[Dubya]

DUTY: Draftees await medical checkups in Stavropol this month. Miserable conditions in the Army make it increasingly hard for Russia to round up conscripts.

[Support Free Republic]

---

He Pledges his Allegiance to the Left
	Donate Here By Secure Server Or mail checks to FreeRepublic , LLC PO BOX 9771 FRESNO, CA 93794 or you can use PayPal at Jimrob@psnw.com
STOP BY AND BUMP THE FUNDRAISER THREAD- It is in the breaking news sidebar!

[COURAGE]

"They are retreating on all fronts. Their military effort is a subject of laughter throughout the world."

[governsleastgovernsbest]

the obsolete structure of the Russian armed forces has to be urgently changed," says Vladimir Dvorkin

Why? Who do they plan to fight?

[Liberals are Evil Socialists!]

First Afghanistan, now Iraq, the Rewskies are all a lot of hot air.

[Retrofire]

Interesting...

Russia has lost what...8000 troops now trying to subdue Grozny, a city one TENTH the size of Baghdad?

And they did so without fighting under the constraints of world opinion or constant journalistic access.

Tsk tsk...

The Russian military sucks. It's always sucked, and until they completely revamp their order of battle, philosophy, and unit structure, they will continue to suck.

Their engineers make some GREAT equipment considering their technology level, but a gun in the hands of one untrained in its use is as dangerous to the wielder as it is to the intended victim.

[thucydides]

What is crucial is air superiority. Russians have in the past built some pretty good aircraft, but they no longer have the money to do so. Once your air cover is gone, you are a sitting duck.

[TheRedSoxWinThePennant]

[Zebra]

We are very lucky that Russia has no major enemies at the moment...

Wouldn't be too sure about that, chief. You've got Muslim extremists to the south, chicoms to the east and, God help you, Uncle Sam if you support our enemies. You are fortunate indeed to have the French to the west.

[billorites]

"As a result of the Iraq war and accusations of illegal Russian arms deliveries, applications for Russian weapons have soared," Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov said last week.

I'm reassured.

[Former Proud Canadian]

Bad predictions of all time:

Russian TV later quoted General Maltsev as saying "the American invaders will be buried in the streets of Baghdad."

[Billthedrill]

Well, the technology and funding are important, but the chief message should not be that throwing money at the problem solves it, because that's what many of the Gulf states have tried and it doesn't work. What we are also seeing is the contrast between a highly-trained, highly-motivated volunteer force and poorly-trained and supported conscripts working for a tyrant who would sooner shoot them and their families than the enemy (and does so) since it's safer. Some American commander commented that they could swap equipment and he'd still win. I think that's why.

[RightWhale]

Gulf War I was a shock to them, no doubt, perhaps a greater shock than that kid, Rust, who flew his small plane to land in Red Square. This recent war, whatever else it may have demonstrated, showed that the first Gulf War was no fluke and that the disparity is even greater now. It doesn't matter, though, since there will be no war with Russia.

[AGreatPer]

I read it somewhere the even Israel was shocked at how easily we did this.

[knak]

I wonder why so many countries thought this was going to be such a tough war? Most of us at FR didn't seem to think we would have any problems unless they used WMD's on our troops. But it seems like other countries had no idea what the American military was capable of.

[jackbill]

Perhaps if they had the money to pay their army, they might get better performance.

[Congressman Billybob]

Please join in a live discussion on RadioFreeRepublic on implications of the Iraq WAR. Now. Billybob Live!

Billybob

[elfman2]

"Its battle tactics called for broad frontal warfare, with massed armor and artillery, and a highly centralized command structure"

Sounds like their whole society. Better reform that first.

[polemikos]

"The Iraqi Army was a replica of the Russian Army, and its defeat was not predicted by our generals," says Vitaly Shlykov

And they were feeding this pap to Putin?

[thoughtomator]

This could boost profits for Russian armsmakers, who are already receiving inquiries from Syria and Iran, according to Shlykov.

[Nick Danger]

"How can we reform our Army when we have not defined the threats it must deal with?" says Mr. Dvorkin. "We must first identify our national interests, then we'll know who our enemies might be."

Lemme help you out here, Vladimir. Your national interest is to maintain Russia's territorial integrity, so that you can someday make use of all the mineral riches your country has in abundance.

The threat to that is from those billion Chinese just South of you, who must be eyeing your very sparsely populated country with some envy. Remember Hitler's old term, lebensraum? Well, that's what the Chinese need. And that's what you have.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure this out, Vladimir. The Chinese have been breeding a generation with a huge surplus of males. That generation is approaching adulthood. Soon, China will be able to field a million men -- men they don't even need; men they can spend as cannon-fodder and not even miss. You figure they're going to invade India? I think it's you.