| Pyotr Ivanovich Gusev | |
|---|---|
 Pyotr Gusev in 1982. | |
| Native name | Пётр Иванович Гусев |
| Born | 1 August 1932 Nizhny Umetgurt, Udmurt Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic |
| Died | 1 October 2024(2024-10-01) (aged 92) Udmurt Republic, Russia |
| Allegiance |  Soviet Union |
| Service | Soviet Army |
| Years of service | 1958–1993 |
| Rank | Lieutenant general |
| Commands | Carpathian Military District (deputy commander) |
| Battles / wars | |
| Awards | Order of the Red Banner Order of the Red Star Order "For Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR" |
Pyotr Ivanovich Gusev (Russian: Пётр Иванович Гусев) (August 1, 1932 – October 1, 2024) was a Soviet and Russian career soldier. During the mid-1980s, Gusev was a lieutenant general serving as deputy commander of the Carpathian Military District.
Gusev was subsequently appointed as head of the Soviet military mission in Angola in 1987, succeeding Lieutenant General Leonid Kuzmenko. In this role, Gusev directly planned and supervised combat operations for the People's Armed Forces of Liberation of Angola (FAPLA), with the oversight of Angolan Defence Minister Pedro Pedalé. He was the senior Soviet general officer involved in the Battle of Cuito Cuanavale. Throughout the battle, Gusev personally briefed Angolan president José Eduardo dos Santos on the military situation.
Gusev was a controversial figure among the Soviet military forces in Angola. He often vetoed commendations for Soviet enlisted personnel and junior officers who had been directly engaged in hostilities. The Soviet troops primarily served in technical and support roles, although circumstances often dictated they fight alongside their Angolan peers if attacked by UNITA insurgents or South African expeditionary forces. Gusev also garnered criticism for ordering offensives without taking into account the logistical challenges and technical shortcomings of the Angolan forces expected to execute these complex operations.
Gusev published his memoirs after his retirement from military service.
References
- ^ Liebenberg, Ian; Risquet, Jorge; Shubin, Vladimir (1997). A Far-Away War: Angola, 1975–1989. Stellenbosch: Sun Media Press. pp. 95–96. ISBN 978-1-920689-72-8.
- ^ Gleijeses, Piero (2013). Visions of Freedom: Havana, Washington, Pretoria, and the Struggle for Southern Africa, 1976–1991. United States: The University of North Carolina Press. pp. 393–425. ISBN 978-1-4696-0968-3.
- ^ Tokarev, Andrei; Shubin, Gennady, eds. (2011). Bush War: The Road to Cuito Cuanavale: Soviet Soldiers' Accounts of the Angolan War. Auckland Park: Jacana Media (Pty) Ltd. pp. 128–148. ISBN 978-1-4314-0185-7.
- Shubin, Vladimir Gennadyevich (2008). The Hot "Cold War": The USSR in Southern Africa. London: Pluto Press. p. 89. ISBN 978-0-7453-2472-2.
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