There is a bit of a myth about Russia’s army in Ukraine. That Moscow’s soldiers are inexperienced, ramshackle troops sent into hopeless charges at well-defended positions at the behest of inexperienced and brutal commanders. They have little tactical sense and even less strategic vision.
Of course, some of that is true – the Russians do use ‘meatgrinder’ assaults, armoured columns often do run into trouble in Ukrainian minefields (with pyrotechnic results) and Russia frequently relies on troops with insufficient training and poor kit.
Even today, huge numbers of armoured vehicles and tanks are being lost as Russian forces attempt to advance and it’s a live question how long such losses can be borne.
But the Russians aren’t stupid, and the army does learn, albeit slowly.
In this episode of Defence in Depth, David Knowles, presenter on The Telegraph’s Ukraine: The Latest podcast, explains what Russia’s army does well, how it has adapted, why this worries Ukraine, and why it should worry the West.
Watch David’s video analysis above. Find more episodes of Defence in Depth on The Telegraph’s YouTube channel.
