ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the ability of Russia’s land forces to generate and sustain effective combat units in a crisis. The Russian leadership understands that military tools alone cannot bring Moscow decisive success in its pursuit of international influence. However, in apparently abandoning the pursuit of leaner but more capable armed forces in favour of expansion without the required manpower, Putin is ultimately endangering his prospects for success in the use of military force to achieve his political goals. The dramatic mismatch between Russia’s aggressive foreign policy ambitions and the resources needed to achieve them is the single most compelling contradiction in the Kremlin’s policy. During the annexation of Crimea, the deployment of Russian troops along the mainland border with Ukraine in spring 2014 was intended to deter Kiev from using military means to challenge Russian annexation. However, maintaining military pressure on Ukraine is probably the new divisions’ primary task for the foreseeable future.
