Russia has gone to great pains to display its refurbished and modern weaponry the last few years. First in Georgia, then in Ukraine and now in Syria. Pundits, journalists and bloggers have marveled at how far Moscow’s military has come after the decade of decay following the collapse of the Soviet Union.
But just how strong is Russia’s military? Are the new tanks, land-based drones, stealth fighters and fancy missiles as effective as Moscow wants the world to believe? How has the conflict in Ukraine and the collapsing price of oil affected its modernization efforts?
This week on War College we talk with Nick de Larrinaga of IHS Jane’s Defence Weekly. De Larrinaga is an expert on European and Russian weapons systems and he walks us through the new hardware Moscow has rolled out on the battlefields of Syria and the challenges its army faces as it tries to catch up with the West.
LINK TO PODCAST. PARTICIPANTS: Nick de Larringa, Jason Fields, Matthew Gault
Previous, related episodes of War College:
How Garry Kasparov sees the chess match between Russia and the West
Vladimir Putin: 25 precent violence, 75 percent propaganda
Most of Russia’s military still ‘rubbish’ despite Ukraine, Syria deployments