After graduating from the
Tashkent Higher Tank Command School in 1984 he was assigned to the reserve of the 40th Army of the
Turkestan Military District, serving during the
Soviet–Afghan War as a motorized infantry commander. Following the conclusion of the war, he served in
Hungary,
Turkmenistan and
Belarus. In 1993, now under the banner of the
Russian Federation, he graduated from the Military Academy of Armored Forces following which he served in the
First Chechen War in the
Republic of North Ossetia, partaking in two tours of duty; the first from 11 December 1994 to 27 April 1995, the second from 19 February to 8 October 1996. By the end of his tours in Chechnya he had attained the rank of
colonel and was awarded the title of Hero of the Russian Federation on 19 October 1996 by then-
President Boris Yeltsin. He continued service in the military—serving as an assistant governor of
Stavropol Krai, followed by his graduation from the Russian General Staff Academy and promotion to
flag officer status. At the current time, he serves as the deputy commander of the Eastern Regional Command of the Russian internal troops, the
MVD. ==External links==