The Ministry of Defense of Turkmenistan ( Turkmen: Türkmenistanyň Goranmak ministrligi) is a government agency under the

Armed Forces of Turkmenistan The Armed Forces of Turkmenistan ( tk, Türkmenistanyň Ýaragly Güýçleri), known informally as the Turkmen National Army () is the national military of Turkmenistan. It consists of the Turkmen Ground Forces, Ground Forces, the Turkmen Air F ...

which is the executive body in implementing defense policies in

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...

. The current Minister of Defense is Major General Begench Gundogdyev. It was founded in January 1992 with the assistance of the

Russian Armed Forces The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation (, ), commonly referred to as the Russian Armed Forces, are the military forces of Russia. In terms of active-duty personnel, they are the world's fifth-largest military force, with at least two m ...

. At its formation, most of the ethnic Turkmen employees were retired Soviet officials and members of the

Communist Party of the Turkmen SSR The Communist Party of Turkmenistan (russian: Коммунистическая партия Туркменистана; tk, Türkmenistanyň Kommunistik Partiýasy) was the ruling communist party of the Turkmen SSR, and a part of the Communis ...

, with other officials coming from small backgrounds such as chief of staff Annamurat Soltanov who had served in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

and Begdzhan Niyazov who had a career in law enforcement prior to his rising to his position.

List of Ministers of Defense

Defense Ministry institutions, units and areas

Sections of the defense ministry include some of the following institutions: *

Educational institutions An educational institution is a place where people of different ages gain an education, including preschools, childcare, primary-elementary schools, secondary-high schools, and universities. They provide a large variety of learning environments an ...

** Military Institute of the Ministry of Defense **

Berdimuhamed Annayev 1st Specialized Military School The Berdimuhamed Annayev 1st Specialized Military School () is a boarding school of the Armed Forces of Turkmenistan. It is part of the Ministry of Defence and is located at the Military Institute, next to the university buildings. It is one of ...

(

Ashgabat Ashgabat or Asgabat ( tk, Aşgabat, ; fa, عشق‌آباد, translit='Ešqābād, formerly named Poltoratsk ( rus, Полтора́цк, p=pəltɐˈratsk) between 1919 and 1927), is the capital and the largest city of Turkmenistan. It lies ...

) ** Alp Arslan 2nd Specialized Military School ( Dashoguz) ** Soltan Sanjar 3rd Specialized Military School (

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

) * Central House of Officers **"Merdana nesiller" Ensmeble **Military Museum named after Berdimuhamed Annayev *Center for Emergency Management (opened in January 2011) *Equestrian Complex of the Ministry of Defense (opened in 2012) *Central Army Sports Club *Various military training sites ** Akdepe Airdrome ** Kelyata Training Center ( Bäherden District of the

Ahal Region Ahal Region ( tk, Ahal welaýaty; from fa, آخال, Axāl) is one of five provinces of Turkmenistan. It is in the south-center of the country, bordering Iran and Afghanistan along the Kopet Dag Range. Its area is and population 939,700 (2005 ...

) ** Northern Kelete Training Ground (near the village of Kelete) ** Mountain Training Center "South Kelyata" (near

) **

Ogurja Ada , image_name = Ogurchinsky_caspian.jpg , image_caption = 19th-century Russian map of Ogurchinskiy Island , image_size = , map_image = Caspian5OGU.png , map_caption = Location of Ogurja Ada in the Caspian Sea , location = Ca ...

Naval Base * ''Milli goşun'' (newspaper) *Youth Organization named after Magtymguly of the Ministry of Defense * Independent Honor Guard Battalion

House of Officers

Based on the Soviet model, the House of Officers () is the main

cultural center A cultural center or cultural centre is an organization, building or complex that promotes culture and arts. Cultural centers can be neighborhood community arts organizations, private facilities, government-sponsored, or activist-run. Asia * Ce ...

of the military designed to improve

Civil–military relations Civil–military relations (Civ-Mil or CMR) describes the relationship between military organizations and civil society, military organizations and other government bureaucracies, and leaders and the military. CMR incorporates a diverse, often n ...

. It is the equivalent to

Military officers' club An officers' club, known within the military as an O club is similar to a gentlemen's club for commissioned officers of the armed forces. Few officers' clubs have survived the end of the Cold War. Origins Officers' clubs are an artifact of th ...

s in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Concerts of military ensembles such as the "Merdana nesiller" Ensemble, the ''Göreldeli'' Military Band and the "Sherhet Ovazlara" Ensemble of the

State Border Service The State Border Service of Azerbaijan Republic ( az, Azərbaycan Respublikası Dövlət Sərhəd Xidməti), also known as Border Guard of Azerbaijan, is a governmental law enforcement agency in charge of protecting the borders of Azerbaijan. The C ...

have performed at the House of Officers. The house hosts receptions on holidays such as

Defender of the Fatherland Day Defender of the Fatherland Day (russian: День защитника Отечества ''Den' zashchitnika Otechestva''; kk, Отан қорғаушы күні; tg, Рӯзи Дорандаи Ватан; ky, Мекенди коргоочула ...

and

Independence Day An independence day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or more rarely after the end of a military occupation. Man ...

. A special attraction of the House of Officers is the Museum of Military Glory, where numerous exhibits tell a history of Turkmen military history since the time of Oguz Khan. The building also has a stationary full-time professional television studio that prepares weekly television shows on the Altyn Asyr and Ovaz channels. It frequently hosts guests from the Military Institute and the military school.

''Milli goşun''

The Defence Ministry issues its social and political magazine called ''Milli goşun'' (National Army) every quarter which has the information about the measures for strengthening of defensive capability of the country.

Department structure

Independence Day Parade - Flickr - Kerri-Jo (3)

The defense ministry has the following command structure: *General Staff *General Directorate of Armaments *General Mobilization Directorate *General Directorate of Civil Defense and Rescue ( tk, Raýat goranmak we halas ediş baş müdirligi), it is the

civil defense Civil defense ( en, region=gb, civil defence) or civil protection is an effort to protect the citizens of a state (generally non-combatants) from man-made and natural disasters. It uses the principles of emergency operations: prevention, miti ...

agency for Turkmenistan. It is similar to the

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

n Ministry of Emergency Situations. It conducts joint exercises in the territories of industrial enterprises with non-militarized rescue workers of the enterprises themselves, developing tactics in the event of various natural disasters and rescue operations. *General Directorate of Supply and Logistics *Educational Directorate

References

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Defense Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...