SOVIET BORDER GUARD TRAINING AND MANEUVERS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00046R000500080002-6
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 9
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 15, 2009
• Sequence Number: 2
• Publication Date: May 19, 1955
• Content Type: REPORT

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INFORMATION REPORT
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
This material contains information affecting the National Defense of the United States within the meaning of the Espionage j e
18, U.S.C. Secs. 793 and 794, the transmission or revelation of which in any manner to an unauthorized person Is prohibite25X1;w
C-0-N F-I-D-E-N-T-I-A-L
COUNTRY USSR (Azerbaydzhan SSR)
SUBJECT Soviet Border Guard Training and
Maneuvers
DATE OF INFO.
DATE ACQUIRED
INFORMATION REPORT
REPORT
DATE DISTR. 19 May 1955
NO. OF PAGES 9
REQUIREMENT NO. RD
REFERENCES
This is UNEVALUATED
Information
ARMY review completed.
C-0-N-F-I-D-E--N-T-I-A-L
FN7
INFORMATION REPORT
AEC
(Note ,Washington distr i(Tian inditat. by "i"? Field distribution by ".)
=7-
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CONFIDENTIAL
COUNTRY USSR (Azerbaydzhan SSR) DATE DISTR. 28 Apr 55
SUBJECT SOVi6t Border Guard Training and Maneuvers NO. OF PAGES 8
DATE OF INFORMATION
REFERENCES:
PLACE ACQUIRED
THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
Arrival at Basic Training Group
four hours of scheduled-training in close ordercdrill.
, 25X1
ary regulations, and political subjects. The rigidly-scheduled
border guard basic train n eriod which lasted for 2 days (includ-
ing week ends)
Basic Training Schedule
2. The typical week day training schedule was as follows:
0530 Reveille
0530-0600 Physical training
0600-0615 Clean up period
.0S7 +.UMUTAL
25X1
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25X1
0615-0700
0700-0 30
Inspection o
Political fo
f uniform, weapon, and personal appearance
rmation
0730-0600
Breakfast
0800-1200
Training
1200-1300
Dinner
130014o
Rest period
1430-1500
Preliminary
ir-iLfie instruction
1 00-1830
Training
1850-1900
Cleaning and
,d ieassembly of weapons
x.000-2000
Supper
2000-2130
Political formation
213Q-22_QD'
Free period
2200-2230
Evening parade
2230
Taps
3. On Saturdays, this schedule was adhered to through the breakfast period.
There was no training after that b
ut, instead, trainees spent the
morning on work details. After dinner, all trainees were free but were
not allowed outside of the otryad area. In the evening before supper,
films were .shpwn for about 13'.houra. However, there was an evening
parade at the.usual time. On Sundays, all trainees were free after
the clean, period;but; although there were no details, they could
not leave the otryad area. In the evening before supper, films were
shown as they were on Saturdays. There was no evening parade and taps
was at about 2000 hours.
Organization for Basic Training
The entire basic training group of 350 trainees was under the command
of a border guard major who was assisted by a border guard captain.
In addition, the training staff com
ris
d t
p
e
he following border guard
personnel= two political officers for the entire
and a junior.lieutenant, and a senior lieutenant S cretara
ylofutheant
Komsomol Organization (Komsorg)?d
5. The entire training group was divided into ten trainin
each commanded by a junior lieutenant, lieutenantor seniortlieutenant
platoon commander, and a sergeant who was assistant platoon commander.
Each platoon was again divided into six or seven squads-which,-were
commanded by sergeants, corporals, or even privates-first-class. All
training was supervised and c
d
on
ucted by the above personnel. The
only exceptions were on 'a few rare occasions when the otryad CO,
ie border guard colonel0
and a
,i
representative of the military
tribunal ,('a border guard maj'orl`>conducted talks or lectures. In
most cases, group trained by platoons.
and tactical training was conducted by squads. Hrwpver, paysiorl
iticl forma-
forma-
tions and special tasks
r l
a
o
ectures, theentire tr
ini
gathered in the club or lecture hall. B group was
Description of Training
Training was identical for all members of
except when weapons were nonce d training group,
received training with ca~bine$and s while ot
some hersotrainedrwithes
SMGs and HMGs;
??~~-~~~? vv.Luu wnicn recruits trained were determined
by their ro~ected assignments.
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Subject
,,Location
Physical training Otryad area
Hours per
Week Remarks
3j
Running, rope climb-
ing, exercises on
horizontal bar and
horse.
Political X for&&bion Club
(Politfnfortatsjya) 6
Border Guard Training Club, field 10
Tactical Training Field
Political education
based on current
events.
Lectures and practi-
cal training, study
of plowed strip,
identification of
tracks left on plowed
strip, various types
of border guard
patrols, practical
application of border
guard patrol duty,
detention of illegal
border crossers,
lectures on various
border guard devices,
electrical fences, etc.
In a few instances, t
trainees practiced
patrol duty at night,
armed with carbines
and blank shells.
10 Trainees carried gas
masks, entreiiching
tool, two wooden
grenades, carbines,
and blar,.y shells.
They dug themselves
into the snow, practic-
ed squad attack,defensa
tactics, camouflage,
and reconnaissance.
i_Ithis training
never involved the use
of live ammunition,
real gas, or smoke-
screens. There were a
few lectures on the
use of ;the gas mask
but, .no;:_ lectures do 'the
use' .of -g, 6;, . at.G mia
weapons, atomic de-
fense, or bacteriologi-
cal warfare.
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Subject
f re'1iminary
Marksmanship
Instruction
Location
Otryad area
Hours per
25X1
Week,-,- Remarks
21 This comprised the follow-
ing: (1) Daily PRI(trenazh)
in the otryad area with the
Field carbine and the LMG.
(2) Additional preliminary
ifl
r
e instruction with
carbine, LMG, and two
wooden dummy hand grenades.
This took place in conjunct-
ion with the tactical train-
Firing
Firing Range
CONFIDENTIAL
%_)J rz?u1J.minary rifle
instruction on the firing
range with blank shells.
This was known as "ognevaya
podgotovka" and was designed
to teach trainees how to
load rapidly (5 rounds in 5
seconds) and to accustom them
to the actual firing of
carbines and LMGs. This
training also included the
throwing of wooden grenades
into a circle two meters in
diameter located at..a
distance of 30 M. The circle
was marked off on the ground
by digging a circular furrow
with spades.
All firing was done from a
prone Position with slow
fire. During h s basic
training, ired as 25X1
follows: ree times
with a carbine at bulls-eye
targets, 100 m distant, with
three rounds within one to
two minutes. Trainees had
to score 21 or better;a bulls,
eye counted 10. (2) Three
times with a carbine as in
(1) above but at targets
located at 200 m, with four
rounds, and for a score of
24 or better. (3) Four
times with the LMG at
silhouette targets located 25X1
at 200 m, 9 rounds within
1-2 minutes.
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Sub4ect
Hours per
Location Week
Weapons study Otryad area 6
(matchast)
Close order Otryad area 4
drill
Political Club
Lectures
Manuals and
Regulations
Otryad area
Movies Club
31
Remarks
Disassembly of the LMG and
carbine and study of parts
and mechanism; this was in
addition to the daily period
devoted to cleaning these
weapons.
Lectures and questions and
answers on various subjects
such as the `DQtob.~.,r? 1953
Party Congress, popular
elections, and voting.
Study of the following
manuals: Garrison and
Guard Dut anua s av
am zone arault no omby
uz Infantry at
Manua o evo s av ..
Pekhot Regulations an order-Guard
(Ins ruk-
19-11 a seen a luzh y
Pogran?c gykh arya ov .
Almost all films were for 25X1
propaganda and entertain-
ment. ment. 25X1
Border Guard Zastava
in the Mountains which ri
ep c e a popular uprising
somewhere in the Far East it
1938 and showed how it was
quelled by border guard
troops; Silvery Dust, a
propaganda film about an
American professor who in-
vented deadly dust or gas
'which;., he ; used.'for~ experi-
ments on monkeys. When the
professor tried to experiment
on two Negroes, he was
prevented from killing themj
Tarzan, a film supposedly
captured from the Germans
according to a caption at the
beginning of the, film
also saw newsreels.
Basic Training Examinations
At the end of basic training, examinations were held for three days. All
examinations and tests were held b
efore a border guard district commission
from border .guard district headquarters in Baku; this commission consisted
of several border guard officers from the rank of lieutenant to colonel.
25X1
11 o icers o the Bor er Guar 0 ~rya~
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were present but only as observers and bystanders. They participated in 25X1
no way in conducting the examinations. Examinations were taken by training
platoons and were either oral or practical: there were no written tests.
weapons an ass gnmen s.
Individual questions varied with individual
a. Border Guard Patrol Duty: -.Oral questions on the contents of the Border
Guard Patrol Dut Regulations. "'
b. Firing: From a Prone
position with a LMG, nine rounds at a silhouette
target located at 200 m,
c. Weapons Test: Disassembly and assembly of the LMG according to the
manual.
d. Infantry Manual Test: asked to enumerate all military ranks 5X1
M Awr it e_L- t_ __ .-
e. Close Order Drill Test: By squads.
f. Tactical Examination: Oral questions on individual and squad defense,
attack, and combat tactics. Some trainees had
to demonstrate how to attack from a trench.
g. Political Examination: Questions on the "O9toierl' 1953 Party Congress
a d
h.
U on Communist leaders.
Physical Fitness Test: Exercises on the horizontal bar.
X1
all trainees passed the te
t
s
s. Following the teats, the
en re training group gathered in the
l
b
c
u
where some of the trainees receiv-
ed certificates of achievement for excellent marksmanship.
B. Garrison Training
Organization
I. Followin the test described in paragraph 7 above,
25X1
The daily schedule at the 3d B
d
or
er Guard Zastava comprised the
following: ?order guard duty (eight hours),other training including
physical training, weapons inspection, and other inspections (three hours)
work details (two hours) ,political training (two hours ,ales
and free time (two hours). On Saturdays and Sundays, there wassnoetrainin~'25X1
but the rest of the schedule applied. On1the average, members
had; one or two days free a month
25X1
.
Reveille was at o400 hours and taps at 2100 hours.
guard patrols had to be carried out 24 hours a day, thHowev, ereehadbto beetworder
shifts for training and work details in addition to the three daily shifts
for the various border guard duties and patrols. A daily oral field order
(bi0yevoy prikaz) specified which patrols were needed while a daily written
field schedtle (bovevov raschY:t)' listed the specific duties for the ?rxi
members , _
--_-.r , 1, vsu 1VVV LIVUI'.`3. Lo o uo hours, one
patrol or two men each. was on border guard duty on each flank. From 2000
to 0100 hours, one move patrol of two men each was on duty on each flank.
From 2000 hours to 0490 hours, three men alternated as zastava guards there were two zastava COs each on duty for 12 hours. There were also
other details such as checking passengers on the train.
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11. The first sergeant did not serve on patrols and such types of duty but
only checked patrols and posts. He was always accompanied by another
EM. The other two sergeants went on patrol only twice a week for eight
hours at a time. One private first class, in addition to being the
secretary of the zastava .omsomol organization, participated in all
border guard duty and training and was exempt only from work details.
The cooks had four hours of daily border guard duty and participated
in all training, the meals served to his unit 25X1
did not require muo preparation. The dog trainers only served on work
details directly related to dogs, The horse groom, in addition to train-
ing and taking care of the horses, had only four hours of daily border
guard duty.
12. In view of the above and in order not to interfere with border guard
patrols and work detai s conducted at various times of
the day and personnel could not all
a
ti
p
r
cipate
simultaneously but too eir training whenever possible. All training
was normally given by the three sergeants. Sometimes, the zastava CO
conducted border guard duty training. The political officer normally
conducted all political lectures and the officer for line matters super-
vised preliminary rifle instruction and firing.
Subjects
13. Garrison training
'con slist ed
25X1
ofc the; f,oll wd go subjects.
ad Physical Training: Thirty minutes in the morning or after dinner]:th'is
consisted of exercises on the horizontal bar and
running.
b. Political Training:
many lectures on the Indo-
nese war and lectures on possible aarp_ aL"
c. Border Guard Duty: Refresher lectures on border guard patrol
regulations,
d. Preliminary Rifle Instruction: In weapons assigned to each soldier
e, rrz.ring: unit fired on the average of twice a month on the 25X1
carbine from various o I- ii J-U "-LVU VAC LOA I
P sirions prone, kneeling,and standing),
six rounds of slow fire at targets located at a distance of 25X1
200 or 300 m. A limited time was allowed for firing
unit had to pract ce nig firing and the men were ordered
to simulate two-man patrols with carbines
T
t
,
wo
argets
suddenly appeared at 50 or 75 m and they had to fire six 25X1
rounds at these targets.
f. Tactical Training: Usually with blanks. The EM also practiced 25X1
digging foxholes.
g. Weapons study:
s-uuaiea the weapons assigned to them.
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h. Miscellaneous:
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march in full field equipment. There were also three
five-kilometer cross-country runs in athletic dress
guara
troops not on border guard duty went on a 2 r
25X1
25X1
Examinations
14 25X1
m ons were norms y se e u e wise a year - in the spring and in
the fall. The examinations were Riven by representatives of the border
~flrl.rrl rli ai-r+f n~-
L5X I
c
m
i
i
?..b
o
m
ss
on merely spot-enecked the k2d Border Guard Otryad,
inspecting and examining only the zastavy of the 3d Komendatura.
Practice Alerts
15. About four times a month, the CO of the 3d Border Guard Zastava called
a practice alert. Each time, the CO gave the zastava CQ advance notice
of his intention to call an alert at a certain time and the C.Q. then
called the alert as specified by the CO. Normally,alerts were called at
about 2300 or 2400 hours. Two types of alerts were called alternately:
either the alert "to the guns" ('v ruzh;-P't)) or the alert "into combat'
("1c boyu"). In the case of an alert of the first type, the CQ called out
during the night, zastava to the guns!" All troops not on patrol then
fell out in front of the barracks. They were fully-dressed and equipped
with weapons and pack. Crew-served weapons such as LMGs were also taken
along. The zastava CO then ordered the troops to double-time about one
kilometer down the road and back andhe double-timed with them. After
this, the troops again formed in the zastava area and the CO inspected
their equipment