KASPIYSK, Southern Russia, December 1 (AVN) - Admiral Viktor Kravchenko, chief of the Navy Staff, handed the brigade colour to the 77th Moscow-Chernigov separate marine brigade on Friday, the Military News Agency learned.
The brigade commanded by Colonel Sergei Pushkin consists of three marine battalions, artillery battalion and other units. The brigade is included into the Caspian flotilla and is deployed in Kaspiysk and Astrakhan. Now when the colour had been handed, the over 3,000-strong brigade is considered to be a completely manned unit.
Decision to form the 77th brigade was taken by the RF Navy command right after the hostilities in Dagestan started. Prior to that the Caspian flotilla comprised two battalions deployed in Astrakhan and Kaspiysk.
The enforced marine battalion commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Vyacheslav Andrianov was taking part in anti-guerrilla operation in Chechnya since November 1999 till September 2000. Last autumn it made a breakthrough in mountains and reached the Kharachoi, Vedeno and Dargo vicinities, seized vicinities in the Vedeno canyon. Caspian marines also took part in the operation to free Alleroi and Chechen-Aul. Then they controlled mountainous parts of Chechnya near the administrative border with Dagestan (in vicinities of Nozhai-Yurt and Zandak). Over 300 marines that participated in the counter-guerrilla operation awarded orders and medals.
Magomedali Magomedov, chairman of the Dagestani republican council, attended the ceremony of handing the colours.