As Russia's Military Stumbles, Its Adversaries Take Note

[dalton99a]

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/07/us/politics/russia-ukraine-military.html

As Russia’s Military Stumbles, Its Adversaries Take Note
President Vladimir Putin could still reduce cities in Ukraine to rubble, officials say. But European countries say they are not as intimidated by Russian ground forces as they were in the past.
By Helene Cooper, Eric Schmitt and Julian E. Barnes
March 7, 2022 Updated 10:04 p.m. ET

...

But nearly two weeks into President Vladimir V. Putin’s invasion of Ukraine — Europe’s largest land war since 1945 — the image of a Russian military as one that other countries should fear, let alone emulate, has been shattered.

That Russia has so quickly abandoned surgical strikes, instead killing civilians trying to flee, could damage Mr. Putin’s chances of winning a long-term war in Ukraine. The brutal tactics may eventually overwhelm Ukraine’s defenses, but they will almost certainly fuel a bloody insurgency that could bog down Russia for years, military analysts say. Most of all, Russia has exposed to its European neighbors and American rivals gaps in its military strategy that can be exploited in future battles.

Every day, Pentagon officials caution that Russia’s military will soon correct its mistakes, perhaps shutting off communications across the country, cutting off Mr. Zelensky from his commanders. Or Russia could try to shut down Ukraine’s banking system, or parts of the power grid, to increase pressure on the civilian population to capitulate.

Even if they don’t, the officials say a frustrated Mr. Putin has the firepower to simply reduce Ukraine to rubble — although he would be destroying the very prize he wants. The use of that kind of force would expose not only the miscalculations the Kremlin made in launching a complex, three-sided invasion but also the limits of Russia’s military upgrades.

“The Kremlin spent the last 20 years trying to modernize its military,” said Andrei V. Kozyrev, the foreign minister for Russia under Boris Yeltsin, in a post on Twitter. “Much of that budget was stolen and spent on mega-yachts in Cyprus. But as a military advisor you cannot report that to the President. So they reported lies to him instead. Potemkin military.”

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But the parades are fantastic

[KS Toronado]

1. Nobody's afraid of the big bad wolf anymore!

I mean bear.

[SunSeeker]

2. I was watching a captured Russian military police officer on Lawrence O'Donnell.

He looked awful; all of his teeth were either brown or missing. Putin obviously does not provide decent dental care to his military. I guess he needs the money for yacht maintenance.

[Grokenstein]

3. They've been riding the WWII "terrified Nazis" rep while rotting from within.

Now that rep is in shambles.

[C Moon]

4. But you have to remember too that no one else has been in a war this big since 1945.

Russia is one step ahead of the rest of us in that regard. They now know their weaknesses as we do. But none of the other countries know their weaknesses.

Look what Hitler did in a few years. And Germanybwas a much smaller country without nuclear weapons. Russia is still very scary.

[brush]

5. Huh? Are you forgetting Korea, Vietnam, Iraq twice for the US, Afghanistan. Russia...

has been in Afghanistan too, plus Chechnya, Syria...there've been many military actions since WWll, and not just for the US and Russia.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

9. ...

Last edited Tue Mar 8, 2022, 10:08 PM - Edit history (1)

4. But you have to remember too that no one else has been in a war this big since 1945.

What????
I seem to remember, from personal experience, a war called Vietnam, and Desert Shield/Desert Storm.

[James48]

13. But this one is only now just starting.

You and i both know this isnt going to have a quick armor battle at ‘78 Eastings. This is going to be a bloody, bloody house to house fight in city after city, for a long time.

Go get your gear. Its time.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

14. +100.

And this is why Russia is going to lose this war, they may win the battle, but they're going to get their ass kicked in the insurgency that will make Afghanistan seem like a walk in the park.

[BlueWavePsych]

7. Black Hats come from surprising places ...

A quick search has interesting results ...

https://www.cyberyug.com/post/top-10-countries-with-most-hackers-in-the-world

https://www.govtech.com/security/hacking-top-ten.html

[Grins]

10. Source for that photo?

Russia flag up front, but that red flag in the 2nd row…?

[dalton99a]

11. 2021 Moscow Victory Day Parade

Moscow, Russia, May 9, 2021 (Xinhua/Evgeny Sinitsyn)

[maxsolomon]

12. They certainly have the artillery to pummel Ukraine endlessly.

But I don't believe they want to destroy Novorussia (the "Russian Steppe" in the East and South that was appended to the Ukraine SSR in 1922 by Lenin). That is the prize here: the cities of Odesa, Mariupol, etc., and the wheat farming areas.

What I've been surprised by is the lack of an Air War, but maybe we're just not getting reports on it.

[left-of-center2012]

15. As long as Russia has nuclear weapons ..

People are going to be afraid of Russia.