Ivan Vertelko
Russian military officer (1926–2021) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Ivan Petrovich Vertelko (Russian: Иван Петрович Вертелко; 17 August 1926 – 14 June 2021) was an officer of the Soviet military who held a number of posts in the Soviet Tank Forces, and later the Soviet Border Forces, reaching the rank of colonel general.
Ivan Vertelko | |
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Native name | Иван Петрович Вертелко |
Born | 17 August 1926 Strigovo, Pochepsky Uyezd, Bryansk Governorate, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union |
Died | 14 June 2021(2021-06-14) (aged 94) |
Buried | |
Allegiance | Soviet Union |
Service/ | Soviet Tank Forces Soviet Border Forces |
Years of service | 1940–1988 |
Rank | Colonel General |
Commands held | 3rd Guards Tank Division |
Battles/wars | Second World War Soviet–Afghan War |
Awards | Twice Order of Lenin Order of the October Revolution Twice Order of the Red Banner Order of the Patriotic War First Class Order of the Red Banner of Labour Order of the Red Star Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" Third Class Medal "For Battle Merit" Medal "For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" |
Born in 1926, Vertelko was still a child when the Second World War broke out, and following the Axis invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941, lived for some time under German occupation. He narrowly avoided being deported to Germany by escaping from a camp, and in 1943 joined the Red Army at the age of 17. He initially served as a scout in a motorcycle reconnaissance battalion, going on to see action at the liberation of Minsk and during the Vilnius offensive. Wounded in action, he lost a finger, and received the Order of the Red Star when defending against counterattacks, before joining the tank forces as a crewman on a T-34. In this role he saw out the war, but continued to serve in the armed forces.
By now attached to the tank forces, Vertelko studied at several schools and rose through the ranks and positions to more senior commands. He studied at the Military Academy of the Armoured Forces, and later at the Military Academy of the General Staff, and after distinguishing himself in military exercises, became first deputy commander of the 5th Guards Tank Army. He then made a radical switch in his career after being transferred to the Soviet Border Forces, who were in the process of equipping with new heavier armaments, and who needed an experienced commander. He served as deputy head of the Main Directorate for the Internal Affairs of the KGB, and then as first deputy head of the Main Directorate of the KGB, being heavily involved in the deployment of the Border Forces during the Soviet–Afghan War. Retiring in 1990, he wrote his memoirs and remained active in veterans' affairs, before his death in 2021 at the age of 94.