Posted on Apr 7, 2023
I Commanded U.S. Army Europe. Here's What I Saw in the Russian and Ukrainian Armies.
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This is an excellent article from a former US Army General who was in charge of the US forces in 7th Army.
This article compares and contrasts how in the both the Russian Army and the Ukrainian Army were both horrible and corrupt.
After the fall of communism in 1991, the Russians and the Ukrainians were invited in this partnership for peace.
The Russians came to our academies up but they demanded to be in separate quarters and they purposely had Russians who didn't speak English because their communist government didn't want them to mingle and talk with other soldiers from other countries.
The Ukrainians sent their soldiers and they, over the next 20 years, learned everything we taught them and their top General spoke to a US Command Sergeant Major to be able to train the non-commissioned officer Corps more like ours and set up their own Academy in Ukraine.
This explains how over the course of decades Russia had an army for show and everything was scripted. Their actual Army was not very well trained and well disciplined while the Ukrainians actually learned what we taught them. Once the old Soviet era Generals were kicked out or retired, everybody from General on down learned to soldier properly and to work together.
This explains why the Russians are getting their butts kicked in the battlefield and why the Ukrainians are winning because they have the discipline taught by the the Americans and the NATO partners.
I know some of you are going to say it's because of the Weaponry we gave them. That is true to a certain extent but if the ukrainians are able to shoot, move and communicate while the Russians are not able to do the same or they don't have the same discipline that the ukrainians achieved Decades of transitioning into a western partner for peace, then they wouldn't have survived like they have for the last year.
This article compares and contrasts how in the both the Russian Army and the Ukrainian Army were both horrible and corrupt.
After the fall of communism in 1991, the Russians and the Ukrainians were invited in this partnership for peace.
The Russians came to our academies up but they demanded to be in separate quarters and they purposely had Russians who didn't speak English because their communist government didn't want them to mingle and talk with other soldiers from other countries.
The Ukrainians sent their soldiers and they, over the next 20 years, learned everything we taught them and their top General spoke to a US Command Sergeant Major to be able to train the non-commissioned officer Corps more like ours and set up their own Academy in Ukraine.
This explains how over the course of decades Russia had an army for show and everything was scripted. Their actual Army was not very well trained and well disciplined while the Ukrainians actually learned what we taught them. Once the old Soviet era Generals were kicked out or retired, everybody from General on down learned to soldier properly and to work together.
This explains why the Russians are getting their butts kicked in the battlefield and why the Ukrainians are winning because they have the discipline taught by the the Americans and the NATO partners.
I know some of you are going to say it's because of the Weaponry we gave them. That is true to a certain extent but if the ukrainians are able to shoot, move and communicate while the Russians are not able to do the same or they don't have the same discipline that the ukrainians achieved Decades of transitioning into a western partner for peace, then they wouldn't have survived like they have for the last year.
I Commanded U.S. Army Europe. Here's What I Saw in the Russian and Ukrainian Armies.
Posted from thebulwark.com
Leadership
NCO Academy
Ukraine
Russia
Posted >1 y ago
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I'll make a couple of comments on this one. Number one, his experience with either army is out of date going on ten years. Most of the post Soviet countries were economic and social disasters and his last real contact with either side was at the period this stuff really started to happen.
While we are proud of our training programs, the last war that was anything close to near peer was 1991 and we have spent the last 22 years fighting goat herders. Whether our technology and organization really works or not hasn't been tested and I would be looking at how the Russians are really fighting instead of how the press wants to portray it. The Russians have been able to mobilize their industrial base to support their effort, developed a personnel and supply chain and have integrated the use of artillery, including missile artillery, combined with drone surveillance and anti aircraft capabilities in depth. This may be the future of warfare.
I personally doubt the Ukrainians have the bodies left to launch a counter offensive, but either way, then it dries up enough to move off the roads, we will get to find out who has been lying the most about their military's position and strength.
While we are proud of our training programs, the last war that was anything close to near peer was 1991 and we have spent the last 22 years fighting goat herders. Whether our technology and organization really works or not hasn't been tested and I would be looking at how the Russians are really fighting instead of how the press wants to portray it. The Russians have been able to mobilize their industrial base to support their effort, developed a personnel and supply chain and have integrated the use of artillery, including missile artillery, combined with drone surveillance and anti aircraft capabilities in depth. This may be the future of warfare.
I personally doubt the Ukrainians have the bodies left to launch a counter offensive, but either way, then it dries up enough to move off the roads, we will get to find out who has been lying the most about their military's position and strength.
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LTC (Join to see)
You bring up some good points since he has been out of the loop for some time. What's really sad and troubling is that the canadian, American and Western European NATO allies have been giving up a lot of their War stock ammunition that was supposed to be prepositioned for future Wars against Russian forces in ukraine. This may mean a long time for us to restock and get those artillery shells come on bombs, rocket launchers and other supplies procured, contracted, produced and shipped to the proper storage facilities at the various logistical sites. This is troubling because President Biden is bragging about his inflation reduction act which has 360 billion dollars in money that could be used to restock our military ammunition assets, keep our ships out of mothballs and improve the Readiness of the overall total Force but he's saving it for golf Delta climate change mitigation by bribing other countries to switch over to unreliable green energy.
We should build a second tank factory. We have one tank Factory or we should expand the existing one because we have tanks at Taiwan and Poland purchased a while back and they're still being slowly produced and Taiwan isn't going to have it's 105 tanks is ordered till probably 2026. In the meantime, our near peer adversaries are gearing up for war in Taiwan and continuous offensives in Ukraine..
SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth
We should build a second tank factory. We have one tank Factory or we should expand the existing one because we have tanks at Taiwan and Poland purchased a while back and they're still being slowly produced and Taiwan isn't going to have it's 105 tanks is ordered till probably 2026. In the meantime, our near peer adversaries are gearing up for war in Taiwan and continuous offensives in Ukraine..
SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth
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CPT Lawrence Cable
LTC (Join to see) - The single fact that should stand out is that NATO no longer has the industrial base to replace those war stockpiles in a reasonable time frame. The US Military Industrial Complex is so geared toward big ticket items that they have let the industrial base need to rapidly expand to a wartime level evaporate and even that capacity tha existed even as recently has Desert Storm just isn't there anymore. I also suspect that the technological advantage we help at the end of Desert Storm no longer exists.
What scares me worst is that the current group of commanders have no experience and at least publicly seem to worry more about DEI and Trans Rights that being able to fight a war.
From a realistic standpoint, IMO Zelensky is finished. He needs to hold Bakhmut, but the Russians have left an avenue open and turned it into a meatgrinder that is chewing up arms, equipment and men he just doesn't have to lose. He has already conceded that the Crimea is off the table and if the Russians launch a successful Offensive when the mud dries up, the remaining population will force him to the negotiating table where the Russians get what they want, the Russian population dominated Eastern Ukraine. Right now I suspect that Zelensky is looking for a safe haven to flee to when that happens, since the right wing factions will blame him.
What scares me worst is that the current group of commanders have no experience and at least publicly seem to worry more about DEI and Trans Rights that being able to fight a war.
From a realistic standpoint, IMO Zelensky is finished. He needs to hold Bakhmut, but the Russians have left an avenue open and turned it into a meatgrinder that is chewing up arms, equipment and men he just doesn't have to lose. He has already conceded that the Crimea is off the table and if the Russians launch a successful Offensive when the mud dries up, the remaining population will force him to the negotiating table where the Russians get what they want, the Russian population dominated Eastern Ukraine. Right now I suspect that Zelensky is looking for a safe haven to flee to when that happens, since the right wing factions will blame him.
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LTC (Join to see)
Brave New Army Commercial Promotes Inclusion And Diversity
In this new commercial from the U.S. Army, everyone's favorite branch of the military promotes their new, more diverse, more inclusive standards.#shorts
CPT Lawrence Cable agreed!
SFC Ralph E Kelley PV2 Scott Mollette SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth CPT Lawrence Cable
We need warstock ordnance made and a 2nd tank factory not$360 billion for the inflation reduction act.
https://youtube.com/shorts/MmiajFd1pyY?feature=share
SFC Ralph E Kelley PV2 Scott Mollette SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth CPT Lawrence Cable
We need warstock ordnance made and a 2nd tank factory not$360 billion for the inflation reduction act.
https://youtube.com/shorts/MmiajFd1pyY?feature=share
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LTC (Join to see)
I actually read this when someone on the Quora website had mentioned it and I read the article. It has been out for over a year and maybe it's already been on RP but what the heck? Let's post it again!
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