On February 2, 1956, the first launch of a rocket with an R5M nuclear warhead was carried out from the Kapustin Yar test site - Operation Baikal.
R-5 is a Soviet liquid-fueled single-stage ground-launched medium-range ballistic missile (MRBM).
The lead developer is OKB-1. Adopted into service in 1955.
The development of the nuclear industry in the USSR and the accumulated experience of Soviet designers in creating ballistic missiles made it possible in the early 1950s to begin designing a missile with a nuclear warhead. So, in April 1954, on the basis of the R-5 ballistic missile, teams of design bureaus and research institutes headed by S.P. Korolev, work began on the creation of a new missile designed to deliver nuclear warheads to a target. First of all, the modernization affected the missile's combat equipment, propulsion system and control system.
At the request of the military, the designers were looking for ways to increase the combat capabilities of this type of weapon. And, of course, a lot of effort went into developing the nuclear warhead of the rocket, which was supposed to be separated from the main body at the final stage of the flight. As a result, in less than a year, a single-stage tactical ballistic missile (long-range ballistic missile) was created, designated R-5M. Its flight tests took place at the Kapustin Yar training ground. The first test launch of the R-5M missile, but without a nuclear charge and having a conventional warhead, took place here on January 20, 1955.
During the year, a whole series of launches of this type of missile, equipped with a warhead simulator, was carried out. And so, on February 2, 1956, an important historical event took place - on that day the first experimental launch of a ballistic missile R-5M (8K51) with a warhead equipped with a nuclear warhead was carried out. This operation was called “Baikal”, which became the first full-scale full-scale test of nuclear missile weapons. Having launched from the special site “4N” of the Kapustin Yar test site, covering a distance of 1200 km, the rocket followed a given course and safely reached the design point in the Aral Karakum region.
After the impact fuse was triggered, the planned ground atomic explosion with a yield of 80 kt occurred. The conditional target was hit with amazing accuracy for those times. Since the tests were successful, in June of the same year, by government decree, the medium-range ballistic missile R-5M (8K51) was adopted by the engineering brigades of the RVGK - 24 missile systems were put on combat duty, and the following year their number doubled. By the way, there were no more launches of the R-5M with a full-scale nuclear charge. Although it should be noted that the actual readiness to use these weapons was achieved later.
The power of a nuclear warhead of 80 Kt in subsequent products was increased to 300 Kt. The designers managed to completely automate the launch process (this was due to the presence of nuclear weapons on board), but pre-launch preparations were still time-consuming. Nevertheless, even the purely military significance of the R-5M was great - after all, units armed with this missile became the most important striking force in the European and Far Eastern theaters of military operations. And with the deployment of these missiles, the concept of operating nuclear missile weapons was practically worked out for the first time and the problems of their combat use were theoretically solved.
In addition, it is believed that the R-5M missile launched the “birth” of a new type of Armed Forces - the Strategic Missile Forces (Strategic Missile Forces). At the very beginning, military units operating warheads and nuclear warheads functioned as part of so-called field special assembly brigades attached to engineering divisions. By the end of the 1950s, the brigades were transformed into engineering regiments, which in 1959 were included in the combat composition of the newly formed special military units - the Strategic Missile Forces. By the way, in addition to armed forces The R-5M rocket was widely used for scientific research and for the creation of new rocket and space technology systems.
The R-5M remained in service until 1959, when it was replaced by the new, more advanced R-12 missile, then a gradual reduction of the R-5M complexes began, and their final removal from combat duty occurred in 1968.

Now let's see how our country lived exactly 60 years ago. And 1956, as you know, was one of the landmark years for the USSR and, excuse the cliche, fateful.
Nikita Khrushchev’s closed speech at the 20th Congress of the CPSU in February 1956 exposing the “cult of personality of I.V. Stalin” caused a shock in the international communist movement and in Soviet society itself. In fact, a course was set for the “de-Stalinization” of the USSR and the socialist camp, which would soon lead to a split in the latter.
One of the most visible changes in Moscow's foreign policy was the restoration of relations with socialist Yugoslavia, severed in 1948.

Installation of the R-5M ballistic missile on the launch pad. photo from the archives of the Ministry of Defense, 1956:


LARGE

The USSR was rushing upward. Very soon the first artificial Earth satellite will fly into space. In the meantime, for the Soviet people of 1956, civil jet aviation was “space” technology.

On September 15, 1956, the Tu-104 jet airliner made its first regular flight on the Moscow-Omsk-Irkutsk route:

The slender, handsome Tu-104s were a huge technological leap compared to the Soviet propeller-driven aircraft fleet of those years. At that time, the “oldies” Li-2 of pre-war design and post-war IL-14 were still flown throughout the USSR.
IL-14 plane at Vilnius airport in the photograph by J. Dupaquier, 1956:


LARGE

The USSR's GDP amounted to 9.9% of world GDP. The economy continued to develop rapidly.

The 56th turned out to be very favorable for the country's agriculture. It was this year that there was great success in the virgin lands - the harvest was a record one.

State farm "Urneksky", Kostanai region. Photo by S. Fridlyand, 1956:

LARGE

There:


LARGE

By 1956, oil production in the USSR increased approximately 10 times compared to 1913. At the same time, the development of Siberian deposits had not even begun; the main production took place in Baku and the Volga region.

Baku oil workers photographed by German photographer Peter Bock-Schroeder, 1956:

Construction of the Novosibirsk hydroelectric power station in the photograph by S. Fridlyand, 1956:


LARGE

60 years ago, the USSR did not buy electronics and cars from China, but itself laid the foundations of heavy industry there, transmitted Newest technologies. The Russians taught the Chinese everything they knew and could do.

Chinese trainees at a heavy machine tool factory in Novosibirsk, photo by S. Fridlyand, 1956:

LARGE

The Soviet automobile industry in 1956 experienced another (second after the war) “change of generations.” New models were born and put on the assembly line, which would remain basic until the mid- or even late 1960s.

PAZ-652, prototype, 1956 (photo by Pavlovsky Bus OJSC):

In April 1956, the production of small-class cars "Moskvich-402", quite modern by European standards of that time, began.
One of these cars has already managed to get into the frame of S. Fridlyand on one of the central Moscow streets, 1956:


LARGE

But the newest Volga GAZ-21 has not yet had time to hit Soviet roads, because mass production of this legendary car will begin only next year, 1957, after two years of running-in and fine-tuning.

Typical Soviet traffic in 1956 - all Pobeda cars, ZIS buses and MTB trolleybuses (photo by S. Fridlyand):


LARGE

At the service of those who want to show off are the epic cabriolet taxis ZIS-110 (photo by J. Dupaquier, 1956):


LARGE

It’s hard to believe now, but in 1956 Moscow ended in the south right behind Moscow State University! In place of the current endless reinforced concrete jungle, there were then endless fields.

The current Michurinsky Prospect is seen from the main building of Moscow State University, photo by J. Dupaquier:


LARGE

Other major cities of the USSR have changed even more since then. For example, Tashkent.

The main avenue of Tashkent in 1956 in the photograph by J. Dupaquier:

An aerial photograph by the same author shows what the capital of Uzbekistan looked like in 1956:


LARGE

It's easy to find the main street of the city, isn't it?

In 1956, the construction of standard five-story buildings using the industrial method began in full swing in the USSR. The idea was borrowed from France, but the design was redesigned taking into account the specifics of the USSR by the Soviet architect Lagutenko ( here he is in the photo of S. Fridland 1956).
Tens of thousands of people began to move from barracks and basements to houses that were relatively comfortable at that time, later nicknamed “Khrushchev buildings.”

"Housewarming", photo from the magazine "Ogonyok", 1956:

LARGE

Of course, we can’t help but look at what the people of the USSR looked like 60 years ago and what they wore.

Vacationers near the Voroshilov sanatorium (Sochi), on a slide by military sailor Viktor Trofimovich Laptev, 1956:


LARGE

Ordinary Soviet people came to look at the main square of the country (the author of the photo, Frenchman J. Dupaquier, designated them in the caption as “provincials”):


LARGE

Ordinary Soviet boys in a photograph by German photographer Peter Bock-Schroeder, 1956:

Kindergarten on a walk in Leningrad, J. Dupaquier, 1956:


LARGE

It was only in the movie "Hipsters" that Soviet people of the 1950s dressed all in gray))

Nowadays, few people remember what the Soviet school uniform looked like 60 years ago. Even those who managed to grow up in the late USSR were not caught up in these white collar jobs.

Moscow schoolchildren at the Central Park of Culture and Culture named after. Gorky, J. Dupaquier, 1956:


LARGE

Students in the library of Tomsk University, photo by S. Fridlyand, 1956:

LARGE

Odessans 1956:

Pilgrims in the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, city of Zagorsk, 1956:

Was there freedom of religion in the USSR in 1956?

Muslims praying in the center of Tashent in the photograph by J. Dupaquier, 1956:


LARGE

In connection with the end of the Cold War (more precisely, its first episode), there has been some intensification of cultural ties with Western countries. Various delegations became frequent in the USSR and the Soviet people had much more opportunities for direct contacts.

British models surrounded by enthusiastic fans. Moscow, 1956:

A little about Soviet trade in 1956.

Leningrad, bakery on Nevsky, 6. Photo by J. Dupaquier, 1956:

We simply cannot imagine 1956 without photographs of this Frenchman!))
By the way, for some reason he never noticed the “kilometer-long queues” outside the stores.

Household goods in Moscow. Photo by J. Dupaquier, 1956:


LARGE

Shoe shop in Moscow. Photo by J. Dupaquier, 1956:


LARGE

Notice how stylish store signs were then.

Sale of vegetables and fruits on Trubnaya Square in Moscow. Yakov Ryumkin, 1956:

Collective farm market in Tashent. Photo by J. Dupaquier, 1956:


LARGE

Now let's move into the magical world of art.
In 1956, Soviet cinema experienced a new heyday.

In the musical comedy “Carnival Night” by Eldar Ryazanov, the star of Lyudmila Gurchenko, the future legend of Soviet cinema, flashed for the first time:

The film became the leader in Soviet film distribution in 1956 with a total number of tickets sold of 48.64 million.

The image of the caricatured bureaucrat Ogurtsov is no less memorable:

And the children of several subsequent generations will watch the film "Old Man Hottabych", produced at the Lenfilm studio in 1956 by director Gennady Kazansky based on the fantastic children's story of the same name by Lazar Lagin:

One of the most daring films of 1956 is the drama “Forty-First” by Grigory Chukhrai, about the love of a red sniper and a White Guard officer with a natural tragic ending:

At the X International Film Festival in Cannes (1957), this film was awarded the prize “For original script, humanism and romance.” By the way, it did well at the French box office.

Movie " Different destinies"about young Leningraders is interesting with a lot of everyday details. In Leningrad in 1956 there are still wooden platforms:

Meanwhile, filming was already underway." Quiet Don", which will be completed next year:

In conclusion, as usual, a little about sports, which invariably received great attention in the USSR.

On July 31, 1956, the grand opening of the Luzhniki Stadium took place. The parade of athletes during the opening ceremony in the photo by Lev Borodulin:

All series of the project "20th century in color":
1901, 1902, 1903, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908,

If you were born in 1956, you will never know how many children in our country were born at the same time as you. And also how many marriages and divorces happened in the Soviet Union this year and how many residents of the great country moved to another world. You will also not know how many citizens in general were the happy owners of a sickle and hammer-shaped Soviet passport (with a cover of dark green rather than red). Because you won’t know that there are no statistics in the USSR yet. The population census was carried out in 1939, and the next one will only be in 1959. But if it had not been for the events of 1956, it would never have happened.
The year 1956 is a turning point, its beginning and end are like different eras. Quite a bit of time passed after Stalin’s death, but there was mass grief for the “leader of the peoples” and the question in the eyes of “How to live on?” remained in the past - we live and will live! Between the winter and spring of this year there is a milestone: the 20th Congress, which agitated and split society. The spring of 1956 is the beginning of the legendary Khrushchev “thaw”. But we still have to get to spring.

—The Chukchi were given an apartment on the 9th floor. - Like? - they ask him some time later. - My legs hurt, walking high on the ninth.

—- But the elevator is... The Chukchi were given an apartment on the 9th floor.- Like? - they ask him some time later. - My legs hurt, walking high on the ninth.

IN
Nikita Khrushchev’s closed speech at the 20th Congress of the CPSU in February 1956 exposing the “cult of personality of I.V. Stalin” caused a shock in the international communist movement and in Soviet society itself. In fact, a course was set for the “de-Stalinization” of the USSR and the socialist camp, which would soon lead to a split in the latter.

The Hungarian uprising began in October. On October 23, 1956, “student rallies for democratic socialism” suddenly developed into a well-organized uprising. These unrest led to the fact that the Hungarian leadership decided to change its foreign policy course, withdraw from the Warsaw Pact, and changed its internal political guidelines. But this did not please the Kremlin, which considered Hungary its satellite. Therefore, on November 4, 1956, Soviet troops entered Hungary.

The following picture speaks about the intensity of the battles on the streets of the Hungarian capital:

According to statistics, in connection with the uprising and hostilities on both sides, 2,652 Hungarian citizens were killed and 19,226 people were injured between October 23 and December 31, 1956. The losses of the Soviet Army, according to official data, amounted to 669 people killed, 51 people missing, 1540 wounded.

For modern Hungary, the symbol of those events was “Stalin’s boots” - the remains of a monument to the Soviet leader demolished by a crowd:

Among the countries of the socialist camp, unrest in 1956 also affected Poland, and again due to Khrushchev’s games in “de-Stalinization”. Like Hungary, Poland was only a superficially “Sovietized” country; behind the facade of the PPR there remained the same old Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth - a zealously Catholic peasant country with a strong nationalist spirit:

It was calm in Czechoslovakia, Prague celebrates May Day '56 with portraits of communist leaders of different times and peoples:

The development of events in Hungary coincided with the Suez crisis. On October 29, Israel, and then NATO members Great Britain and France, attacked Soviet-backed Egypt with the aim of capturing the Suez Canal, near which they landed their troops. The second Arab-Israeli war began, which in Israeli historiography is called Operation Kadesh. As a result of this war, the Israelis in just a few days inflicted a crushing defeat on the Egyptian army and captured the Sinai Peninsula, that is, they took control of an area several times larger area of ​​Israel itself.

The Chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces, Moshe Dayan, played a key role in planning Operation Kadesh. Here he is in a photograph from 1956:

However, the military victory soon turned into a diplomatic fiasco for Israel, England and France. Under pressure from the international community (interestingly, the USA and the USSR presented a united front) they were forced to withdraw troops from Egyptian territory within a few months.

US President Eisenhower forced Britain, France and Israel to withdraw their troops from the Suez Canal after the three states moved against Egyptian President Nasser without an agreement with the US. Although Eisenhower strongly rejected Nasser's nationalization of the Suez Canal, he was still deeply angered by the high-handed actions of the European powers.

He put massive economic and monetary pressure on Britain to bring about an end to the conflict and the liberation of Egypt. Thus, he consolidated the fall of the European colonial powers, which completely gave way to the “superpower” of the United States.

Suez Canal in '56:

Egyptian President Nasser, 1956:

The finally retired Winston Churchill was awarded the Benjamin Franklin Medal on January 11, 1956. Portrait of a politician in 1956:

Queen Elizabeth II of England visits Nigeria, then a British colony, 1956:

In 1956, Red China experienced an unprecedented rise: Soviet specialists created entire industries there from scratch: automobile manufacturing, aircraft manufacturing, tank building, heavy metallurgy.

60 years ago, the USSR did not buy electronics and cars from China, but laid the foundations of heavy industry there and transferred the latest technologies. The Russians taught the Chinese everything they knew and could do.

Chinese trainees at a heavy machine tool factory in Novosibirsk, photo by S. Fridlyand, 1956:

Meanwhile, Beijing's place on the UN Security Council is taken by Taipei. The Americans covered Taiwan with their fleet and turned the island into their “unsinkable aircraft carrier.”

Military parade in Taipei in 1956:

The Cold War is on the wane, but its echoes are shaking the world.

On May 20/21, 1956, the first air explosion was carried out hydrogen bomb on Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean:

One of the most visible changes in Moscow's foreign policy was the restoration of relations with socialist Yugoslavia, severed in 1948.

Until recently, Josip Tito, considered the “leader of the fascist clique,” ​​was again hospitably welcomed on Soviet soil.
Khrushchev and Tito during the latter’s visit to the USSR, 1956:

By 1956, Khrushchev was already the undisputed leader of the USSR, having pushed aside Malenkov, but his power had not yet become almost uncontrollable, but was balanced by the old “Stalinist guard” in the Presidium of the Central Committee.

1956 became for the USSR a year of new breakthroughs in technological and economic development, a year of great construction projects and big ambitious plans.

Exactly 60 years ago, the country received a nuclear missile shield, thanks to which it continues to be considered a great power today.
The R-5M missile system, put into service on June 21, 1956, became the first domestic missile system with nuclear combat equipment.

The 56th turned out to be very favorable for the country's agriculture. It was this year that there was great success in the virgin lands - the harvest was a record one.

In 1956, Khrushchev put forward the slogan: “Catch up and overtake America,” referring to competition in the production of meat and dairy products. At the meeting, the First Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee issued a verdict - to move to rapid, widespread and widespread planting of corn. Corn crops began in 1957, and in 1959 they began to expand greatly: 37 million hectares were allocated for them. Corn has virtually replaced traditional grains. The crop was sown even in the northern regions.

By 1956, oil production in the USSR increased approximately 10 times compared to 1913. At the same time, the development of Siberian deposits had not even begun; the main production took place in Baku and the Volga region.

Baku oil workers photographed by German photographer Peter Bock-Schroeder, 1956:

Construction of the Novosibirsk hydroelectric power station in the photograph by S. Fridlyand, 1956:

The Soviet automobile industry in 1956 experienced another (second after the war) “change of generations.” New models were born and put on the assembly line, which would remain basic until the mid- or even late 1960s.

In April 1956, the production of small-class cars "Moskvich-402", quite modern by European standards of that time, began.
One of these cars has already managed to get into the frame of S. Fridlyand on one of the central Moscow streets, 1956:

In connection with the end of the Cold War (more precisely, its first episode), there has been some intensification of cultural ties with Western countries. Various delegations became frequent in the USSR and the Soviet people had much more opportunities for direct contacts.

British models surrounded by enthusiastic fans. Moscow, 1956:

A little about fashion.

Business suits of American women in San Francisco, 1956:

Ski fashion 1956:

Beach fashion:

Travel suit, 1956:

And this is how one of the Soviet fashion magazines suggested dressing for fashionistas:

In the pictures it looks no worse than theirs, in my opinion.

Now let’s plunge into the cultural life of ’56.

On February 21, 1956, Elvis Presley made his debut on the American radio charts with the song "Heartbreak Hotel". Elvis not only sings, but also dances rock and roll:

The rising star is met with mixed reactions from American society. The conservative press calls him "a plague sent by the Communists to corrupt the youth of America." In the southern states, obscurantists crush Elvis records with tractors.

Filmography and gossip column 1956.

"Bus Stop" with Marilyn Monroe:

Gina Lollobrigida in the 1956 film Notre Dame:

In 1956, Brigitte Bardot gained worldwide popularity thanks to her role in the film “And God Created Woman”:

In 1956, the fugitive Ingrid Bergman made a triumphant return to Hollywood, which she left in 1949 due to her marriage to Italian director Roberto Rossellini, with the film “Anastasia” about a girl who believed that she was the daughter of Nicholas II. For this work in 1957, the Swede received a second Oscar and Golden Globe statuette:

Audrey Hepburn as Natasha Rostova "War and Peace", 1956:

Sophia Loren attends the Cannes Film Festival in 1956:

Marlene Dietrich in Monte Carlo, 1956:

Wedding of Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier, 1956:

Marilyn Monroe? No, this is the British actress Diana Dors, who, by the way, was also a Hollywood sex symbol. 1956:

In 1956, Soviet cinema experienced a new heyday.

In the musical comedy “Carnival Night” by Eldar Ryazanov, the star of Lyudmila Gurchenko, the future legend of Soviet cinema, broke out for the first time:

The film became the leader in Soviet film distribution in 1956 with a total number of tickets sold of 48.64 million, and Lyudmila Gurchenko became a style icon for millions of Soviet women for many years.

One of the most daring films of 1956 was the drama “The Forty-First” by Grigory Chukhrai about the love of a red sniper and a White Guard officer with a logical tragic ending. Oleg Strizhenov and Izolda Izvitskaya, “Forty-First”:

At the X International Film Festival in Cannes (1957), this film was awarded the prize “For original screenplay, humanism and romance.”

In 1956, the film “Spring on Zarechnaya Street” (directed by Marlen Khutsiev) was shot, which became one of the most popular films of the 1950s, attracting 30.12 million viewers at the Soviet box office.

Nikolai Rybnikov and Nina Ivanova, “Spring on Zarechnaya Street”:

The film "Different Fates" about young Leningraders is interesting with a lot of everyday details. In Leningrad in 1956 there are still wooden platforms:

Filming was underway for “The Quiet Don,” which will be completed next year:

And the children of several subsequent generations will watch the film "Old Man Hottabych", produced at the Lenfilm film studio in 1956 by director Gennady Kazansky based on the fantastic children's story of the same name by Lazar Lagin.

Moscow 1956 in the film "Old Man Hottabych". Wonderful view from the roof of the Beijing Hotel:

It’s hard to believe now, but in 1956 Moscow ended in the south right behind Moscow State University! In place of the current endless reinforced concrete jungle, there were then endless fields.

View of the current Michurinsky Prospect from the main building of Moscow State University, photo by J. Dupaquier:

Other major cities of the USSR have changed even more since then. For example, Tashkent.

The main avenue of Tashkent in 1956 in the photograph by J. Dupaquier:

In 1956, the construction of standard five-story buildings using the industrial method began in full swing in the USSR. The idea was borrowed from France, but the design was redesigned taking into account the specifics of the USSR by the Soviet architect Lagutenko.
Tens of thousands of people began to move from barracks and basements to houses that were relatively comfortable at that time, later nicknamed “Khrushchev buildings.”

"Housewarming", photo from the magazine "Ogonyok", 1956:

Of course, we can’t help but look at what the people of the USSR looked like 60 years ago and what they wore.

Vacationers near the Voroshilov sanatorium (Sochi), 1956:

More Sochi in the photo of Peter Bock-Schroeder, 1956:

Ordinary Soviet people came to look at the main square of the country (the author of the photo, Frenchman J. Dupaquier, designated them in the caption as “provincials”):

One of the Moscow streets:

Simple Soviet boys in a photograph by German photographer Peter Bock-Schroeder, 1956:

Kindergarten on a walk in Leningrad, J. Dupaquier, 1956:

It was only in the movie "Hipsters" that Soviet people of the 1950s dressed all in gray))

Odessans 1956:

Nowadays, few people remember what the Soviet school uniform looked like 60 years ago. Even those who managed to grow up in the late USSR were not caught up in these white collar jobs.

Moscow schoolchildren at the Central Park of Culture and Culture named after. Gorky, J. Dupaquier, 1956:

Students in the library of Tomsk University, photo by S. Fridlyand, 1956:

At the Bolshoi Theater, 1956:

Muslims praying in the center of Tashent in the photograph by J. Dupaquier, 1956:

Now let's take a quick look at the life of cities in 1956.

11 years after the war, Berlin still lies in ruins:

Soviet "Victory" on the streets of Helsinki in 1956:

The most atmospheric Parisian traffic in 1956:

The following double-decker trolleybuses drove around Barcelona in 1956:

There are still double-decker trams in Glasgow:

In Istanbul in 1956, before the era of bridges and tunnels, boat people were one of the city's main signs:

Avenida Juarez in Mexico City, almost Broadway, 1956:

Racial segregation still reigned in the southern United States.
Separate entrance for "colored" department store in Mobile, Alabama, 1956

A model American family of the mid-1950s does not listen to rock and roll, but goes to church.

Segregated tobacco farmer Marshall Joyner and his family bowed their heads in prayer before dinner, Greenville, North Carolina, July 1956:

Saigon 1956:

Bangkok had already entered an era of prosperity, but highways and skyscrapers in 1956 were still like the moon, and cars (then entirely imported) shared narrow streets with pedicabs:

Taipei in 1956 was still completely archaic:

In Shanghai in 1956, cars have almost disappeared, but there are still many boats:

60 years ago in Greece it was possible to film the 19th century without scenery:

In the United States, the era of “automotive baroque” reached its culmination; cars were not just large, but luxurious, shining with an abundance of chrome parts and bizarre curves of lines. Wherein the lineup seemed simply endless: 40 automobile brands exhibited several new models every year.
Mandatory attributes of the car were panoramic windows and “fins” on the rear wings.

The “fins” on the rear wings imitated rocket stabilizer wings; some companies took the rocket fashion even further.

And on the other side of the ocean, manufacturers competed to see who could make the car more compact.

FIAT Multipla Taxi, 1956:

The design of the European cars was by no means rocket-like, but simply round-bellied. And they were on the assembly line not for a year or two, as in the States, but many times longer.

Renault Dauphine was produced from 1956 to 1968 (photo from 1956):

The pretentiousness of American cars contrasted with the laconicism of the new architectural design.

Sunrise Shopping Center in Florida, 1956:

Shopping center in Edina, Minnesota, 1956:

An American experiment with an analogue of our Khrushchev buildings dates back to the mid-50s.

Pruitt-Igoe Social Neighborhood, St. Louis, Missouri, USA. Officially opened in 1956:

The American experiment with “social neighborhoods,” as we know, was a complete failure. They quickly turned into ghettos.

Civil aviation is rapidly developing in the world. The first models of jet airliners have already appeared, but propeller-driven aircraft like the famous Constellation (1956) still dominate the skies:

Stewardess on board a BOAC aircraft, Britannia, 1956:

The USSR was also rushing upward. Very soon the first artificial Earth satellite will fly into space. In the meantime, for the Soviet people of 1956, civil jet aviation was “space” technology.

On September 15, 1956, the Tu-104 jet airliner made its first regular flight on the Moscow–Omsk–Irkutsk route:

The slender, handsome Tu-104s were a huge technological leap compared to the Soviet propeller-driven aircraft fleet of those years. At that time, the “oldies” Li-2 of pre-war design and post-war IL-14 were still flown throughout the USSR.
IL-14 plane at Vilnius airport in the photograph by J. Dupaquier, 1956:

The 16th Summer Olympic Games were held in Melbourne, Australia, from November 22 to December 8, 1956:

During the artistic gymnastics competition, the Soviet flag was raised 11 times in one hour and the Soviet anthem was played. USSR athletes took away 11 gold, 6 silver and 5 bronze medals, becoming absolute world champions.

Olympic champion in artistic gymnastics Larisa Latynina, Melbourne, 1956:

USSR women's artistic gymnastics team, Melbourne, 1956:

Great attention was paid to sports in the USSR.

Parade of athletes during the opening ceremony:

Thanks to a team of authors from the General Staff of the RF Armed Forces and the published book “The Classification of Secrecy Has Been Removed,” it became possible to speak openly about the events that took place several decades ago outside the USSR, and about the role of our compatriots in these events.

Institute staff military history The All-Russian Book of Memory was prepared and published. Despite the fact that this work is based on the “List of states, cities, territories and periods of hostilities with the participation of citizens of the Russian Federation,” which was published in the Appendices to the Federal Law on Veterans of December 16, 1994 and the law “On Amendments and Additions to Federal Law “On Veterans” of January 2, 2000, the authors were forced to include in their book the name lists of military personnel who died during the Cuban missile crisis and after it in Cuba in 1962-1964, as well as during the entry of troops into Czechoslovakia in 1968 (. these countries, for unknown reasons, do not appear on the List, but the development of events in them significantly influenced the military-political situation in the world).

The authors, whose competence no one doubts, have already come to the conclusion that one of the main directions of Soviet military participation in events taking place abroad was the participation of our military personnel in hostilities as a result of actions by the country's top political leadership aimed at preserving the unity of the socialist camp , keeping allies in the Organization Warsaw Pact. The theater of action in this case was Europe, namely Hungary (1956) and Czechoslovakia (1968).

50-60s in Eastern Europe, and specifically in the countries of the socialist camp, were marked by a number of events that led to the use by the Soviet Union of not only political means, but also military force.

On May 14, 1955, in response to the formation of the North Atlantic NATO bloc, the European socialist states signed the “Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance” in Warsaw, called the Warsaw Pact.

However, the events that occurred a year and a half after its signing in Hungary, as well as the events in Czechoslovakia that took place more than thirteen years later, were of a clearly political nature, indicating the presence of certain forces in these countries. Events in 1956 in Hungary and 1968 in Czechoslovakia also showed the whole world that the Soviet leadership sought to maintain the unity of the resulting military-political bloc at all costs.

The consequence of this was the use of the Allied Armed Forces in these countries, including Soviet Union.

Let's draw some parallels of events:

Hungary-1956, Operation Whirlwind Czechoslovakia-1968, Operation Danube

Prerequisites for the entry of troops:

In Hungary: - The XX Congress of the CPSU, where, in addition to exposing the cult of personality, the thesis about the diversity of forms of transition to socialism was proclaimed, which gave support to the reform forces;

Strengthening opposition protests;

In connection with the events in Poland, the struggle “for the democratization of socialism” - widespread rallies with the threat of escalating into armed clashes, students of the Budapest Technical University held a mass demonstration involving tens of thousands of residents demanding the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Hungary and the establishment of more equal relations with the Soviet Union;

Separate groups of radical youth took possession of several warehouses with small arms, and an attempt was made to seize the radio building. For the first time shots were fired.

For Czechoslovakia:

Unprecedented in the history of the communist movement, profound changes in the country. The growing crisis and political conflicts within the CPC at the end of 1967, which led to the removal of the First Secretary of the Presidium of the CPC Central Committee A. Novotny and the election of A. Dubcek;

Economic crisis of 1962-1963;

The protracted nature of the political crisis (including the escape of General Ian Cheyne to the United States after a failed military coup attempt);

Dubcek allowed the creation of a number of new political clubs and abolished censorship;

In the field of foreign policy, it was decided to pursue a more independent course. The leaders of the CPC included the concept of socialism “with a human face” in the “Program of Action”;

The reformist programs of Dubcek's leadership led, from the Soviet point of view, to a dangerous situation in one of the key countries of Eastern Europe;

Refusal of the Czechoslovak delegation to attend the meeting of the leaders of Bulgaria, Hungary, East Germany, Poland and the USSR in Warsaw (July 1968);

Letter of appeal from a group of party and statesmen Czechoslovakia to the governments of the USSR and other Warsaw Pact countries with a request for international assistance;

Forecasts at the Congress of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, reformers will win in the Czechoslovak leadership (September 9, 1968).

Measures taken by the USSR: In Hungary:

10/23/1956 at a meeting of the Presidium of the CPSU Central Committee N.S. Khrushchev spoke in favor of sending troops to the Hungarian capital. In a telephone conversation with the leadership of Hungary, he raised the question of “the desirability of an official written appeal to the government of the USSR” with a request for military assistance;

10/23/1956 at 11 p.m., Chief of the General Staff of the USSR Armed Forces, Marshal V.D. Sokolovsky. gave the order to the command of the Special Corps to move troops to Budapest, where they were to establish control over key objects of the capital and restore public order in it. And with part of the forces to provide cover of the border of Hungary with Austria - but without opening fire;

With the introduction of troops, the organization of security for the buildings of the Central Committee, parliament, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, banks, airfield and weapons depots began. Armed detachments continued to operate in the city;

Complete disarmament of the Hungarian army;

The main garrisons of the Hungarian troops were blocked. For Czechoslovakia:

On August 13, 1968, in Uzhgorod, a meeting of members of the Military Council took place with the Minister of Defense, Marshal of the Soviet Union A.A. Grechko, who pointed out the need to bring all equipment into combat condition in the near future, to be ready to carry out a multi-kilometer march in mountainous and forested conditions terrain. He warned that troops are expected to be sent into Czechoslovakia in the near future... It is possible that NATO troops may invade Czechoslovakia from the West, then we will have to act based on the situation.."

There were all the prerequisites that in August 1968 the world was once again teetering on the brink of global war.

A group of troops was created, which included formations of the Warsaw Pact countries - the GDR, Poland, Hungary and the People's Republic of Belarus.

The decision to send troops was made at a meeting of the Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee on August 16, 1968 and approved at a meeting of the leaders of the Warsaw Pact countries in Moscow on August 18, 1968 under the leadership of General Secretary L.I. Brezhnev.

Forces and assets involved at stage 1: In Hungary:

290 tanks, 120 armored personnel carriers, 156 guns. The main garrisons of the Hungarian troops are blocked.

On October 29-30, 1956, units of the special corps were withdrawn from Budapest in an organized manner. However, the Hungarian government continued to insist on the withdrawal of Soviet troops from the country, and announced its withdrawal from the Warsaw Pact Organization.

10/30/1956 N.S. Khrushchev gave the order to liquidate the rebellion in Hungary. Operation Whirlwind was led by the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the United Armed Forces of the Warsaw Pact states, Marshal of the Soviet Union I.S. Konev. The formation commanders received the order to send troops from the Minister of Defense G.K. Zhukova.

When the troops of the 2nd stage were brought in to reinforce the corps units, another division from the territory of the USSR entered Budapest. Two armies from the Carpathian Military District: combined arms - General Mamsurov and mechanized - General Babajanyan. Their task was to cover the border, prevent possible aggression from the West, and thereby provide the rear for the Soviet troops operating in Budapest. Additionally, the following were raised on combat alert:

A mechanized division of a separate mechanized army stationed in Romania.

In total, five divisions of Soviet troops were raised on combat alert, consisting of: 31,550 men, 31,550 tanks and self-propelled guns, 615 guns and mortars, 185 anti-aircraft guns, 380 armored personnel carriers, 3,930 vehicles. At the same time, our aviation was put on alert: fighters - 159 and bombers - 122.

For Czechoslovakia:

The first echelon numbered

Up to 250 thousand, total number - up to 500 thousand people.

About 5 thousand tanks and armored personnel carriers.

Three fronts were formed - based on the departments and troops of several military districts and groups of forces.

The entry date was set for the evening of August 20, 1968. According to the order on the formation of the Main Command of Operation Danube, Army General I.G. Pavlovsky was appointed commander in chief.

The combat alert was announced at 11 p.m. “Orders for interaction for Operation Danube” were developed. All military equipment of Soviet and Union production without white stripes was subject to “neutralization.” In case of resistance, tanks without stripes and other military equipment were subject to destruction without warning. When meeting with NATO troops, it was necessary to stop and do not shoot without a command.

At 00.00 on August 21, troops of the USSR, Bulgaria, Poland, East Germany and Hungary crossed the Czechoslovak border from four directions at twenty points from Cvikov to Nemetsk. Within 24 hours, objects in the Prague and Brno areas were already under the control of the Allied forces. The main efforts were aimed at seizing the buildings of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, the government, the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff, as well as the building of the radio and television station. According to a pre-developed plan, columns of troops were sent to the main administrative and industrial centers of Czechoslovakia. Formations and units were located in all major cities. Military garrisons of the Czechoslovak army in cities and towns, warehouses with weapons and ammunition were blocked by allied forces. Particular attention was paid to protecting the western borders of Czechoslovakia, capturing airfields, and blocking Czechoslovak military units. The rapid and coordinated entry of troops into Czechoslovakia, as well as the establishment of control over Czechoslovak territory, made it possible to minimize the losses of our troops.

A special role belonged to the Commander-in-Chief of the combined armed forces of the countries participating in the Warsaw Pact, Marshal of the Soviet Union I.I. Yakubovsky.

Actions of national extremists:

Within Hungary:

Shelling of our troops, organizing ambushes, throwing grenades and Molotov cocktails at the bodies of armored personnel carriers and tanks. Extremists played a major role not only in fanning the national psychosis, but also in creating hotbeds of armed struggle.

By November 11, 1956, pockets of resistance in Budapest were suppressed, and Operation Whirlwind ended. For Czechoslovakia:

Construction of barricades on the path of advance of tank columns, armored personnel carriers, vehicles, throwing them with petrol bottles and grenades, shelling from buildings and ambushes, laying rubble and mining them. The operation of underground radio stations, the distribution of leaflets and appeals, armed attacks on military personnel, the distribution of weapons and ammunition, attempts to disable communications and transport, poisoning of water, destruction of monuments to Soviet soldiers in the cities and villages of Czechoslovakia.

The irretrievable losses of USSR soldiers and officers in Hungary amounted to 707 people, 1.5 thousand military personnel were injured. A significant number of tanks, armored personnel carriers and other military equipment were shot down and damaged (data needs clarification).

According to initial statistics, irretrievable losses in Czechoslovakia amounted to 98 people (according to updated data, the figure exceeds 100 people), 87 military personnel were injured, including 19 officers, 87 people died in disasters and died from diseases. Over 10 units of tanks were destroyed, over 350 units of automobile equipment were damaged (the data needs clarification, since on the second day, namely on August 23, at a meeting, the army commander, Lieutenant General A.M. Mayorov, announced the figures: 7 combat vehicles were set on fire, more than 300 vehicles were damaged, 12 people were killed, 76 were injured of varying severity).

United Nations response:

Within Hungary:

The UN called an emergency meeting of the Security Council to discuss the issue of the Soviet attack on Hungary. For Czechoslovakia:

On August 21, 1968, a group of countries (USA, England, France, Canada, Denmark and Paraguay) spoke at the UN Security Council demanding that the “Czechoslovak issue” be brought to a meeting of the UN General Assembly, seeking a decision on the immediate withdrawal of troops from the Warsaw Pact countries. The situation in Czechoslovakia was also discussed in the NATO Permanent Council, where bellicose statements were made. Large-scale maneuvers took place on the territory of the Federal Republic of Germany, testing various scenarios for the outbreak of a European war. The Western media sharply intensified their propaganda campaign. All this affected the attitude of Czechoslovak citizens towards Soviet soldiers. In the city of Kromeriz, at the headquarters of the 3rd MED CHNA, a large number of anti-Soviet leaflets were distributed calling for armed resistance to the Allied forces. However, the task of fulfilling international duty was completed.

None of the responsible leaders, when considering the issues of “protecting the interests of the Soviet Union,” raised questions about what price this protection would be achieved. And here and there short notes flashed: “Reward the military. Provide for the families of the victims.” Basically, all this remains only on paper.

At this point, officials usually consider the case closed and the event forgotten. But it is not forgotten by the relatives and friends of the victims who received a “funeral” in peacetime. It should not be forgotten by our compatriots, all of us - fellow citizens of those young people who will never have to grow old, military personnel who gave their lives in the performance of military duty. After all, a person lives in the memory of him...

Direct participants in Operation Whirlwind in Hungary in 1956 draw their own parallels to the events in Hungary and Czechoslovakia:

Kochegura Anatoly Kuzmich, participant in Operation Whirlwind in Hungary, in 1956 - private, rifleman of the 8th regiment of the company of the 3rd battalion of the 112th rifle regiment of the rifle division, PP 33513, Southern Group of Forces. He has a "War Participant" certificate.

"... On October 23, 1956, we were alerted, and in a formed convoy of vehicles we arrived at the railway station, where T-34 tanks were loaded onto the railway platform, and the personnel were loaded into heated vehicles." and the echelon moved towards the border with Romania. At one of the stations on the territory of Romania, 11 km from the Hungarian border, the echelon was unloaded. The commander of the rifle company, Lieutenant Kondolov, was originally from Stalingrad. region, said that we had arrived to provide fraternal assistance to the people of Hungary. Also, the battalion commander, Major Korotchenko, and the regiment commander, Lieutenant Colonel Tumanov (all of them were front-line soldiers), spoke in front of the formation, and announced that our mission was to fulfill an international duty. ammunition. Each of us received 120 rounds of ammunition for an AK-47 assault rifle and two grenades. The situation was brought to our attention that on October 23, students of the University of Budapest organized a demonstration demanding democratization of the social system in the country and withdrawal. Soviet troops from Hungary. Several youth groups took possession of warehouses containing weapons, which were distributed, and tried to seize the building of the national radio. The shooting started. Measures taken by the police were unsuccessful. The wounded and dead appeared.

In Moscow, a decision was made to send Soviet troops into Hungary.

As part of a column, we crossed the border and took up positions on a large bridge across the river. Tissu in the city of Szeged. Our company was entrusted with the task of protecting the bridge from mining and putting it out of action by counter-revolutionaries. A military guard was set up, in the middle of the bridge - 2 tanks and a platoon of soldiers, also 2 tanks on each side and machine guns.

After some time, units of a rifle division from the Odessa Military District under the command of Colonel Dubrovin crossed the bridge. In the city of Szeged, all communications were taken under protection, including the post office, telegraph, radio center, and administrative buildings. In this large city, plants and factories did not work under the influence of counter-revolutionary elements who intimidated workers through direct threats, reprisals and murders. The Hungarian army was disintegrated, the military personnel left their units without permission. Units of the Hungarian Army, with the participation of one regiment, in the absence of ammunition, tried to resist the national extremists in Budapest. The internal troops and state security also failed to cope with the tasks.

Ambushes were set up against our soldiers, grenades and Molotov cocktails were used.

Border guards on the border with Austria and Yugoslavia were removed. Armed attacks on Soviet military personnel by counter-revolutionaries began. In the city of Beteshaba, crowds of people organized an armed uprising. In Budapest, several families of Soviet officers were slaughtered. In those conditions, it was possible to influence only with weapons and tanks.

According to the “special officer” Captain Limarev, a woman of Hungarian nationality who commanded an armed gang was identified and detained.

In the area of ​​the bridge, counter-revolutionaries installed machine guns on the roofs of houses. As a result of shelling from our company, four soldiers and an officer were killed. This happened on the 4th day of our stay. We opened fire, the tanks fired several salvos from tank guns.

In addition to fulfilling the main task assigned to us, we were involved in checking passing vehicles. On the Romanian side, we detained a driver and a car with a group of people transporting a large box filled with banknotes.

In public places and on houses there were signs: “Occupiers, get out,” “Russians, go home,” etc.

When assigning combat missions, junior commanders, primarily political officers, were informed of the situation: “In Budapest, our column was fired upon, the fire came from a residential building. As a result of retaliatory measures, we managed to capture a group of young people of about 30 people who were armed. These were young people were 18 years old, there were even teenagers..."

At the end of October, according to the political officer, Khrushchev ordered the liquidation of the rebellion in Budapest. Operation Whirlwind began on November 4, several hundred Soviet soldiers and officers were killed in clashes with counter-revolutionaries. In Budapest, our tanks and cars were set on fire. Landed troops from the Carpathian and Moscow Military Districts were fired upon by counter-revolutionaries while the paratroopers were still on parachutes in the area of ​​Lake Balaton and the border with Austria.

The fighting took place during October-November 1956. We buried our fallen comrades there, on the territory of Hungary, and Romania too.

During the deployment of troops on October 24, as a result of armed attacks by terrorists on our soldiers, several dozen Soviet soldiers of the special corps who were in Hungary were killed. At the same time, there was a command - not to open fire first. In the following days, over a hundred of our soldiers died.

After the end of hostilities, our division remained part of the Southern Group of Forces.

In 1968, I served in the GSVG PP 92846. As head of the secret unit of a mobile missile and technical base as part of the 1st Guards. TA. Its formations took part in Operation Danube in Czechoslovakia, and its commander, Lieutenant General K.G. Kozhanov was awarded the Order of Lenin.

Due to my position, I had access to some classified documents about the events taking place in Czechoslovakia. And after the units returned to their “winter quarters” in the GSVG, I had to communicate a lot with the direct participants in Operation Danube. From their stories, the situation seemed very familiar to me and similar to the events in Hungary in 1956, where I personally happened to take part..."

Ovcharenko Alexey Ivanovich, currently lives in the Rostov region, Aksai district, village of Rassvet (in 1956, senior sergeant, mechanic-driver of tanks "T-34", "PT-76", with a class gradation of the military specialty "Master" , as part of a tank regiment of a mechanized division of the rifle corps of the Carpathian Military District. He was awarded the medal “For Military Merit” and has the certificate “War Participant”.

In 1953 I was called up for active duty military service. He ended up serving in Austria, where the Soviet Army troops were located at that time. After completing tank “training,” I served in a tank unit of a tank division with a military specialty as a mechanic-driver of a T-34 tank, on which I served for almost a year under tail number “226.”

In 1955, our troops began to withdraw from Austria. Our regiment was redeployed to the territory of the Soviet Union in Transcarpathia as part of a mechanized division.

In the summer of 1956, we received new equipment, and I mastered the PT-76 twin-screw amphibious tank with powerful weapons at that time.

Around October, we began to prepare for demobilization, and after some time, a farewell to the unit’s banner took place in a solemn atmosphere. And literally three hours later (this was approximately October 23) some movement began in the unit. The officers did not walk on foot while in position; they only moved by running. And after a while the alarm was announced. Everyone, including me, took their places, as prescribed and worked out over years of service. Our crew received the task of placing themselves at the disposal of the reconnaissance battalion. At that time I was a driver mechanic for the commander of the 5th tank company. (I would give a lot to meet him.) Then there was formation by crews, by divisions. The commanders announced that our unit was being sent, in accordance with combat orders, to Hungary to fulfill its international duty of providing fraternal assistance to the Hungarian people and suppressing the counter-revolutionary rebellion.

The situation in the country got out of control, physical reprisals against communists began, groups of people, under the leadership of counter-revolutionaries, seized warehouses with weapons, which were distributed without encountering any obstacles. We received ammunition for small arms and standard ammunition for tank weapons. We handed over our personal documents to the foreman.

At midnight on October 24, we left the “winter quarters” in columns in the direction of the state border with Hungary. At dawn, the column stopped in the forest near the border, everyone was lined up, the commanders gave instructions and set specific tasks. And the next command: “By the cars.” While on the move, in the direction of the cities of Szolnok, Jasbereni, Debrecen, the commander was informed by radio that there were already killed and wounded ahead among our soldiers who were part of the vanguard. When it was already quite light, we noticed through the eyepieces of the panoramas how tall buildings In some town, outbreaks appear and disappear. The front-line commander immediately determined that there was shelling from automatic weapons. But we had an order: “Don’t shoot.” And about an hour later, a command from headquarters came over the radio: “Respond fire with fire.” During a short stop, the communications officer told our company commander that indeed such an order had come from the Commander-in-Chief of the Allied Forces of the Warsaw Pact, Marshal Konev. By that time, part of the armed population had gone into the mountains and forests to fight guerrilla warfare against us. Some remained in cities and towns for armed resistance. Basically, they were young people, impudent and armed.

We rarely saw Hungarian troops; military camps were blocked by our troops. In Buda and Pest, across the bridge we saw burnt buses and cars. In some places bursts of automatic weapons were heard. Basically, the attacks on our troops were carried out by counter-revolutionaries, who used young people and students.

Some time later, already on November 9, our military intelligence officers reported that a group of rebels from among armed youth would soon arrive on the northern outskirts of Budapest in the area of ​​Csepel to carry out sabotage against our soldiers.

We took a position and began to wait. Taking advantage of the seemingly calm situation, the loader, opening the hatch, crawled out halfway and wanted to empty the half-empty empty cartridges from the container. At this time, automatic fire rang out and he was wounded. We returned fire towards the forest area where the shooting came from. And after driving a few hundred meters along the way, an explosion occurred. A grenade explosion on the tank damaged the “caterpillar”, and we radioed for support. Our loader had to be pulled out through the lower hatch and take up defensive positions. I remembered well that the last cartridge must be saved. The tank commander took over the responsibilities of the entire crew. Fortunately, we didn’t have to wait long; two armored personnel carriers with infantry arrived, dispersed and began combing the area.

In the evening, at a kind of rest stop, the special officer reported that in Budapest that day a soldier blew up a grenade and himself when a crowd surrounded him and wanted to tear him to pieces. In another case, a barrel with remaining gasoline was thrown from the roof onto the tank turret, as the commander was standing in the hatch. The entire crew died. All these events took place in the month of November. On the territory of Hungary, near the village of Alyponemedy near Budapest, we had to bury the dead soldiers and officers of the Soviet Army - our comrades in arms.

Soon we moved to the area of ​​Lake Balaton, where our troops landed. We easily overcame water obstacles using our armored vehicles.

When the situation began to stabilize, our unit was left in Hungary. So my fellow soldiers and I got a new “winter apartment”, where I stayed for another 6 months.

After a while, I said goodbye to the unit’s banner for the second time. Now the demobilization has really begun. Thus, I served for three years and eight months. He was awarded the medal "For Military Merit".

Meeting the dawn of the day when we entered Hungary remained in my memory for the rest of my life.

After 12 years, the whole country became aware of the entry of our troops into Czechoslovakia. When I read the TASS statement, on the second day I went to the military registration and enlistment office and wrote a statement so that I, as a master of tank driving, would be sent to any tank unit in Czechoslovakia as a volunteer. A few days later I went back to the military registration and enlistment office. Imagining the events in Czechoslovakia, I could not find a place for myself. But they told me I had to wait, they would call me. At that time I was 34 years old, and apparently I was not destined to take part in international assistance to another people.

Loyalty to military duty and oath will remain in me until the end of my days. Feelings of pride in our army and solidarity with participants in military conflicts and local wars, regardless of their age, are inherent and understandable to me and people like me..."