KZS Berezka
The Spetsnaz Issue
The KZS — Kamuflirovanny Zasadny Skafandr, Camouflaged Ambush Suit — is a lightweight oversized coverall developed for KGB Border Guard units, MVD spetsnaz, and Internal Troops. Where the KLMK was a reversible woodland suit designed for general issue, the KZS was purpose-built for ambush and close-reconnaissance work: looser cut, lighter fabric, and printed in the yellow-on-green color family most associated with drier, more open terrain.
The KZS saw extensive use during the Soviet–Afghan War, where its yellow-on-green palette proved well-suited to the arid scrub and rocky terrain of the Afghan countryside. Photographs from the conflict document KZS-pattern garments worn by Spetsnaz GRU, KGB Border Guard, and VDV airborne troops — often layered over standard-issue uniforms or worn alone in the summer heat. Its loose cut and lightweight fabric made it practical in the field in a way that heavier garments were not, and it became closely associated with the Soviet special operations presence in the theater.
The KZS pattern shares its stair-step birch geometry with the KLMK but diverges sharply in color. Yellow or yellow-green shapes on a dark olive field define the family — a palette that reads as foliage in the field rather than the dappled woodland light of the white-on-green KLMK. Within this family, color expression varies considerably across production runs, from bright yellow-green to warmer khaki and tan tones, reflecting differences in factory output, fabric stock, and likely some degree of intentional adaptation for different operational environments.
The pattern did not retire with the Soviet Union. Ex-Soviet republics continued issuing KZS-pattern garments well into the post-Soviet era, and the design remains in production for civilian and paramilitary markets to the present day.
On Colorways
We carry two colorways from the KZS family. Listvenny — leafy, yellow-green on dark olive — follows the classic spetsnaz issue. Yantarny — amber, khaki and tan on dark green — represents the warmer end of the yellow-on-green family, associated with drier operational environments and later production runs. Each name is drawn from the Russian descriptive tradition around the pattern, chosen to reflect what you're actually looking at rather than an arbitrary numbering system.
