The National Guard of the Republic of Kazakhstan (, Qazaqstan Respublikasynyñ Ūlttyq ūlany, ) is the internal military force of Kazakhstan. The National Guard performs the military and civilian functions of the Internal Troops of Kazakhstan, which it succeeded. The National Guard often cooperates in unison with many local Kazakh police departments. The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Kazakhstan is the main government agency responsible for the management of the National Guard. The National Guard shares some of the same goals and functions as its predecessor, the Internal Troops: Provide security to important cargo and corrective institutions Maintain of a social order and a state of alertness during national emergencies such as natural disasters Dismantle illegal armed formations Prevent terrorist and/or illegal formations from being assembled in the boundaries of Kazakhstan History The Internal Troops of Kazakhstan, which is the precursor to the present-day National Guard, was formed by order of the President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev on January 10, 1992. On April 21, 2014, by a Presidential Decree, the internal troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Kazakhstan were transformed into the National Guard of Kazakhstan. This was done as part of the government's new doctrine in relation to the armed forces that was adopted that year. In June 2016, Islamic militants killed three people at a National Guard facility in Aktobe during an ambush. In September 2018, it was reported that the National Guard received the first 8 Shaanxi Y-8's from the Shaanxi Aircraft Corporation. Leadership The Commander-in-Chief of the National Guard (currently Major general Yerkin Botakanov) is appointed and dismissed by the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan. It is the seniormost post acting as the commanding officer of the entire branch, reporting to the president through the Minister of Internal Affairs. The assistant to the commander-in-chief and the head of all the headquarters directorates was known as the Chief of Staff. First Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the National Guard of the Republic of Kazakhstan - Chief of Staff – Major general Aktanov K.M. Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the National Guard – Major general Matkarimov A.M. Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the National Guard for educational and social and legal work – Colonel Umbetov K. Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the National Guard for Equipment and Armament – Colonel Voronkin K. Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the National Guard for Logistics – Major general Omarkulov Zh.K. Secretary of the Military Council of the National