58th Guards Combined Arms Army


The 58th Guards Combined Arms Army is an army of the Russian Ground Forces, headquartered at Vladikavkaz, North Ossetia-Alania, within Russia's Southern Military District. It was formed in 1941 as part of the Soviet Union's Red Army and has been part of the Russian Army since 1995. It has the Military Unit Number is 47084.

World War II

It was first formed in the Siberian Military District in November 1941, including the 362nd, 364th, 368th, 370th, 380th, and 384th Rifle Divisions and the 77th Cavalry Division and moved to the Arkhangelsk Military District, but then the Army was redesignated the 3rd Tank Army in May 1942. It was reestablished within the Kalinin Front in June 1942, and in July included the 16th and 27th Guards Rifle Divisions, the 215th and 375th Rifle Divisions, the 35th and 81st Tank Brigades, and other support units.
It was reformed in the Transcaucasian Front from the 24th Army on 28 August 1942, under General Vasily Khomenko of the NKVD. Much of its senior cadre also came from the NKVD, and among its missions was to keep order in the Caucasus, particularly in the Groznyi and Makhachkala regions. This was because of a Chechen uprising that had gone on since 1941. 58th Army later joined the North Caucasus Front. On 1 November 1942 it consisted of the 271st and 416th Rifle Division, and the Makhachkala Division of the NKVD. Prior to the North Caucasus Front putting its main effort into the Kerch-Eltigen Operation the Army HQ was reorganised as Headquarters Volga Military District in October 1943.

Commanders

Chief of Staff

Second Chechen War (1999–2000)

The headquarters was reformed in 1995 in the North Caucasus Military District from the 42nd Army Corps at Vladikavkaz. The 42nd Army Corps had been formed in August 1982. During the Second Chechen War, the Army was commanded by then Lieutenant General Vladimir Shamanov, who was succeeded by army chief of staff and first deputy commander Major General Valery Gerasimov.

Beslan school siege

In 2004, units from the 58th provided assistance with armoured vehicles to the forces involved storming the school on the third day of the Beslan school siege.

Russo-Georgian War (2008)

On 3 August 2008, five battalions of the Russian 58th Army were moved to the vicinity of Roki Tunnel that links Georgia's breakaway South Ossetia with Russia's North Ossetia.
On 8 August 2008 the 58th Army crossed the border into Georgia and engaged in combat against Georgian forces, most notably in the city of Tskhinvali. Its then-commander, Lieutenant General Anatoly Khrulyov was wounded in action.

War in Donbas (2014–22)

In June 2014 Ukrainian troops captured a damaged BM-21 Grad launcher, which the Ukrainians identified as equipment of the 58th Army of the Russian Federation.
Major general Sergey Kuzovlev became commander of the army on 18 August 2016. In late 2016 the Russian Ministry of Defense announced that the 42nd Guards Motor Rifle Division had been reformed from the 8th Guards Mountain Motor Rifle Brigade, the 17th Guards Motor Rifle Brigade, and the 18th Guards Motor Rifle Brigade. In January 2017, 20th Guards Army commander Major general Yevgeny Nikiforov replaced Kuzovlev.

Russian invasion of Ukraine (2022–present)

On the eve of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, it was reported that the headquarters of the 58th Army had deployed to Crimea commanding between 12 and 17 battalion tactical groups. Once the invasion commenced, units of the 58th Army took part in hostilities on the southern front of the war.
About 300 South Ossetian soldiers of 4th Guards Military Base were reported in late March to have refused to return to combat after five days on the frontline in Ukraine, and instead gone back to South Ossetia.
On 11 July 2023, the 58th Army headquarters in Berdiansk, Zaporizhzhia Oblast was destroyed by a missile strike. Among those reportedly killed was Lieutenant-General Oleg Tsokov, the deputy commander of the Russian Southern Military District, making him the highest ranking Russian officer killed during the invasion.
On 12 July 2023, the army commander, Major General Ivan Popov, was removed from his post. In a Telegram message posted by a Russian MP, he claimed to have been fired by Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu after complaining about inadequacies in logistics that led to high casualties among his men and accusing his superiors of treason. Popov was replaced by Lieutenant General Denis Lyamin.
On 26 September 2023, the unit was awarded the "Guards" honorific for its defense of the southern front during the 2023 Ukrainian counteroffensive.

Structure

2013

The Army operates in a close coordination with the 4th Air Force and Air Defence Army of the district, and includes:

2016

2023

Commanders