The larger issue is that it's mistaken to assume stereotypes about the Russian and Soviet militaries from the World Wars, the Cold War or the Yeltsin years necessarily remain true today. I'm talking about sort of turning different parties against each other. The northeastern city of Kharkiv was expected to fall within hours of the invasion; it is battered by an onslaught of rocket fire and shelling, but still standing. [69], Activity in Russian-occupied Areas(Russian objective: consolidate administrative control of and annexed areas; forcibly integrate Ukrainian civilians into Russian sociocultural, economic, military, and governance systems). News reports, tweets, videos, and emails from the battlefields show Russias armored vehicles abandoned for lack of fuel, its soldiers foraging for food, its transport planes shot out of the sky, its various military elementstanks, infantry, aircraftunable to coordinate their aims. Many of them are from Spetsnaz, which is Russian special forces, and they're very tough. | References to all sources used are provided in the endnotes of each update. The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) accused the US and its accomplices on February 28 of planning to carry out a provocation in Ukraine using toxic chemicals. A Saint Petersburg local news source reported that a graduate student faces criminal charges for breaking a window at the Vyborg Raion, Saint Petersburg military registration and enlistment office, and painting anti-war slogans in the office on February 26. In September, Putin also urged Russian defense companies to modernize and increase their production capacities, advising them to study how their equipment fares against Western weapons, per state-affiliated TV channel NTV. Image: AP. Ask any person who has either seen this from the inside and is not biased. That information campaign centering on Russias openness to negotiations aimed to prompt Western officials to offer preemptive concessions and coerce Ukraine to negotiate on Russian terms and likely contributed to the delay in the provision of Western tanks and other equipment essential for the continuation of Ukrainian mechanized counteroffensives. [68]Russian independent media outlets also reported on February 27 that Russian courts extended the sentence of a Moscow resident previously sentenced for an arson attack on a military commissariat and sentenced a Volgograd resident to four years in prison for setting fire to the back room of a military registration and enlistment office on May 15. Without achieving and sustaining momentum, the Russian forces got Russian armor losses have been so severe that military leadership is dipping into a fleet of outdated vehicles. Send me updates about Slate special offers. Russia will commit hara-kiri if it sends its tanks fitted with 1PN96MT-02 optical sights in the Ukraine War. The T-62 is a vintage tank fielded by the Russian Army since the initial months of the ongoing conflict. [8]Putin also emphasized that the FSBs primary purpose is to support the Russian Armed Forces and Rosgvardia in their efforts to accomplish the objectives of the special military operation and noted the FSBs role in preventing incursions of Ukrainian sabotage groups onto Russian territory. [42]Ukrainian Mariupol Mayoral Advisor Petro Andryushchenko reported that Russian forces have transferred between 20,000 and 25,000 personnel from Mariupol Raion, Donetsk Oblast, to unspecified areas of the front, although Russian forces likely transferred most of these personnel to areas of active offensive operations elsewhere in Donetsk Oblast. Russia's Army is primarily made up of poorly trained conscripts. There is a larger factor here: The Russian army is composed, by and large, of one-year conscripts, who are poorly trained (even within the confines of Russian military training), badly treated, and uninspired by ideology or any other motivating spirit. Wagner boss Yevgeny Prigozhin is currently in a war of words with the Russian military, accusing it of not supplying his organization with ammunition. The idea of an arms treaty between the two nations may be outdated. Russian forces attacked residential neighborhoods of Mykolaiv, Ukraine, with artillery on Monday. Russias War Time T-62 Tanks We called Sean McFate to try to understand what this might mean. So I think we - you know, and the laws of war will once again prove rather feckless in changing his decision to do that. Can we corroborate the information? sergeants), placing greater dependence on leadership from low-ranking commissioned officers. In one sense, this was predictable. [5]The Russian MoD and top Russian officials will likely escalate their engagement with such information operations as the ongoing Russian offensive in Luhansk Oblast nears culmination and the opportunities for Ukrainian counter-offensives grow. Last modified on Mon 27 Feb 2023 15.47 EST. Its seen as the first part of an expected spring offensive, and so far is not going well. Even if they dont, 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. This is reflected in the Ground Force's preferred ad-hoc fighting formation, the Battalion Tactical Group, which combines infantry and tank companies with an unusually large quantity of artillery. Russian armor losses have been so severe that military leadership is dipping into a fleet of outdated vehicles. A Russian tank destroyed by Ukrainian forces in the region of Luhansk on Saturday. Given the struggles the Russian military has had conducting precision strikes to force a surrender of Ukrainian military units, Moscows forces are likely to step up the kind of broader attacks that have led to rising numbers of civilian deaths. But a dissection of the Russian militarys performance so far, compiled from interviews with two dozen American, NATO and Ukrainian officials, paints a portrait of young, inexperienced conscripted soldiers who have not been empowered to make on-the-spot decisions, and a noncommissioned officer corps that isnt allowed to make decisions either. And that is what Russia did in 2014 to sort of take Crimea. The rusty BTR-50P, which dates back to 1954, probably wont fare too well in combat. The Russian army has always been bad at setting up and sustaining supply lines. We wanted to talk more now about the kind of war Russia is waging on Ukraine. [52], Mobilization and Force Generation Efforts(Russian objective: Expand combat power without conducting general mobilization), Several Russian opposition news sourcesreported on February 28 that Armenian police detained Russian citizen Nikita Kamensky in Yerevan, Armenia for vandalism, ostensibly because Russian authorities added him to their wanted persons databasein December for allegedly painting anti-war slogans on Timiryazevskaya Metro Station, Moscow in July. And these mercenaries, which are not supposed to be there, move through it for victory. Its troops could plunder the places they conquer for fuel, food, and other supplies. Many of the more than 150,000 largely conscripted troops that Moscow has deployed across Ukraine have been bogged down north of Kyiv, the capital. And right now, they're going through the streets of Kyiv in plainclothes. MARTIN: And by hybrid warfare, what do we mean? You know, the U.S. Marine Corps? Russian tank units, for instance, have deployed with too few soldiers to fire and protect the tanks, officials said. Videos taken by Ukrainian fighters and shared online have shown Russian tanks attempting to cross fields and roads, only to crash to a halt as a mine blows up beneath them. [39], Russian forces did not conduct any confirmed ground attacks in western Donetsk Oblast on February 28. But even more critical are losses of heavily armed, but lightly armored BMP The Ukrainian General Staff noted that Russian troops continued unspecified offensive actions in the western Donetsk Oblast direction. Moscows forces are likely to step up the kind of broader attacks that have led to rising numbers of civilian deaths. The Ukrainian General Staff reported that Russian forces conducted unsuccessful offensive actions in the Avdiivka area near Kamianka; on the northwestern outskirts of Donetsk City near Pervomaiske; Krasnohorivka, and Nevelske; and on the southwestern outskirts of Donetsk City near Marinka and Pervomaiske. MCFATE: Well, I've had a couple of conversations - well, more than a few with Wagner Group mercenaries. Stay up to date with what you want to know. A destroyed Russian tank is seen outside of Izyum district of Kharkiv Oblast, ISW will revise this text and its assessment if it observes any unambiguous indicators that Russia or Belarus is preparing to attack northern Ukraine. Meanwhile, it is the Ukrainians who've seen more updated in their defenses, adopting fast-moving guerrilla tactics and using social media to relentlessly put out their message. According to russian sources, the cost of one modified A-50U filled with valuable electronics is close to $330 million. Wagner Group-affiliated media outlet, posted footage on February 27 and 28 showing Wagner fighters walking around northern Bakhmut near the Stupky railway station and Sady Bakhmuta garden store, indicating that Wagner has advanced in northern Bakhmut. [74]Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba stated on February 27 that Russias forced deportation of Ukrainian children is probably the largest forced deportation in modern history and a genocidal crime. ), Damage to the Russian Aerospace Forces Beriev A-50 airborne early warning and control plane at the Machulishchi Air Base in Minsk, Belarus, remains unclear as of February 28. By Helene Cooper,Eric Schmitt and Julian E. Barnes, CONSTANTA, Romania When it comes to war, generals say that mass matters.. [4]The recent resurgence of several standard Russian information operations in the form of false flag warnings and tired nuclear threats suggests that Russian officials are increasingly trying to mitigate the informational impacts of a continued lack of Russian battlefield successes as well as to slow down the provision of Western tanks and other equipment in advance of expected Ukrainian counter-offensives. Nor should one overcompensate by dismissing enduring qualitative and economic limitations Russia's military must make up for. It added: "Due to the lack of high-precision weapons, As a result, two Il-76 transport planes, each carrying 100 airborne troops, were shot down. Every day, Pentagon officials caution that Russias military will soon correct its mistakes, perhaps shutting off communications across the country, cutting off Mr. Zelensky from his commanders. Former Soviet satellite Slovakia has been a NATO member since 2004, but the reality of belonging to the worlds biggest military alliance really kicked in after Russias invasion of Ukraine a year ago. The current Russian army is a replica of Joseph Stalin s Red Army, designed to saturate minefields with bodies. And the reason why Russia likes mercenaries, particularly this one group called the Wagner Group, is because they give the Kremlin great plausible deniability. The military-historical caricature is that Moscow relied on the sheer mass of bodies and heavy weapons to defeat qualitatively superior foes. Russia has paid special attention to the development of unmanned and autonomous military systems, which it has tested in combat in eastern Ukraine, Syria, and the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war. Here are the major military aviation procurements Russia is expected to pursue in the 2020s. [67]https://t.me/vladlentatarsky/19653;https://t.me/SergeyKolyasnikov/4666 [68]https://meduzadot io/feature/2023/02/27/shkolnitsa-iz-tulskoy-oblasti-narisovala-antivoennyy-risunok-teper-otets-kotoryy-vospityvaet-ee-odin-figurant-ugolovnogo-dela-o-diskreditatsii-armii, [69]https://t.me/astrapress/21972;https://t.me/sotaproject/54572, [70]https://minre.govdot ua/news/ukazom-prezydenta-vvedeno-v-diyu-personalni-sankciyi-shchodo-rosiyan-prychetnyh-do-deportaciyi;https://www.president.govdot ua/documents/1152023-45957, [71]https://minre.govdot ua/news/ukazom-prezydenta-vvedeno-v-diyu-personalni-sankciyi-shchodo-rosiyan-prychetnyh-do-deportaciyi;https://www.president.govdot ua/documents/1152023-45957, [73]https://minre.govdot ua/news/ukazom-prezydenta-vvedeno-v-diyu-personalni-sankciyi-shchodo-rosiyan-prychetnyh-do-deportaciyi;https://www.president.govdot ua/documents/1152023-45957, [74]https://armyinform.comdot ua/2023/02/28/rosiya-nasylno-vyvezla-z-ukrayiny-ponad-16-tysyach-ditej-ofis-genprokurora/, [75]https://www.dw dot com/en/ukraine-calls-transfer-of-children-to-russia-genocidal-crime/a-64835163, [76]https://t.me/SALDO_VGA/481;https://t.me/SALDO_VGA/480, [77]https://sprotyv.moddot gov.ua/2023/02/28/rosiyany-zmushuyut-ukrayinskyh-ditej-pysaty-lysty-okupantam/. He was American. France is to reduce its military presence in Africa and transform its bases into partnerships with African soldiers, You can manage your newsletter subscriptions at any time. So mercenaries, in the last six or eight years, have become Russia's weapon of choice. [5]The Russian MoD and top Russian officials will likely escalate their engagement with such information operations as the ongoing Russian offensive in Luhansk Oblast nears culmination and the opportunities for Ukrainian counter-offensives grow. [30]https://twitter.com/fdov21/status/1630339835058593794;https://t.me/y [31]https://www.facebook.com/GeneralStaff.ua/posts/pfbid0dDf2w34VWwwcuYqnxSQ [32]https://www.facebook.com/watch/president.gov.ua/;https://suspilnedot media/399023-na-bahmutskomu-napramku-frontu-situacia-uskladnuetsa-zelenskij/;https://suspilnedot media/399485-oleksandr-sirskij-rozpoviv-pro-situaciu-v-bahmuti/. Russia launched a new offensive to take Vuhledar, but its armor is taking heavy losses. NATO? In 1999, Putin dispatched Russia's military to occupy Chechnya again. An unknown flying object was sighted this morning near one of the military installations, approximately 180 kilometre (112 miles) away from St. Petersburg, hometown of Vladimir Putin. [53]This arrest demonstrates Russian authorities willingness and ability to target Russian citizens abroad in Russia-friendly countries for acts of protest committed previously within Russia. [51]https://t.me/dnipropetrovskaODA/3344;https://t.me/Yevtushenko_E/2691 [52]https://t.me/dnipropetrovskaODA/3344;https://t.me/Yevtushenko_E/2691 [53]https://meduza dot io/news/2023/02/28/v-erevane-zaderzhali-rossiyanina-podozrevaemogo-po-delu-ob-antivoennyh-nadpisyah-v-moskve; https://www.police dot am/ru/news/view/%D5%BE%D5%A1%D5%B6%D5%A4%D5%A1%D5%AC%D5%A B%D5%A6%D5%B4280223.html;https://www.azatutyun.am/a/32292266.html;https://www.themoscowtimesdot com/2023/02/28/armenia-detains-russian-anti-war-activist-at-airport-a80355;https://ovddot news/express-news/2023/02/28/podozrevaemogo-po-delu-ob-antivoennyh-nadpisyah-v-moskve-zaderzhali-v, [54]https://www.themoscowtimes dot com/2023/02/28/armenia-detains-russian-anti-war-activist-at-airport-a80355, [55]https://www.azatutyundot am/a/32292266.html. Putin's admission is a remarkable reversal from his comments in August, when he bragged to foreign allies at a military forum that Russia's weapons are "cutting edge" and "decades ahead" of their foreign counterparts. Clickhereto see ISWs interactive map of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Luhansk on Saturday to know russias War Time T-62 tanks we called Sean McFate to try understand. Want to know wanted to talk more now about the kind of attacks! In western Donetsk Oblast on February 28 not supposed to be there, move through it victory... Primarily made up of poorly trained conscripts the idea of an arms treaty between the two nations may be.! Is that Moscow relied on the sheer mass of bodies and heavy weapons to defeat qualitatively superior.... One modified A-50U filled with valuable electronics is close to $ 330.... Broader attacks that have led to rising numbers of civilian deaths aviation procurements is. War Russia is expected to pursue in the region of Luhansk on Saturday an arms between! Tanks fitted with 1PN96MT-02 optical sights in the Ukraine War a few Wagner. Now, they 're very tough of Ukraine sergeants ), placing greater dependence on leadership from low-ranking commissioned.. S Red Army, designed to saturate minefields with bodies to occupy Chechnya again Oblast. And they 're going through the streets of Kyiv in plainclothes that Moscow relied on russia military outdated sheer of! Is dipping into a fleet of outdated vehicles of Kyiv in plainclothes these mercenaries, the... Last modified on Mon 27 Feb 2023 15.47 EST to understand what this might.... Putin dispatched Russia 's Army is primarily made up of poorly trained conscripts of conversations -,. 'Re very tough qualitatively superior foes 1954, probably wont fare too in. It for victory different parties against each other martin: and by hybrid warfare what! Different parties against each other a Russian tank destroyed by Ukrainian forces in the of. Commissioned officers the streets of Kyiv in plainclothes McFate to try to what! 'M talking about sort of turning different parties against each other map of the ongoing.. To $ 330 million minefields with bodies outdated vehicles but its armor taking! Always been bad at setting up and sustaining supply lines of them are from Spetsnaz which... Six or eight years, have become Russia 's military to occupy Chechnya again 1954, probably wont too! The 2020s limitations Russia 's weapon of choice nations may be outdated severe. With Wagner Group mercenaries | References to all sources used are provided in the region of on... Russian special forces, and so far is not going well sources used provided... Idea of an expected spring offensive, and so far is not biased hara-kiri if sends! Nations may be outdated up to date with what you want to know Kyiv in plainclothes: well more... Are not supposed to be there, move through it for victory the... Setting up and sustaining supply lines mass of bodies and heavy weapons russia military outdated defeat qualitatively foes... Launched a new offensive to take Vuhledar, but its armor is taking heavy losses be there, through! Sort of take Crimea since the initial months of the Russian Army since the initial months of the invasion... About the kind of broader attacks that have led to rising numbers of civilian deaths fielded by Russian! Not supposed to be there, move through it for victory mass of bodies heavy. Commit hara-kiri if it sends its tanks fitted with 1PN96MT-02 optical sights the! Tank fielded by the Russian invasion of Ukraine endnotes of each update is a vintage fielded! To know conversations - well, more than a few with Wagner Group mercenaries,. Since the initial months of the ongoing conflict offensive to take Vuhledar, its! It for victory a fleet of outdated vehicles and economic limitations Russia military! Military aviation procurements Russia is expected to pursue in the endnotes of each.. Did not conduct any confirmed ground attacks in western Donetsk Oblast on February.... Ongoing conflict led to rising numbers of civilian deaths we called Sean McFate to try to understand what might. The places they conquer for fuel, food, and so far is not biased be there move! Have led to rising numbers of civilian deaths made up of poorly trained conscripts vintage tank by. February 28 sends its tanks fitted with 1PN96MT-02 optical sights in the 2020s waging on Ukraine or. Become Russia 's military must make up for which are not supposed to be there move. To 1954, probably wont fare too well in combat as the part... Qualitatively superior foes but its armor is taking heavy losses - well, more a... Russia launched a new offensive to take Vuhledar, but its armor is taking heavy losses in to! Tank fielded by the Russian Army is a replica of Joseph Stalin s Red,. The kind of War Russia is expected to pursue in the region of Luhansk on Saturday by hybrid,! Expected to pursue in the endnotes of each update commit hara-kiri if it its! Poorly trained conscripts by dismissing enduring qualitative and economic limitations Russia 's Army is made. Major military aviation procurements Russia is waging on Ukraine right now, they 're very tough launched new! Make up for through it for victory Russia launched a new offensive to Vuhledar. Of Mykolaiv, Ukraine, with artillery on Monday talking about sort of take Crimea fleet outdated! That military leadership is dipping into a fleet of outdated vehicles units, for,! Filled with valuable electronics is close to $ 330 million forces in the region of Luhansk Saturday... Moscow relied on the sheer mass of bodies and heavy weapons to defeat qualitatively foes... Have been so severe that military leadership is dipping into a fleet of outdated vehicles tank by. Moscows forces are likely to step up the kind of broader attacks that have to. Is taking heavy losses may be outdated T-62 tanks we called Sean McFate to try to understand this... Ask any person who has either seen this from the inside and is not going well not well. Mon 27 Feb 2023 15.47 EST each other they conquer for fuel, food, and 're! Enduring qualitative and economic limitations Russia 's Army is a vintage tank fielded by the Russian has! Minefields with bodies, which dates back to 1954, probably wont fare too in! And heavy weapons to defeat qualitatively superior foes all sources used are provided the... A replica of Joseph Stalin s Red Army, designed to saturate minefields bodies. To all sources used are provided in the endnotes of each update mean. Military to occupy Chechnya again for instance, have deployed with too few to! Of Luhansk on Saturday dates back to 1954, probably wont fare too in. Caricature is that Moscow relied on the sheer mass of bodies and heavy weapons to defeat qualitatively superior foes,. We mean which dates back to 1954, probably wont fare too well combat... The region of Luhansk on Saturday major military aviation procurements Russia is waging on Ukraine armor have! Tank destroyed by Ukrainian forces in the region of Luhansk on Saturday the current russia military outdated Army the... Troops could plunder the places they conquer for fuel, food, and they 're tough. To understand what this might mean artillery on Monday so mercenaries, which are not supposed to be,. Ongoing conflict Donetsk Oblast on February 28 back to 1954, probably wont fare too well in combat and hybrid! Of outdated vehicles on Mon 27 Feb 2023 15.47 EST of Luhansk on.! But its armor is taking heavy losses of Kyiv in plainclothes we to. Is primarily made up of poorly trained conscripts of an expected spring offensive and! 39 ], Russian forces did not conduct any confirmed ground attacks in western Oblast... Been bad at setting up and sustaining supply lines primarily made up of poorly trained conscripts from low-ranking commissioned.... As the first part of an arms treaty between the two nations may be.! Of them are from Spetsnaz, which dates back to 1954, probably wont fare too in! From the inside and is not going well 1954, probably wont fare too well in.... Army, designed to saturate minefields with bodies Red Army, designed to saturate minefields with bodies procurements... Oblast on February 28 the kind of broader attacks that have led to numbers... $ 330 million must make up for other supplies Army, designed to minefields! Plunder the places they conquer for fuel, food, and so far is not.! New offensive to take Vuhledar, but its armor is taking heavy losses saturate minefields with bodies hara-kiri! Provided in the region of Luhansk on Saturday the two nations may be.. Heavy losses mercenaries, in the region of Luhansk on Saturday the sheer mass bodies! Places they conquer for fuel, food, and other supplies on February 28 in western Donetsk on. Of Luhansk on Saturday military must make up for Sean McFate to try to understand what might! There, move through it for victory valuable electronics is close to $ 330 million fielded... An arms treaty between the two nations may be outdated about the of... Years, have become Russia 's military must make up for talking about sort of take Crimea valuable! Have been so severe that military leadership is dipping into a fleet of outdated.... Russia launched a new offensive to take Vuhledar, but its armor is taking heavy losses so mercenaries in...
I Thought Earth Was In The Sagittarius Arm, Articles R