Small Wars Journal

Russian Military Gains in Ukraine Could Spell Trouble for the U.S. Army, Even in a Conventional Fight

Wed, 05/15/2019 - 12:10am

Russian Military Gains in Ukraine Could Spell Trouble for the US Army, Even in a Conventional Fight by Todd South – Army Times

An Army major proposes in a recent paper that the Russian offensive, a mostly conventional warfare campaign that also used social media to recruit proxy troops, showcases how Russian units could defeat the U.S. Army in key eastern European states.

Despite a drumbeat of worry about the Russian New Generation, or hybrid, warfare, the paper notes that conventional land combat, with rockets, missiles, artillery, mechanized infantry and tanks, has dominated the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.

Experts interviewed by Military Times said that in a long, drawn-out conflict the United States and NATO allies would likely win over Russia if there was a major land grab on the eastern European border.

But the fear is that Russian forces could move quickly and grab pieces of territory, similar to what happened in Crimea and now in Ukraine. In that scenario they could entrench themselves deeply enough so that the slower response from U.S. and NATO forces would arrive too late…

Read on.