Russia’s ‘formidable’ army fact-checked: Putin’s power on land, air and sea laid bare
Russia: Putin ‘will not stop at Ukraine’ says Liz Truss
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On Wednesday, UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss admitted that she was “very, very concerned about an imminent invasion of Ukraine,” and said: “Russia has encircled Ukraine so we could see an attack from a variety of directions”. Diplomacy efforts by the US appear to have failed, as President Joe Biden will no longer hold a summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and the Secretary of State Antony Blinken called off a Thursday meeting with his Russian counterpart.
Much has been said of Russia’s military capabilities amid the escalating tensions — but just how powerful is Moscow’s army, and how would it fare in a full-blown invasion of Ukraine?
Russia is often described as having one of the strongest militaries in the world, posing a serious threat to the 30-country-strong NATO alliance.
But how accurate is this? According to the UK Defence Journal, it should be remembered that “resources available to Moscow today are far less than those that the Soviet Union commanded, and it controls much less territory than the Tsarist Empire”.
That said, Russia under 22 years of Vladimir Putin has seen a period of relative economic stability for the nation, with defence expenditure a major priority, with the Russian having prioritised military movements during his tenure as means of asserting Russian dominance on the world stage.
The UK Defence Journal states: “Putin has clearly restored the effectiveness of Russia’s conventional armed forces, maintained and is modernising the only nuclear arsenal in the world that is on a par with that of the US, and has reasserted Russia’s status as a major power, through carefully chosen military interventions and actions.”
In terms of actual might, Russian forces are organised into three branches: ground forces, air forces, and the navy.
Ground forces
Russia’s manpower is believed to amount to some 850,000 active personnel, with 280,000 of those soldiers on foot.
The country still has conscription for men, meaning all male citizens between the ages of 18 and 27 are subject to one year of active duty military service.
This means that, alongside the active personnel, there is a reserve of approximately 1.5 million conscripts no longer in active duty that were trained over the last decade who could be recalled.
The ground force also consists of large stocks of equipment, including more than 12,000 tanks and more than 30,000 armoured vehicles.
Air forces
The Russian Aerospace Forces — or VKS as it’s referred to in Russia — has been significantly modernised during Putin’s reign, according to the UK Defence Journal.
Reportedly, 71 percent of its warplanes are now “modern types”, with a total of more than 4,000 aircraft in the arsenal.
These modern-type aircraft would be equipped to execute stand-off attacks using long-range cruise missiles.
According to the UK Defence Journal: “Russia has invested heavily in such weapons, with the Tu-95 Bear-H type able to carry the Kh-555 subsonic, turbofan-powered conventional cruise missile.
“This has a 400 kg warhead and a range of 3 500 km.”
This means a warhead launched from Russia’s western border could reach “most of the UK…[but] Wales and south-west England would be out of reach”.
Elsewhere in Russia’s air force are tactical aviation technologies, which are also being modernised, and interceptors and surface-to-air missiles.
There is also a large transport fleet, and a helicopter fleet of more than 500.
Naval forces
While the UK Defence Journal concedes that the Russian Navy is “formidable in certain sectors,” it maintains it is “no longer a full-spectrum ocean-going force.”
There are, however, strong coastal and offshore forces, with corvettes, missile boats and mine countermeasure vessels, as well as 11 frigates and 15 destroyers.
Russia’s only carrier, Kuznetsov, is out of service, and though it is expected to be relaunched in 2023, it is “unlikely to be able to execute sustained high-tempo operations”.
Russia also holds a healthy fleet of submarines, with approximately 30 in service, split between the northern seas and the Pacific.
What about Ukraine?
Across the board Russia is a formidable opponent, and Ukraine is much weaker in terms of raw numbers.
Kiev has just 200,000 active personnel, against Russia’s 850,000.
Russia has more than three times the amount of artillery, six times the number of tanks, 10 times the number of attack aircraft and helicopters, and almost seven times more armoured vehicles than the Ukrainians.
But Ukraine does have some support from its participation in the enhanced opportunity partner interoperability program with NATO.
In recent weeks, NATO countries have been supplying Ukraine with additional “lethal aid”, such as the UK’s provision of 2,000 anti-tank weapons.
But most experts agree that NATO aid won’t change the immediate outcome of a Russian attack.
And as Ukraine is not a NATO member, allies won’t put boots on Ukrainian soil, with Western nations instead imposing sanctions to put the heat on Russia to back off.
Speaking after a meeting with Ukrainian diplomats on Tuesday, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said: “Allies are united in their full support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders.
“We will continue to provide Ukraine with strong political support and Allies are providing equipment to help Ukraine defend itself, as well as sustained financial support.”
He added: “NATO is resolute and united in its determination to protect and defend all Allies.”
To this end, NATO allies have deployed thousands of troops and equipment to eastern European nations in preparation should a Russian invasion of Ukraine spill over into Europe.
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