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Posted on 06/02/2022 12:32:55 PM PDT by UMCRevMom@aol.com
On paper, Russian military modernization should have produced a force that could over-match the Ukrainian army. For more than a decade, funds for modernization were allocated to State Defense Orders for everything from next generation aircraft and tanks, to new communications and battlefield control systems.
Russian R&D did its part (mostly), turning out systems that won attention and praise at trade shows, while commentators steadily built the Russian army up as an example of a dangerous foe that proved you could achieve more with less in the military procurement space.
Then they invaded Ukraine, and the image was shattered. I've previously explained this by looking at the Russian Defense budget and their priorities in the lead up to the invasion, but in doing that I refrained from focusing on one key issue.
Corruption in Russia is endemic, corruption in the Russian defense sector (like many around the world) is a catastrophe. From the highest levels of procurement fraud, down to the level of the enlisted personal hawking diesel, copper, and even explosives for petty cash, corruption has been a constant thorn in the side of all efforts to modernize the Russian army and mold it into an effective fighting force.
In this video, I try to take a somewhat light-hearted look at how corruption in a military context can (and sometimes does) work, citing examples of actual cases and using hypotheticals to demonstrate the kinds of actions that can rot an institution from head to tail. For those of you in countries that face this problem, it should all seem a little familiar.
Examples are taken from the sources listed below and I make no independent representations on the veracity of any claims. I don't know exactly how much is stolen from the Russian defense budget, I doubt anyone does. But what I can do, is help us understand how a nation capable of producing some of the most advanced defense equipment in the world would be running out of fuel on day 3, and be rolling out museum piece tanks less than three months into a major conflict.
“How Corruption Destroys Armies...”
Not as bad as wokeness and focus on global warming.
As mentioned, lol saying Russia is losing because of corruption. It is probably less corrupt than the Ukraine, and Russia has taken territory, although certainly not the capital or anything like that.
The US does not have corruption like those countries or say Mexico, but it is a lot more than it seems. The US is ranked with France, Austria, and Japan. However, the systematic corruption of say the medical system, corporation top executives legally stealing, national politicians all becoming rich, overpriced military planes etc. is really bad. Maybe not as blatant as in some countries.
It’s a failure of senior officers.
What does it take for a general to just decide to pick some unit or supply warehouse at random, do a meticulous personal inspection, and fire the officers in charge if corruption or embezzlement is found?
I guess, you are not familiar with real corruption.
You just do not know what are you talking about.
But, I give you credit, thanks to Clintons, Bush, Obama, Brandon, we are on that trajectory.
Reagan stopped the creeping corruption in 80ties, I hope somebody will step up and stop this now.
Otherwise, you will learn what I am talking about, soon.
The “temporary supply chain problems” are good sign of “progress”.
Source?
“You just do not know what are you talking about.”
Sure, kid. There’s some special kind of corruption only you know about.
“The US does not have corruption like those countries or say Mexico”
Sure, we do. You may not see it but it does exist.
I agree that US corruption is a lot worse than it appears on the surface. However, countries like Ukraine and Mexico, much less Africa, take it to a whole another level.
Then the senior officer has to give the bad news about the equipment to the Boss, and who wants to do that? Especially when the alternative is for the senior officer just to take his bribes, and keep quiet.
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