Morning fam
Today a friend of mine has donated a huge pack of themed photos. These are the pictures of Internal Forces of the Soviet Union. You can find them here.
Brief history of Internal Troops
Internal Troops were unique to the Soviet Union. Orginised during Civil War in Russia, their roots go much deeped into almose medievil times.
During the Soviet era they mainly acted as well armed branch of the MIlitsia (police). Their main missions were to guard strategic objects and prisons. However, it is not correct to see them as usual guards – they were armed on the same level as Infantry regiments – having armoured vehicles, heavy weapons and artillery. So, when required, they would act as propper infantry regiments, being able to perform same tasks.
Later on, in the 1980s, the range of tasks performed by the Internal Troops have extended. Some units were now specialising on counter-terror tasks, e.g. hostage resque and VIP persona protection. Special equipment was supplied at the time. Regular units became more involved into anti-riots, turned out to be quite useful by the end of the Soviet era.
Overall, I can say that the history of this specific branch of Soviet Troops is usually understudied, compared to more glorified paratroopers or naval infantry. At the same time, during their service, Internal Troops had to deal with real treats far more often, then any other service.
As always, if you want to share photos with the community, please contact us at miliphot@gmail.com
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