Tiraspol, 13 February. /Novosti Pridnestrovya/. This year marks the 29th anniversary of the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan. The war carried away about 15,000 Soviet soldiers, among whom were 54 Pridnestrovians. On the eve of the Day of Memory and Glory, President Vadim Krasnoselsky met internationalist soldiers.
The role of the Soviet internationalist soldier, who fulfilled his duty in the Republic of Afghanistan, is very great, the president underscored. "Then it was not at all clear to many why the USSR required so much time to fight in the Republic of Afghanistan. But today, after well-known events, it is safe to say that then Soviet internationalist soldiers carried out a peacekeeping mission in Afghanistan. If it were not for the USSR, the Middle East would have been on fire for many years," said Vadim Krasnoselsky. And today, despite numerous attacks, Russia continues to play the role of peacekeeper in numerous international conflicts.
In turn, the chairman of the Pridnestrovian Association of Afghanistan War Veterans, Igor Buga, thanked the president for the resumption of traditional meetings held at the level of the president on the eve of the anniversary of the withdrawal of Soviet troops from the Republic of Afghanistan, as well as for the attention that the state pays to war veterans.
"Last year, thanks to the president's support, the Supreme Council adopted a number of important bills that significantly reduced the degree of social tension among veterans and enhanced the system of social protection. I am convinced that our cooperation and work for the benefit of our country will only grow stronger," said Igor Buga.
Buga recalled that 54 Pridnestrovians were killed during military operations in Afghanistan. About three hundred veterans died after returning from the war. The participants of the rally observed a minute of silence in their memory.
Continuing the meeting, Buga wanted to know whether it is possible to resume the involvement of DOSAAF in training drivers for the Ministry of Defense. This cooperation ceased in 2008 due to the difficult economic situation in the country.
The president drew attention to the fact that the form of training of drivers that was provided by the Ministry of Defense was quite acceptable, and the involvement of DOSAAF in this work would require additional financial support, which is a heavy burden for the budget.
Defense Minister Oleg Obruchkov also added that until August 2017, the training period for servicemen at the drivers' courses was 4.5 months, which took very much time; therefore, at the expense of the combined arms disciplines, the training time was reduced to three months. As a result, from 90 to 95% of trainees successfully passed the final exam last year, while in 2016 this percentage was half as much.
"I think that we are doing quite well on our own," concluded Oleg Obruchkov.
Prosthetics is another important issue that is of interest to "Afghan" warriors. As explained by the Minister for Social Protection and Labor, Elena Kulichenko, today there are six registered veterans, three of whom underwent prosthetics in 2016 - 2017, and another three more this year.
"There are no problems with prosthetics at the moment. We have agreements with the Abkhaz Rehabilitation Center and the Moscow Prosthetic and Orthopedic Center. Prosthetic specialists from the Russian centre visited Pridnestrovie. We also plan to work with a private enterprise in Odessa," said the minister.
And although the quality of medical care provided by foreign centres is high, the president indicated the necessity of prosthetics development in Pridnestrovie. To date, 260 citizens of the republic are in need of this service.
And such a service shop, thanks to an agreement with the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Russian Federation, will soon open in the PMR, Elena Kulichenko said.
"A prosthetist from the Moscow centre will come to us to take measurements, and here we will install modules that will be appropriate for every disabled person," explained the minister. This will save us significant budgetary funds.
They also discussed the possibility of concessional lending to disabled veterans of the Afghanistan war along with disabled defenders of Pridnestrovie. Today, such loans are given at a rate of 14% a year, of which only 4% of payments account for disabled people, and the state shoulders the rest of the burden.
The president said that the government was considering this issue.
Another proposal backed by the president was to exempt from import customs duties on cars veterans of all internationalist wars along with Pridnestrovie defenders, "Afghan" soldiers and Chernobyl disaster responders.
Vadim Krasnoselsky instructed the head of the State Customs Committee to draft a bill amending the law "On customs tariff".
The meeting participants discussed the work of the commission for military and patriotic education established in 2017, as well as the prospects of creating a museum dedicated to the war in Afghanistan.
At the end of the meeting, the President thanked the veterans for their patriotism and active civil position, noting that all the problems raised by them would be resolved, with "some legislative intervention" applied where necessary.
On the eve of the 29th anniversary of the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan, the president awarded a number of veterans.
