In November, while visiting the headquarters of the U.S. Army in Europe, I received a briefing on the performance of the Russian army in Ukraine. In a perfunctory tone, the young intelligence briefer recited the details of the July 2014 Battle of Zelenopillya, in which a single Russian artillery “fire strike” almost destroyed two Ukrainian mechanized battalions in a few minutes.
I couldn’t help imagining a U.S. armored battalion subjected to a similar fire strike. I realized then that Ukraine had become Russia’s means for showcasing what might happen if we ever fought a firepower-intensive battle against it. “You know, guys,” I mused in the moment, “this is the first time since the beginning of the Cold War that an American war-fighting function has been bested by a foreign military.”
See full text of Washington Post oped here.
Great facts
A call to action here by MG Scales; to read more on the shift in the international security environment and Russia’s new generation warfare:
https://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/R43838.pdf
http://www.thepotomacfoundation.org/russias-new-generation-warfare-2/
https://www.nga.mil/MediaRoom/News/Pages/Russia’s-‘New-Generation-Warfare’.aspx
http://www.armymagazine.org/2016/05/13/russias-new-generation-warfare/
https://m.facebook.com/notes/made-in-russia/smerch-the-worlds-first-multiple-launch-rocket-system-with-guided-rotating-missi/298985416921821/
http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/618418/Russian-military-equipment-modern-warfare