The Separate Operational Purpose Division or OMSDON, is a rapid deployment internal security division of the Internal Troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR and then the Internal Troop
ODON soldiers marching in Alexander Garden on Victory Day in 2015.
ODON division servicemen from Russian Internal Troops. Photo by Vitaly Kuzmin
Vityaz (MVD)
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The 1st Special Purpose Unit of the Internal Forces "Vityaz", commonly known as Vityaz, was one of the special forces units of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation from 1991 to 2
Separate Operational Purpose Division
…preparation for the 1980 Moscow Olympics, an elite group of OMSDON troops was trained with special forces tactics; the core of this group later became the Vytyaz unit. The final USSR designation of the division was OMSDON (Independent Special-Purpose Motorized Rifle Division of the Internal Troops of the MVD of…
Vityaz unit emblem, showing an AKS-74 rifle imposed on the double-headed eagle (originally a Soviet red star)
Vityaz personnel in a GAZ-2975 at the public show Interpolitex 2012