I’m really amazed at what a complete paper-tiger the vaulted Russian military has been against such a minor foe.
Logistics, maintenance, morale, combined arms, training, tactics, and supplies on hand.
The Russian military has failed in every one of these regardless of how this tragic and pointless conflict ends. Against a “near peer” foe any one of these would be a catastrophe. The fact that they are fighting a “much weaker” foe has camouflaged it.
Putin has already lost. He strengthened and grew NATO, weakened his own position, exposed his military as weak, and (perhaps most fateful) he harmed his oligarch allies.
It is a shame that the conversation about this has become such poison here on FR. It’s every bit as nasty as the Romney vs Obama days on these threads. Yes, the “globalist” are cheering for Ukraine and yes, Putin is an evil SOB. I suppose that is the big picture but the human costs are incalculable.
This war is a mess. It will cost our nation many more billions and our children are left with the bill. It is impacting the world economy. It is causing death and misery to Ukrainians and Russian families who have no say in the war. The death and misery could spread to Africa with famine when you combine the loss of Ukrainian wheat and the global fascists brigades war on fertilizer.
Another catastrophe that would not have occurred with Trump in office..... but here we are.