Russia holds biggest war games in decades

[DevilsAvocado]

http://news.yahoo.com/russia-holds-biggest-war-games-decades-070248738.html

MOSCOW (AP) — President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday watched Russia's biggest military maneuvers since Soviet times, involving 160,000 troops and about 5,000 tanks across Siberia and the far eastern region in a massive show of the nation's resurgent military might.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzArNiVag5I

(no subtitles)

Experts on the radio say it’s the biggest maneuver in over 50 years...

Has the Rambo moron lost it completely?

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Has the Rambo moron lost it completely?

I think this display is well within Putin's normalcy.

 

[russ_watters]

I think this display is well within Putin's normalcy.

Agreed: I would say he hasn't lost anything, he's just kept his cold war thinking.

 

[DevilsAvocado]

I think this display is well within Putin's normalcy.

I guess you’re right, he’s been like this all the time...

 

[DevilsAvocado]

Agreed: I would say he hasn't lost anything, he's just kept his cold war thinking.

Cold war? What’s he going to do with the “Cold war” and 160,000 troops in eastern Siberia? Jump over Bering Strait with 5,000 tanks?? Or, is he going to attack China, and selling them weapons at the same time?? Or... it’s an extremely bright diversion!? Rambo II is planning to turn eastern and central Europe into a parking lot, the same region that accounts for more than 80% of Russian exports abroad...

Gosh, this guy is nuts.

 

[Nikitin]

Gotta love random foreigners blaming Putin for everything and thinking he is Hitler 2.

 

[jackmell]

I am American and disapprove of you guys calling Putin nuts and moron. He's the leader of Russia and should exude strength, confidence, and the warrior way. Let's be honest: a strong military response is the ONLY solution when nations conflict and do not resolve their differences in dialog.

So yes, I admire Putin for being strong as I admire America for doing likewise. Hail the warrior, hail the fighter. They are our final recourse to conflict when discussions fail. And they do fail often. That is the human condition.

 

[mheslep]

Cold war? What’s he going to do with the “Cold war” and 160,000 troops ...

Start grabbing up old USSR republics: Georgia, Belarus, Ukraine, etc. Already invaded Georgia once, cyber attacked the Baltic states. What nation is going to stop Russia now? Which would even seriously object aside from those being overrun?

 

[mheslep]

I am American and disapprove of you guys calling Putin nuts and moron. He's the leader of Russia and should exude strength, confidence, and the warrior way. Let's be honest: a strong military response is the ONLY solution when nations conflict and do not resolve their differences in dialog.

So yes, I admire Putin for being strong as I admire America for doing likewise. Hail the warrior, hail the fighter. They are our final recourse to conflict when discussions fail. And they do fail often. That is the human condition.

Discussion fail between Putin and his opponents because either i) condemns in his state controlled media, or ii) throws them in jail or iii) kills them with radioactive poisons.

The hail Nietzsche bit is fun for some in the college dorm but most out grow it.

Well, maybe it takes longer in some places.

In the Carnegie poll last year, 42 percent of Russian respondents named Stalin as the most influential historical figure. ... An even greater admiration of Stalin was seen in his homeland, Georgia, where 45 percent of respondents expressed a positive view of him.

Those big time mass murderers have a certain warrior ethos you just got to like.

 

[Office_Shredder]

Start grabbing up old USSR republics: Georgia, Belarus, Ukraine, etc. Already invaded Georgia once, cyber attacked the Baltic states. What nation is going to stop Russia now? Which would even seriously object aside from those being overrun?

You can't think of any reason why NATO would be concerned about Russia taking over vast swaths of eastern Europe?

Heck China would probably flip out over it too, because who likes having an unpredictable warmonger on your border?

 

[StevieTNZ]

Notice how 'normal' countries don't engage in such activities. Its not like NZ has a big military force, but we don't host a parade for them to show off every few years.

 

[Office_Shredder]

Notice how 'normal' countries don't engage in such activities. Its not like NZ has a big military force, but we don't host a parade for them to show off every few years.

I'm confused, are you claiming New Zealand doesn't do military exercises (false), or that they don't do military exercises to the same extent (also false). For example

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10798003

1500 defense force personnel, about 1/100 the Russian size of their exercise. However, Russia has 1.4 million active personnel, New Zealand has 8,600 active personnel (from wikipedia). So Russia used about 10% of their forces for this, New Zealand used more than 1/6th of their active forces.

 

[Astrum]

Notice how 'normal' countries don't engage in such activities. Its not like NZ has a big military force, but we don't host a parade for them to show off every few years.

Russia needs SOMETHING to be proud of, considering they've failed to progress past the 1980s. The only thing they have to flaunt is a large military.

 

[Nikitin]

Are you guys serious? So when the USA, NATO, EU etc. hold a large military exercise it's normal, but when Russia does it it's planning to invade China? Do you guys realize how idiotic that sounds? Come on stop eating propaganda from FOX news.

Fact of the matter is Russia is a rising country (it recently achieved the biggest economy by PPP in Europe) with its own problems, especially corruption, inequality and a flawed democracy. It is, however, not the champion of Satan led by antichrist Putin.

As for Astrum: Don't worry, you're just confused. Russians have loads to be proud of other than the military.

 

[russ_watters]

Gotta love random foreigners blaming Putin for everything and thinking he is Hitler 2.

Goodwin fail.

 

[russ_watters]

Are you guys serious? So when the USA, NATO, EU etc. hold a large military exercise it's normal, but when Russia does it it's planning to invade China? Do you guys realize how idiotic that sounds?

Did you miss the part of the article about these being the biggest since the Cold War?

Now I don't think they plan on invading anyone, but I certainly see it as muscle flexing.

 

[Nikitin]

The Russian army was stripped of funding in 1990-2000. How can it hold exercises when all its money goes to maintaining a skeletal structure, or rebuilding it like in 2000-2010? And who exactly is Russia "flexing" to? Who are its enemies? Do you think Russians are all militarists? Well, sure, there may be a bit of deterrence and pride involved, but I can't see why the primary reason behind this exercise isn't simple training. It's certainly not training to blitzkrieg Europe or anything.

IMO while there is a large amount of annoying Russo-scepticism among Americans, I don't think it's too bad for us. It will just lead Russia and Europe closer together than they already are.

 

[mheslep]

You can't think of any reason why NATO would be concerned about Russia taking over vast swaths of eastern Europe?...

Concerned? Sure. So what? I used the phrase "seriously object". No gas dependent Western EU power would do anything more than mumble about Russian grabbing a Balkan or two.

 

[WannabeNewton]

Has the Rambo moron lost it completely?

You know what's funny, I bet you would cower in fear like a pathetic child if you were asked to say that to his face.

 

[lpetrich]

Seems to me that it's to impress China. Eastern Siberia is right next to China, and it's thinly populated. So it's vulnerable. But it has lots of mineral resources, so it's valuable.

It's like India's naval buildup, including a recent aircraft carrier and military communications satellite. They are not very good for fighting Pakistan, something that India has done a few times, but they are good for confronting China's navy.