Agency WPS
DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
March 24, 2006 Friday
OUTPOST AT THE FOOT OF MOUNT ARARAT;
Armenia is the only CIS country whose border is manned by Russian
border guards
by Oleg Falichev
AN INTERVIEW WITH LIEUTENANT GENERAL SERGEI BONDAREV, COMMANDER OF
THE DIRECTORATE OF BORDER GUARDS OF THE FEDERAL SECURITY SERVICE IN
ARMENIA; An interview with Lieutenant General Sergei Bondarev,
Commander of the Directorate of Border Guards of the Federal Security
Service in Armenia.
Russian border guards’ departure from the Tajik-Afghani border left
Armenia the only CIS country whose border is manned by servicemen
with the Russian tricolor badges on uniforms. The four detachments of
Russian border guards in Armenia have accumulated unique experience
in specialist selection, training and in service side by side with
the Armenians. What is Russia doing on somebody else’s border? How
does its presence there align with the state and national interests?
Here is an interview with Lieutenant General Sergei Bondarev,
Commander of the Directorate of Border Guards of the Federal Security
Service in Armenia.
Question: On what legal grounds do Russian servicemen man the
Armenian border? How are the Russian units here staffed? How do they
function?
Sergei Bondarev: Russia and Armenia signed a treaty on the status of
Russian Border Guards in Armenia and the terms of their functioning
here in 1992, soon after the collapse of the Soviet Union. As a
strategic partner of the Russian Federation, Armenia delegated the
powers of protection of its borders with Turkey and Iran to Russian
border guards.
Certain nuances were taken care of right away. For example, we agreed
that units of the Russian Border Guards would also include citizens
of Armenia. The units were staffed fifty-fifty until recently, but we
are reducing the Russian contingent now. These days, contract
servicemen from Russia account for only 40% of the complement.
The treaty also resolved the matters of maintenance and funding.
Russia and Armenia split sponsorship fifty-fifty.
Along with everything else, Armenia is a member of the CIS Collective
Security Treaty. We perform security maintenance functions here
within the framework of this document too. Yet, saying that only we
protect the border here would be wrong. Citizens of Armenia outnumber
Russians more than two to one already. As a matter of fact, even the
question of joint border protection under Russian aegis is on the
agenda now.
Should we depart, others will come in no time at all. That forces of
the West would dearly like to come here is clear. It and the fact
that a great deal of technical and other assistance is being showered
on the Armenian national army. American assistance is particularly
generous. The Americans do not spare money to buy special equipment
including all sorts of monitors and meters for crossing points on the
Georgian-Armenian and Armenian-Iranian border.
Question: What is the length of the border our and Armenian
servicemen man together? What is the situation there? What forces and
means do you deploy?
Sergei Bondarev: We protect 375 kilometers of the state border here,
including 330 kilometers of the border with Turkey and 45 with the
Islamic Republic of Iran. Russian and Armenian servicemen together
man the air traffic control center in Evartnots airport, Yerevan.
Generally speaking, the situation on the border is tranquil. Our
border guards detained 187 trespassers in the period since January 1,
2005. Ninety per cent of them were detained in Evartnots.
As for other parts of the border, we detain 10 to 12 trespassers
there every year. They are mostly bound for Armenia, men eager to
return to its territory without papers. There are lots of them
nowadays. Armenians by origin, they seek shelter in Armenia for some
reason or other.
As for the forces and means, we have and we deploy four detachments
of border guards here. Two detachments (the Gyumri and Armavir) are
the oldest in the Border Service. They already celebrated their 80th
anniversary. The Artashat and Megri detachments are 50 years old.
There are 59 outposts on the borders. Numerical strength of the group
is 4,500 men.
In the meantime, we are helping with establishment of the Armenian
Border Troops. The Armenian’s have two detachments of border guards
at this point, one on the Georgian border and the other on the
Iranian. Armenian youth study at military institutes of Border
Service in Moscow (up to a dozen enroll every year).
Question: Are there plans to use Russian servicemen on the
Armenian-Georgian border that attaches additional importance in the
light of Georgia’s hostility?
Sergei Bondarev: This question has never been brought up for
consideration. The Armenian leadership is doing what it can to
fortify this part of the border as it is. Fourteen outposts were
built there, and I can tell you that it cost the Armenian budget a
lot. Border protection there is tight. In short, I do not think that
the matter will be raised in the foreseeable future.
Question: You say our border guards are helping with establishment of
the Armenian Border Troops. Well, they are bound to become a
self-sufficient structure sooner or later. What then?
Sergei Bondarev: According to the treaty, parts of the state border
will be turned over for protection to the Armenian Border Troops as
they are developed. The situation on the Armenian state borders being
what it is, the matter may be safely shelved for the time being. I
dare say that our help and assistance will remain handy for a long
time yet. That is why we speed up the training of Armenians for
contract service on the border even though the institute of contract
service in the Armenian national army is but in the early stages of
development.
Armenia faces a lot of problems with its borders yet. Say, the
Azerbaijani-Armenian border requires a great deal by way of finances
and personnel. This particular border is more than 900 kilometers
long. Units are deployed there, units that have to be maintained,
staffed, and provided for. We are protecting the borders with Turkey
and Iran, and that’s a great deal of assistance to the Armenians.
Question: Are there attempts to gather sensitive information,
including data on how the Russian contingent is functioning, from
across the border?
Sergei Bondarev: As for intelligence services, we all know that they
did not go out of business with the end of the Cold War. We
established close contacts with Turkish and Iranian border guards for
the purpose of border regime observation. All the same, vicious
clashes between units of the Turkish national army and Kurd gunmen
that take place near the border worry us greatly.
Several attempts to smuggle drugs were thwarted at the crossing point
on the Armenian-Iranian border. Mules are probably testing this
particular channel nowadays. Should they decide we are weak, traffic
there will swell. We hope it will never happen. By the way, we are
expecting the head of our Drug Enforcement Committee here in late
March. All these matters will be discussed then.
Generally speaking, the Armenian-Iranian border is difficult to
protect with all its mountains, gorges, and chasms. There is only one
crossing point and one bridge operating along 45 kilometers of the
border. We always bear this in mind. In fact, borders are manned in
so tight a manner practically nowhere else, not even in Russia
itself. Outposts here are responsible for between 1.5 and 3
kilometers of border. All of them are outfitted with elaborate alarm
systems. If we leave, I cannot vouch for efficiency of all of that
without Russian servicemen. Neither can I vouch for where drugs will
end up. Probably in Russia.
Question: What can you say about smuggling as such. It is becoming a
problem everywhere.
Sergei Bondarev: As for smuggling, we encounter it on the
Armenian-Iranian border. Not a great deal of it, not on a scope that
would make us particularly worried. Cattle smuggling is a problem
here. We even ran a special operation in the responsibility zone of
the Gyumri Detachment last year and prevented the driving of cattle
across the border.
>From our folders:
Sergei Pavlovich Bondarev was born in the family of an officer of
Border Guards in the Chita region in 1958. He finished the
Dzerzhinsky Supreme Command School of Border Guards of the KGB
(1979), Frunze Academy (1989), Academy of the General Staff of the
Russian Armed Forces (2002) with distinction. Bondarev began his
career in the Border Guards as outpost second-in-command and
eventually became second-in-command of the Caucasus Regional
Directorate of the Federal Security Service and commander of the
territorial department in Makhachkala. Bondarev became chief-of-staff
of the Group of Border Guards in Armenia in August 2002, and its
commander on July 15, 2003. Bondarev was awarded the Order Of Merit.
He is married with two children.
Source: Voyenno-Promyshlenny Kurier, No 11, March 22 – 28, 2006, p. 7
Translated by A. Ignatkin
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
