Soviet Export Jacket - Grenada Bringback

[Nkomo]

During the Cold War, the Soviet Union was busy arming and equipping friendly Marxist nations around the globe. That included nations in Africa, the Middle East, Central America, etc.

 

This jacket is what they call "sterile". It had no markings or tags that would let someone track the jacket back to the Soviet Union. That is called "plausible deniability". However, they didn't do much to disguise the origin. One thing they did do was to change the buttons from the hammer and sickle version to a plain pebble grain button.

 

This particular one was most likely captured in 1983 during Operation Urgent Fury in Grenada.

 

 

[TH2022]

Did the Cubans wear this jacket during the invasion?

[ScottG]

On 4/7/2025 at 1:41 PM, TH2022 said:

Did the Cubans wear this jacket during the invasion?

 

       I haven't seen pics of Cubans wearing them, but remember that there weren't many Cuban soldiers in Grenada. The Cubans were advising the Grenadian PRA or Peoples Revolutionary Army. Most of the Cubans were either in civilian clothes or Cuban green uniforms in the case of some of the engineers. Being a Soviet ally, the Cubans acted as intermediaries to the PRA and were supplying many items to them. There was an article in a 83 or 84 issue of Soldier of Fortune that showed a supply room full of Soviet items like these that were unissued prior to the US invasion. So, my take is if anyone actually wore them, it would have been the PRA, much the Angolans.

     Scott