The South Ossetian Army was formed in 1992, and is the primary defense force in the breakaway republic of South Ossetia, largely considered to be within internationally recognized Georgian territory.
According to the 2017 agreement with Russia, parts of the South Ossetian forces were integrated with Russia's 4th Guards Military Base stationed in the territory, while the size of the entity's remaining military is to be agreed with the Russian authorities.[1]
History
A South Ossetian soldier in 2011.
The Ossetian Republican Guard (Russian: Республиканская гвардия Осетии) was organized on 15 November 1991 to participate in the defence of the national capital of Tskhinvali.[2] Just a week later, Georgian President Zviad Gamsakhurdia ordered over 10,000 soldiers to the republic. When it was created, it was mostly a loosely organized group of guerillas.[3] It was a participant in the 1991–1992 South Ossetia War, providing 2,400 guardsmen to fight against forces from the National Guard of Georgia.[4] On 17 November 1992, the Supreme Soviet of South Ossetia approved the formation the Ministry of Defence to lead the military. The first combat units of the national armed forces were formed in February 1993. The first units in the MoD was the Military Intelligence Unit and the Artillery Division.[5]
2008 South Ossetia War
The South Ossetian military fought against the Georgian forces in the 2008 Russo-Georgian War. At the time of the major Georgian offensive, the bulk of the Ossetian force was concentrated in the settlement of Java to the north of Tskhinvali.[6] According to Centre for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, what thwarted the Georgian operation in the end was the resistance offered by peacekeepers and lightly armed South Ossetian units that stayed behind to defend the capital.[6] Also Russian regular army forces entered the fighting on August 8 and drove deep into Georgia proper, occasionally accompanied or followed by South Ossetian militia who committed serious human rights violations, particularly in the Georgian villages of South Ossetia.[7]
According one estimate, the losses of the South Ossetian military forces, militia, and volunteers in the war amounted to 150 dead.[8][9] According to a 2012 statement by the President of RussiaVladimir Putin, Russia had been training the South Ossetian militias as part of the Russian General Staff's 2006–2007 plan to rebuff Georgia in case of war.[10]
Partial incorporation into Russian Armed Forces
In March 2015, members of the Parliament of South Ossetia put forward a proposal to dissolve South Ossetia's military and fold it into the Russian Armed Forces, but the proposal was ultimately rejected by South Ossetian PresidentLeonid Tibilov and Defense Minister Ibrahim Gassayev. The South Ossetian units were to be incorporated into the Russian military but remain separate units.[11]
On 31 March 2017, defence ministers of the two countries signed agreements whereby some units of the armed forces of South Ossetia would go under Russia′s command.[12]
There are 2,500 active duty soldiers and 13,500 reservist members within the South Ossetian Army (SOA).[15] Training within the SOA is conducted by both experienced South Ossetian troops and members of the Russian Airborne Troops. In August 2009 the SOA and Russia reorganized the 4 Air Mobile Brigade, as a joint forces brigade, which would have an active Russian military base in South Ossetia. This brigade has also been reported as the 4th Guards Military Base (ru:4-я гвардейская военная база). The Russian Airborne Troops are reported to have established an active military base outside of Java, South Ossetia and are reported to have trained SOA recruits since the summer of 2009.
Uniform
Beret colours
Dark Green: All Standard South Ossetian Armed Forces Personnel
All uniforms are donated by the Russian Ground Forces, the tri-coloured Flora pattern is standard issue throughout the SOA. It is planned that the SOA will wear a variant of the Ukrainian BDU camouflage.
Equipment
Armoured vehicles during the September, 2009 parade in commemoration of the declaration of independence in Tskhinvali
At the beginning of the 2008 South Ossetia War, the armed forces possessed the following equipment:[16][17][18][19]
^Kucera, Joshua (January 19, 2017). "South Ossetia Keeps Its Military, For Now". EurasiaNet. Archived from the original on January 21, 2017. South Ossetia's armed forces will become part of the Russian armed forces but will retain separate units, the self-declared republic's authorities have announced. The plan appears to be a compromise worked out between the de facto leadership in Tskhinvali and their patrons in Moscow [...] In 2015, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his de facto South Ossetian counterpart Leonid Tibilov signed an agreement on "alliance and integration" which included a provision calling for "certain units of the armed forces of South Ossetia to enter the structure" of the Russian military.
Russia
