Day of Border Troops of Kazakhstan (18/08)

Every year on August 18, border guards of Kazakhstan celebrate their professional holiday. On this day in 1992, the President of the Republic Nursultan Nazarbayev signed decree «On the formation of border troops». The official date appeared in the calendar of public holidays in Kazakhstan in August 2012.

Today the Border Service of the National Security Committee of the Republic of Kazakhstan (order. Kazakhstan Ulttyk Kauipsizdik Shekara Kyzmeti Committee) — is a special service designed to protect and defend the State Border of the Republic of Kazakhstan, prevent and suppress attacks on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

Kazakhstan arose the need for its own border troops after secession from the USSR in 1991. New units were formed on the basis of the Red Banner Eastern Border District with headquarters in Almaty, which was considered one of the strongest in the Soviet Union. Despite this, the republic had to create its troops virtually from scratch.

In connection with the departure of Russian military personnel to their homeland, over the first few years of Kazakh sovereignty, the officer corps was updated by almost 100 percent. Therefore, at first the Kazakh border service felt a shortage of management personnel. But today all specialists are trained in the republic. Half of the Border Guard personnel are currently contract employees.

After Kazakhstan gained sovereignty, the length and nature of the borders also changed. During the Soviet Union, only the 1.7 thousand kilometer border with China was guarded. Now units of the border service of Kazakhstan control more than 15 thousand kilometers of the state border with five countries, serving not only in the mountains and desert, but also in the Caspian Sea, as well as in the air.

The border with China is most strictly guarded, where the problems of smuggling, drug trafficking and illegal migration are acute. However, the borders with Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan also have their own characteristics.

On their professional holiday — Border Guard Day —, all employees of this branch of the military receive congratulations from the immediate superiors and leadership of the country; parades of border troops units are held in some cities.

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