».

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