The state of Russia’s military

It’s been 17 years since the Soviet Union crumbled and in that time, Russia has risen and fallen with the price of oil. But a sign of increasing confidence for Russia came seven months ago when Russia held its first full-scale military parade in Red Square since 1990. The events these past few days has allowed Russia to put its military might to the test and initial assessments of its performance appear favorable. This analyst says that Russia’s military has improved its performance and a decade ago the Russian military had trouble dealing with Chechen rebels and now they can handle the much more formidable Georgian military. Some have questioned whether Russia’s weak industrial base will hamper the Kremlin’s plans to return the country to its former military glory. The analyst also points out Russia should be cautious because its military leaders haven’t changed with the time, and they haven’t restructured their military. Georgia’s military is well trained but it doesn’t belong to any major military alliance, so Georgia isn’t exactly the most formidable opponent. This analyst also says there was a lot of motivation because Russia has not been happy with Georgia’s democratic developments. She also says Russia’s nuclear arsenal is still formidable and that’s all a country needs to retain military superpower status.