| Rassilon | 29 Oct 2009 2:37 p.m. PST |
Can anyone help me with good references (books or websites) for post cold war era GRU Spetsnaz information? Weapons, training, units and uniforms? (I've already browsed good wiki and militaryphotos.net) Thanks! |
| Sundance | 29 Oct 2009 2:43 p.m. PST |
Spetznaz: The Inside Story of Soviet Special Forces, by Victor Suvorov. Suvorov did a number of these "Inside Story" books – KGB, GRU, and I think a couple more. I think he was with the GRU himself, IIRC. This one is a good one, but focuses on training rather than weapons, units and uniforms. |
| Top Gun Ace | 29 Oct 2009 2:47 p.m. PST |
Supposedly there was a training base along the Baltic, and if rumors are to be believed, a number of sleeper agents, and military equipment is staged in various Western countries around the globe. Unfortunately, I don't know as much as I would like on the topic, so will be following this thread as well. Another interesting tidbit is that some Soviet olympic competitors were from the Spetznatz, especially the biathlon ski/shooting personnel (seems like a logical outlet for them). |
| Brandlin | 29 Oct 2009 2:53 p.m. PST |
Top gun ace – thats not unusual, the british army has provided competitors in a number of sports over the years. |
| Top Gun Ace | 29 Oct 2009 3:18 p.m. PST |
I agree, not unusual, but interesting. I think it provides a good basis for their skills, e.g. being in the top 1% of all athletes/warriors, I would guess. Same goes for the US military as well no doubt, in some sports, especially shooting. |
| Sundance | 29 Oct 2009 5:19 p.m. PST |
IIRC, a Spetznaz team was carried on many Aeroflot flights for a long time – in order to prevent hijacking. |
aecurtis  | 29 Oct 2009 6:19 p.m. PST |
Quibbles: The phrase in Russian that is contracted to form this acronym transliterates as "spetsialnovo naznacheniye" (of special designation) -- thus "spets" + "naz", or "spetsnaz". Alternative spellings are not good options. No-one that I knew in my professional career who had ever had any contact with the person using the pseudonym "Viktor Suvarov" trusted a single thing he said or wrote. I only met him once, in a more social than professional setting, and my conclusion was that he is an idiot, but sufficiently manipulative to be able to con people into believing him. Allen |
| jdginaz | 29 Oct 2009 6:26 p.m. PST |
Pretty much all of what Suvorov, which is the pen name of Vladimir Bogdanovich Rezun, wrote on the Spetznaz has been shown to be pure fiction. |
| Barin1 | 30 Oct 2009 1:45 a.m. PST |
I remember that after I wrote that I was a sergeant in SA artillery a TMP member asked me if I was such a mindless killing machine as Suvorov describes ;) Some google searches for you to check:
Specnaz GRU:
link
Specnaz VDV
link |
| Sundance | 30 Oct 2009 5:14 a.m. PST |
Thanks for the info – I had never heard that before. |
| sergeis | 12 Dec 2009 6:15 a.m. PST |
agentura.ru/specnaz
Voiska Spetzialnogo Naznacheniya- Spetznaz troops are common for several branches of the Russian government- from Ministry of Defense to Ministry of Extreme Situations… |
