Rybar, another prominent pro-Kremlin Telegram channel, said that as well as providing inaccurate reports, Col Gen Anashkin had thrown poorly prepared and ill-equipped units into battle, unnecessarily killing hundreds of men for little apparent tactical gain.
So Russian tactics haven’t changed since 1942 then? Since 1915, even since 1812?
A senior Russian general has been sacked for faking reports of battlefield successes in Ukraine, according to Russian media and war bloggers.
At least this time there seems to be at least some mild disapproval.
Russian training of infantry has always been appallingly, horrendously, bad. A great belief in quantity not quality….
How Corruption Destroys Armies – Theft, Graft, and Russian failure in Ukraine
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9i47sgi-V4
(I think it’s this one, I didn’t rewatch it to confirm. But if I got the wrong one, Perun has a video about how corruption can take hold in militaries (not just Russian))
The Russian military, both Imperial and Soviet existed as a state within a state.
Rather than a body used to fight wars, it existed as an institution in its own right and lived parasitically off of the host nation. ( Austria Hungary was similar ). I fully expect that attitude to exist today.
I have long held the contention that for the British Army on the Western Front, the Great War was conducted as an end-in-itself and that the defeat of Germany became a secondary consideration. Effectively war became bureaucratised and that actual battles were just projects that needed managing. The Germans spoiled it all by collapsing, because it was fireseen that the was would continue well into 1919 and beyond.
Eisenhower’s Military Industrial Complex is much the same in the USA, but the difference being that the Americans feel the need to employ this force, with the mixed results thst we have seen diwn the years.
See also the NHS.
Surely Russian tactics in 1812 were way better than in either 1915 or 1942?
“ Surely Russian tactics in 1812 were way better than in either 1915 or 1942?”
Not least because the scorched earth tactics ahead of Napoleon’s advance were mostly the result of Prussian influence and in particular Clausewitz and this did the most to defeat the French Grande Armée.
This is part of a wider effort by the Russian gov to scrape off (some of) the thieves, grifters and fuckwits who accreted in their armed forces during the Long Peace.
Reuters provides context:
MOSCOW, Nov 24 (Reuters) – Russia has removed a senior general in Ukraine for giving misleading reports about the progress of the war as Defence Minister Andrei Belousov tries to clear out poor commanders, pro-Russian war bloggers and Russian media said.
Ahead of winter, Russian forces advanced at the fastest rate in Ukraine since the start of the 2022 invasion, though progress was much slower in some areas – particularly around Siversk in the eastern region of Donetsk.
Russian media cited unidentified sources as saying that Colonel General Gennady Anashkin, the commander of the Southern Grouping, had been removed from his command, though there was no official confirmation.
Russian war bloggers have long complained about the command of the operation around Siversk where they said poorly supported Russian units were thrown into deadly battles for little apparent tactical gain.
If you watch videos of Ukrainian servicemen talking about their experience on the Eastern Front, they get quite upset when people suggest they’re losing to bungling amateurs.
In other military news, apparently President Trump is going to remove trannies from the US military on day one, which would be a huge morale boost and force multiplier for American fighting men.
Meanwhile, here’s what the chinless cocksniffers of the British Army are focusing on:
“An Army that is justifiably recognised as a demonstrably inclusive employer that respects difference, attracts talent from all areas of society, overtly embraces equality of opportunity and always challenges unacceptable behaviour”.
Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Mark Carleton-Smith
Who will murder whomst in a war, I wonder? (Not really)
aRMy
Though, to be fair, the Carleton-Smith quote is sufficiently vague enough to satisfy wokers whilst also applying the army of 1944.
. . . as Defence Minister Andrei Belousov tries to clear out poor commanders . . .
His security had better be good. See also Putin, who put his own “civilian” man in charge of the Kursk defence (which is slow going). These power struggles are very interesting with many opportunities for “change” .
The Russian military, both Imperial and Soviet existed as a state within a state. Rather than a body used to fight wars, it existed as an institution in its own right and lived parasitically off of the host nation.
OT, but what the fuck is going on in Haiti? Are warlords and their militias states within states? Where does their money come from?
And why is Haiti, with its favourable geographic and climatic situation and fertile countryside, such an utter dysfunctional shithole? Yes, they get earthquakes and hurricanes, but so does Japan.
OT, but what the fuck is going on in Haiti?
Go look on GoogleEarth at the frontier between Haiti/RD. And yes, you can distinctly see where the RD becomes Haiti by the colour change from green farmed land to brown/yellow.
Back at the time of the earthquake I asked a RD chica negra how things were back home. “Don’t know” she said. “That’s not us. Never go there. Nobody does. They’re animals!”
Looking at examples from other parts of the world, if you had to come under the influence of a foreign colonial power you probably wouldn’t want it to be French or Belgian.
PJF – aRMy
Kek.
Though, to be fair, the Carleton-Smith quote is sufficiently vague enough to satisfy wokers whilst also applying the army of 1944.
According to Max Hastings, yes.
His security had better be good. See also Putin, who put his own “civilian” man in charge of the Kursk defence (which is slow going). These power struggles are very interesting with many opportunities for “change” .
Sure, politics don’t stop just because it’s effectively a UniParty . But the last guy who came after Pooty Poot is safely dead, and the anticipated revolt of the oligarchs never happened. The Russian gov has been steadily removing or prosecuting dead wood in the army and MoD since 2023 without any apparent pushback (the risk of defenestration always concentrates the Slavic mind). Kursk seems to be suiting the Russians just fine as a slow-boiling attrition cauldron that’s isolated from the action in eastern and southern Ukraine, but still consuming precious mechanised and infantry assets of the UAF. All signs indicate the Russian state is currently more stable than NATO governments, which are being regime changed by angry voters everywhere you look.
As Obama correctly noticed some years ago, Ukraine is a lot more important to them than it is to us. Which suggests Russia won’t blink first, we will. Somebody needs to blink before we find ourselves in the ridiculous position of fighting global thermonuclear warfare over who gets to be the Top Shagger in Donbass. There’s a lot of things that might kill me that would be fair enough (pumas) but I’ll be damned if I’m going to be flash fried to a greasy crisp so that Ukrainian oligarchs can get their mining interests back.
Norman – And why is Haiti, with its favourable geographic and climatic situation and fertile countryside, such an utter dysfunctional shithole?
Uh, white supremacy, would you believe?
Surely you mean lack of white supremacy, Steve??
– Kursk seems to be suiting the Russians just fine as a slow-boiling attrition cauldron that’s isolated from the action in eastern and southern Ukraine, but still consuming precious mechanised and infantry assets of the UAF.
Disagree (no surprise). I think the Ukrainian operation was precisely to make the Russians devote big resources from other fronts to remove a small but agile force. The Russians seem to be obliging with corresponding massive casualties, which is stupid – but hey.
. . . they’re losing to bungling amateurs.
They’re losing ground in places but are they losing? Was Russia losing in 1942? It looked bad but Jerry was just overextending.
“And why is Haiti, with its favourable geographic and climatic situation and fertile countryside, such an utter dysfunctional shithole?”
(whispering) Black people
Bboy – Quod scripsi, scripsi
PJF – Disagree (no surprise). I think the Ukrainian operation was precisely to make the Russians devote big resources from other fronts to remove a small but agile force. The Russians seem to be obliging with corresponding massive casualties, which is stupid – but hey.
We’ve been told about massive Russian casualties since day 1, the official NATO estimate is now that the original Russian army that invaded Ukraine has been killed 7 times over (!).
Either Russia has amazing WW2 style regenerative abilities, or we’ve been lied to. The only side in this war that’s consistently short of manpower isn’t Russia.
I don’t think Kursk was a diversion, Ukraine put approx. 5 brigades worth of their best units into this offensive (not a small force) and it doesn’t seem to have resulted in Russia thinning its lines on the Eastern front at all. It also doesn’t make sense to try to extend your opponent’s lines when he has a lot more men than you do, lots of reports since Kursk have noted the dire lack of Ukrainian troops to slow the Russian advances in Ukraine – because they got pulled into Kursk.
I don’t think Ukrainian generals are stupid either, I think they’ve been going for the Hail Mary of engineering a situation where the US comes in and wins the war for them. That’s clearly what the British government wants too.
They’re losing ground in places but are they losing? Was Russia losing in 1942? It looked bad but Jerry was just overextending.
Ukraine isn’t losing ground in places, it’s losing across the entire front.
Your historical analogy is spot on, but t’other way around. Russia is playing the Red Army again, unfortunately it’s Ukraine that is in the same position Germany was in 1943 – it’s no longer militarily feasible they can achieve their war aims, and they’re being ground down by a remorselessly expanding Russian enemy that can churn out more men and material than Ukraine/NATO can supply. I saw an estimate from the EU that said Russia is now producing more military equipment every quarter than the entire EU is producing per annum.
As Germany showed, a state can fight on for years after the war is practically lost, and even mount counteroffensives of its own (Kursk = the Ardennes) but this is the nightmare “to the last Ukrainian” scenario.
PS – something that I can’t satisfactorily explain is why we’re doing nothing to rearm, except talk shit.
The same guy, Lieutenant General Sir Rob Magowan KCB CBE, who at the weekend said the British Army is ready to fight Russia (!) told the House of Commons Defence Committee a slightly different message earlier this year:
“We could not fight an enduring war for more than a couple of months…because we do not have the ammunition or the reserves of equipment to do it. That’s true, isn’t it?” Francois pressed, to which Magowan replied, “True”.
If we are only “ready” to fight Russia until we lose a couple of months later due to lack of munitions… how exactly are we ready, military strategy fans?
We’re approaching the third anniversary of being (proxy) at war with Russia. Where’s all the new weapons factories? Why isn’t the MoD sponsoring drone workshops in every single yooni? When are we going to frack and drill all the cheap, sovereign energy we will need to fight the world’s largest country?
It’s not as if Britain’s complete lack of any kind of stockpile is a new thing, remember David Cameron decided to attack Libya, only to run out of missiles a couple of weeks later? Makes me wonder if Lieutenant General Sir Rob Magowan KCB CBE is abusing the wacky baccy and if it’s better than mine. I don’t understand why our politicians and generals think it’s ok for us to only have enough supplies to fight a major war for a few weeks. Whatever we think about the Ukraine war, that seems irresponsible at the best of times. And these aren’t the best of times.
@ Steve
The last war the UK fought only lasted a few weeks; a nuclear war will only last a few days.
john77 – Would it not be better to have more options before Global Thermonuclear Warfare?
Trump was right about NATO, they’re all freeloading off Uncle Sam.
When I give Haiti a little more thought, it seems to me that its problems may perhaps be attributed to the lack of a functioning government.
When the thieving gangsters form a flaccid monopoly, it’s possible for the populace to enjoy a little freedom. Indeed the lords of the manor can then be elected, and the expansion of control and regulation slowed to a crawl.
But in Haiti, the thugs compete vigorously with each other. So the oppression is meticulous and total.
An entertaining example of how the competition of the marketplace leads to more efficient extortion.