The Transformation of Russia’s Armed Forces Twenty Lost Years

At no time since the end of the Cold War has interest been higher in Russian security issues and the role played in this by the modernization of Russia?s Armed Forces. The continued transformation of its Armed Forces from Cold War legacy towards a modern combat capable force presents many challenges for the Kremlin. Moscow?s security concerns domestically, in the turbulent North Caucasus, and internationally linked to the Arab Spring, as well as its complex relations with the US and NATO and its role in the aftermath of the Maidan Revolution in Ukraine in 2014 further raises the need to present an informed analytical survey of the country?s military, past, present and future. This collection addresses precisely the nature of the challenges facing Russian policymakers as they struggle to rebuild combat capable military to protect Russian interests in the twenty-first century.

This book was based on a special issue of the Journal of Slavic Military Studies.

1. Preface: Russia’s Armed Forces’ Transformation: 20 Lost Years Russia’s Armed Forces and Future Warfare 2. Lt. Kizhe Rides Again: Magical Realism and Russian National Security Perspectives 3. The Brain of the Russian Army: Futuristic Visions Tethered by the Past 4. ‘Smart’ Defense From New Threats: Future War From a Russian Perspective: Back to the Future After the War on Terror 5. Moscow’s Visions of Future War: So Many Conflict Scenarios So Little Time, Money and Forces 6. Russia’s Information Warfare Strategy: Can the Nation Cope in Future Conflicts? The Armed Forces in Transition 7. Reform: The End of the First Phase—Will There Be a Second? 8. A New Phase in Russian Military Transformation 9. If War Comes Tomorrow: Russian Thinking About ‘Regional Nuclear Deterrence’

Roger McDermott is Affiliated Senior Analyst, Danish Institute for International Studies, Copenhagen. He is also Senior International Fellow, FMSO, Fort Leavenworth; Advisory Scholar: Military Affairs, Center for Research on Canadian-Russian Relations (CRCR) Georgian College Ontario, Canada; Senior Fellow in Eurasian Military Studies, Jamestown Foundation, Washington, DC.