After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the young states inherited not only plants and factories, but also abandoned military facilities of the USSR. Among them there are both strictly classified and not so. The economy of many newly formed countries did not allow to pull the maintenance, provision and maintenance of the functioning of these strategically important complexes. Some states simply did not need them and did not consider it necessary to spend huge funds from the federal treasury on this. This is how abandoned military facilities appeared. Gradually they collapsed and fell into disrepair.
Let's consider the most interesting abandoned military facilities from the huge variety of complexes scattered over forests and mountains, testifying to the former power of the collapsed empire. But this is only a small fraction of the declassified structures…
Balaklava, Crimea
Submarine storage located onterritory of Sevastopol, is striking in its scale. Under its vaults, up to 14 large-sized vessels could simultaneously accommodate. There is also abandoned military equipment and parts for it. This base was built in 1961, and it ceased to function in 1993, almost immediately after the collapse of the USSR. As knowledgeable people say, this place was a kind of transshipment point where submarines went for repairs and recharging, and ammunition was replenished here. The balaclava was built to last for centuries and, thanks to its perfect design, is able to withstand direct nuclear strikes. But today it has joined the list of "Abandoned military facilities of the former Soviet Union." Now little is left of it, as the inhabitants of the district literally dismantled it into pieces. In 2002, local authorities announced their intention to create a museum in Balaklava, but things never went beyond talk.
Dvina missile silo, Kekava (Latvia)
After the collapse of the USSR, many former republics got such military facilities, the presence of which they did not even know. For example, not far from Riga, in the thicket of the forest, there are the remains of a powerful Dvina missile system. It was built back in 1964 and consisted of four spacious launch silos, which were located at a depth of more than 34 meters. Currently, they are partially flooded, but any interested person can go down into them, accompanied by an experienced stalker, to see firsthand what abandoned military facilities are. Although it shouldthink carefully before going on such an excursion. It is said that there is quite a lot of rocket fuel left in the mines, which, although not radioactive, is nevertheless poisonous.
Lopatinsky phosphorite mine (Moscow region)
Before the collapse of the USSR, this complex was a large deposit where minerals and other substances used in agriculture and industry were mined. After 1993, the mine suspended its operations. All equipment was left to rust… Thus, a huge field with giant excavator buckets has become a place of pilgrimage for thousands of tourists from all over the world.
Station for studying the ionosphere (Ukraine)
This complex, which is located near Kharkov, was built just a year before the collapse of the USSR and became a response to the creation of the famous American project HAARP, in Alaska. An analogue of the United States, by the way, is successfully functioning to this day. The huge complex consisted of a giant parabolic antenna, the diameter of which was 25 meters, and several research fields. Now the abandoned military equipment still stands still, resembling a sad cemetery. The newly minted Ukrainian state did not need this expensive and energy-intensive complex, now it is only of interest to non-ferrous metal hunters, stalkers and tourists.
Sea City "Oil Rocks" (Azerbaijan)
At 40of the last century, the development of underwater deposits began here. They were carried out in the Caspian Sea, or rather, 42 kilometers from the Absheron Peninsula. Entire cities were built around the first platforms, which were based on metal overpasses and embankments. Thus, power plants, nine-story houses, hospitals, schools and kindergartens were built in the middle of the water 110 kilometers from Baku. There was also a bakery, a house of culture and even a lemonade production workshop. The oil workers even broke a small square with trees and green spaces. The city of Oil Rocks occupies more than 200 platforms, and the length of the streets as a whole is more than 350 kilometers.
Soon more profitable Siberian oil became popular, which immediately made the maintenance of underwater offshore deposits unprofitable. Gradually, the cities on the water were empty. Surprising as it may seem, Oil Rocks cannot be called a ghost town, since more than two thousand people still live in it.
Abandoned particle accelerator (Moscow region)
In the late 80s of the last century, the Soviet Union, which was losing its political positions, decided to implement an amazing idea. This is how the elementary particle accelerator appeared. The ring tunnel, which was 21 kilometers long, ran at a depth of more than fifty meters. Geographically, it is located near the town of nuclear physicists Protvino. This is not far from Moscow - about a hundred kilometers along the Simferopol highway. Into the prepared tunnel alreadythey began to import expensive equipment, but then perestroika began, and the Soviet "atomic collider" remained buried underground.
The place for it was selected based on geological considerations. The soil in this area was ideal for the construction of large-scale underground structures. Huge halls were connected to the outer parts by pipes up to 68 meters long. Giant cranes with a lifting capacity of up to 20 tons were installed above the well.
At one time, this development was nine years ahead of its American counterparts. But with the collapse of the USSR, there was no money left for research. The cost of creating a collider can be commensurate with the cost of a huge nuclear power plant.
Currently, there are a variety of abandoned military units, which were once a sign of the power of the state, and are now gradually being erased from the face of the earth. Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to restore them. Of particular interest are the extensive military facilities of the Leningrad Region, some of which have been classified: the airfield of the Navy on Moshny Island in the Kingisepp District, abandoned training grounds, catacombs, bomb shelters, ammunition factories, hangars and fortresses … On the one hand, it seems to be good that all this exists, and anyone interested in the history of their country can see these objects with their own eyes. On the other hand, they make a depressing impression: so much effort, and maybe even lives, was put into creating them, but now much has become unnecessary and abandoned…
