|
Czechoslovakia Border Guard
Another militarized security force subordinated to the
Ministry of Interior is the Border Guard (Pohranicni Straz),
which was established in 1951 as a separate agency under the
then-existing Ministry of National Security. In 1987 the Border
Guard, whose strength was estimated at 11,000, was commanded by
General Anton Nemek, whose headquarters was in Prague. The Border
Guard is an armed force subject to the same military regulations
that govern the CSLA. In mid-1987, in addition to the individual
small arms carried by its personnel, the Border Guard also had
some armored vehicles, antitank guns, and machine guns.
The main strength of the Border Guard has been deployed along
the West German border since 1950. Smaller units patrolled the
Austrian frontier as well as the borders with East Germany and
Poland. Only a few units were stationed on the Hungarian and
Soviet borders. The basic operational unit was the battalion,
which was divided into companies and platoons and could be
grouped into brigades for administrative purposes. The federal
minister of interior could call the Border Guard to supplement
security forces if necessary, and in wartime it could be assigned
to the army either to serve specialized guard functions or to
fight as infantry. Members of the Antiaircraft Defense
(Protivzdusna Obrana) helped the Border Guard by instituting air
patrols. The portion of the border with Hungary formed by the
Danube River was patrolled by the Border Guard, which used
launches and patrol boats equipped with radar and infrared
sighting devices.
Data as of August 1987
|
