War in Ukraine “has demonstrated the intellectual, physical and moral weakness of the Russian armed forces”—as well as of the man in charge of it, writes John Foreman in guest commentary
, saying Russia didn’t need any more land. He claimed that his modernised armed forces had achieved parity with those of America. Earlier, after rehearsing a litany of false grievances, Sergei Shoigu, Russia’s defence minister, told his British equivalent that Russia had no intention of going outside its borders. But neither could explain the build-up of troops.
In practice, his new-look army, designed for a quick, defensive and simple war of necessity, turned to dust in a slow, offensive and complex war of choice. Blinded by chauvinism, he and the regime ignored the words of Alexander Suvorov, an 18th-century Russian general: “Never despise your enemy, do not consider him stupider and weaker than you.” Arrogance prevented General Gerasimov and his officers from anticipating either Ukrainian readiness to fight or the reaction of the West.
His failings have not gone unnoticed. All the field generals who led the invasion of Ukraine, including those once identified as General Gerasimov’s upcoming protégés, have been sacked, or moved on.
It is just as probable, however, that Mr Putin has kept General Gerasimov in place because of his obedience. He has pressed on with an ill-prepared offensive in recent weeks without having fixed the qualitative problems seen over the past year. Russia’s minister of war during Napoleon’s invasion in 1812 was described in a poem as a “servant to the Tsar, and a father to soldiers”.
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