Why is the Russian army struggling in Ukraine despite being a superior force on paper? According to former Wilson Center analyst Kamil Galeev, it’s because President Vladimir Putin’s regime has weakened the military over time. A look at his analysis also suggests striking parallels to the domestic discussion about America’s own so-called Deep State.
Surprising Weakness
(Photo by Simona Granati - Corbis/Corbis via Getty Images)
Almost all military experts predicted that Russia would win over Ukraine in days. However, after three weeks of warfare, Russia’s forces are not making as much headway as expected, and Ukraine has dealt its larger neighbor heavy blows.
Galeev explains that the Russian military strength has been successfully inflated by propaganda. The facts on the ground bear witness to a different situation. Putin’s Deep State – consisting of oligarchs, the former KGB (FSB), the National Guard, and various mafia groups – has drained its resources for a long time.
Putin and his acolytes view the military as the only credible threat to their power. Therefore, they have tried to prevent it from growing too strong and competent. Whenever a general has been too capable or gained too much popularity in the army, he has been removed or killed, according to Galeev. Young broilers from the National Guard with no combat experience, but plenty of loyalty to the regime, have been promoted ahead of the best officers.
In addition, most of the army has never encountered a competent, well-equipped enemy in battle; there certainly haven’t been many since World War II. Between the lack of experience and political machinations, the Russian military has become something of a paper tiger.
The Deep State
It is interesting to compare Galeev’s analysis with the current state in America. Although the United States is not a corrupt kleptocracy like Russia, there are still some surprising parallels between Putin’s regime and what has been called the Deep State in Washington, DC. For two decades, both the FBI and the military have been hollowed out, and politically correct bureaucrats have replaced experienced patriots.
Furthermore, the United States also has its own version, in a sense, of Russia’s oligarchs. Facebook, Google, and Twitter all have close political ties to the Swamp and appear to be doing the bidding of the Biden administration.
A Lesson in Hubris
One of the reasons Putin felt confident in invading Ukraine was that he had seen the shift of focus in the American military from defending the nation to climate change, diversity, inclusion, and equity. The disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal made him even more confident that he would not meet any resistance from the West. However, the Russian president was blind to the corruption and degeneration happening right under his nose in his own country.
No matter the outcome of the war, Putin was the victim of hubris. He didn’t realize how isolated from reality he had become in the Kremlin, as often happens to authoritarian leaders surrounded by sycophants. Inadvertently, he exposed to the world how toothless the Russian army is. That may not be a comfort to the Ukrainian civilians still suffering and dying, but patriots worldwide should take notice. Corrupt dictatorships have downfall built into them.
~ Read more from Caroline Adana.
