Yep. Blocking units go back to wwi for Russia. Though these "barrier troops" weren't any crack units. Anyone good at handling a weapon would be up front. These units were often the infirm. You're on point: Life is cheap when "defending" mother Russia
Predict ... A couple dozen Russian liberal protesters (who aren't even included in the mobilisation order) will end up in Western news headlines.
He speaks the truth about the main body of Russian forces. The clear surprise in this war was that the top-tier active-duty forces were so poorly manned, trained, equipped, and led. We fully assessed a drop off in quality between their smaller professional cadre force and much larger reserves, just as most people who know anything about the U.S. military understand there’s a difference in quality between the 101st Air Assault and the 40th Infantry Division of the California Army National Guard. But the baseline quality of Russia’s best has been staggeringly bad. This mobilization reeks of desperation but also puts us all closer to general war. No idea how Putin thinks throwing hundreds of thousands of poorly trained, unmotivated soldiers (who frankly know they are not actually fighting for Russia) at this is going to have a positive military effect. Maybe he just thinks upping the ante will make the West back down, and maybe he is right. I hope he is wrong.
Wishful thinking: someone in Moscow arranges for Putin to encounter a window and they call their troops home and end this madness.
I guess you missed the first of my five or so reminders that Putin is the moderate in his cabinet. It’s taken seven months now to twist his arm to fight a proper war.
US envisioned removing a Putin and weakening Russia so it could concentrate on China. How did that work out ?
Overheard at Like most Americans, I’m bone-tired of American interventionism. From Morning Consult ... Russia, China on the Back Burner: Americans’ limited concern about the war in Ukraine and the trajectory of U.S.-China relations is firmly bipartisan. Only 18% to 32% of voters place either issue among their top five concerns.
Overheard at SCO ... Xi: “You get the had to say all that s*** about you and Biden getting along, right ?” Putin: “We’re good, dude. You said what you had to say.” *winks* Xi: *pats Putin on back* “Go get ‘em, Tiger!”
Yeah, you. You and your robust support for Wars ‘r’ Us and you’re attendant exasperation for those who won’t get on the bus.
Not that the US can do anything about what Russia is doing (it can’t) but maybe adding 300,000 troops to the mix lessens the likelihood of nuclear war. Presumably, conventional forces raise the "nuclear threshold" since one has more options before reaching for the weapon of last resort. How the War Changed Overnight
