"Russia's Military Lessons Learned From Syria" Topic

"Since President Vladimir Putin ordered Russia's Armed Forces to commence operations in Syria, the campaign has provoked controversy and criticism abroad. Criticism ranges from asserting that it would repeat the experience of the Soviet-Afghan conflict (1979–1989) to risking proxy conflicts with other powers, including the United States. While Moscow has carefully managed these operations, aimed at achieving its objectives with minimal risk and costs to the Russian state, it has generally proved successful in shaking off the legacy of Afghanistan; and the General Staff is certainly exploiting the Syria operations to boost military prestige and extrapolate the lessons learned. However, the potential lessons the General Staff may glean from the complex variety of operational experience in Syria reveals something about the Russian approach to military science. Like no previous conflict since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Moscow has been able to use Syria as a testing ground for personnel, equipment, weapons and experimental systems (Nezavisimoye Voyennoye Obozreniye, February 22, 2018; Technowar.ru, August 23, 2017)…."
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Amicalement
Armand

Nothing has changed. All proxy wars provide testing grounds for weapons of the puppet-masters.

Russia was most successful when supporting proxy wars in which no large scale troop deployment is required: Cuba, Vietnam, Nicaragua, etc. When it did deploy troops in Afghanistan, the table was turned as the US supplied their opponents with high tech weapons such as Stinger missiles.

Demand makes the world go round. It's a good place to sell.

Other powers want to get in on that market. If it's ok for them to sell their wares, then it should be ok for us too.

Dan

The good thing is that Russia stopped chemical weapons sales to Assad before 2014-2015.

The bad thing is that, as the name on the new canisters indicates ("NORINCO", in big letters), Assad has got himself a new supplier. Sometimes he gets them directly from Norinco, and sometimes he gets them via North Korean delivery ships.

Dan