FCS main square unveiled a monument to Mikhail Pospelov, an officer of the Imperial Russian Border Guard and later Soviet border troops noted for honour and loyalty to duty. Source: FCS Russia.
Valery Pikalyov said the idea followed an official visit to Uzbekistan, where colleagues carefully maintain Pospelov’s grave in Tashkent. Customs officers, the FCS Public Council, and veterans joined the project.
Speakers linked the officer’s image to the prototype for border guard Pavel Vershagin in the film “White Sun of the Desert”, a cultural reference for generations of customs staff.
Deputy head Dmitry Zhukov outlined Pospelov’s service guarding the Soviet–Persian border for decades, fighting armed gangs, Basmachi, and smugglers. He was awarded the Order of St Stanislaus, 3rd class with swords, and the medal “For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945”.
The unveiling was presented as preserving memory of service to the country and as an example for those who choose to defend the border.
