JRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia’s New Winter War: Could Putin Go the Way of Napoleon and Hitler?” – Foreign Affairs
“… [W]hen the Kremlin was finally forced to order a ‘partial mobilization’ of the Russian population, it had to warn those called up that uniforms and equipment were in short supply. They would have to provide their own body armor and even ask their mothers and girlfriends for sanitary pads to use instead of field dressings. The lack of bandages is astonishing, especially now as winter intensifies, since they are vital to keep frost from entering open wounds. Adding to the dangers are mortar rounds hitting frozen ground … [which] causes fragments to ricochet …. Putin’s new commander in chief in the south, … Surovikin, is determined to clamp down on attempts by some conscripts to avoid combat[] … [through] the sabotage of fuel, weapons, and vehicles, … self-inflicted wounds and desertion. … [T]he Russian army’s long-standing … shortage of experienced noncommissioned officers [] has also led to a terrible record of maintaining weapons, equipment, and vehicles. … especially costly in winter with sensitive technology such as drones. As both sides enter a far more challenging season of fighting … Russian troops curse their shortages and lack of hot food, [while] Ukrainian troops are now benefiting from supplies of insulated camouflage suits, tents with stoves, and sleeping bags provided by Canada and the Nordic nations. …”