Latest Military Exercise Shows ‘Kremlin Actively Preparing For A World War’ – OpEd

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Moscow’s announcement that it will soon conduct its largest military exercise since 1981 “means only one thing,” Pavel Felgengauer says. “The Kremlin is actively preparing for a world war” (apostrophe.ua/article/world/ex-ussr/2018-08-28/rossiya-nachala-podgotovku-k-mirovoy-voyne-ukraina-v-chisle-glavnyih-vragov/20264).

In fact, the independent Russian military commentator says, Russia has been preparing for such a war for “at least the last five years.” In announcing the exercise, he points out, the Russian General Staff said that it was a response to the growing threat of war, “either a global nuclear one or a series of major regional wars like an all-European one.”

The Russian military is planning for attacks “from all sides” and is “building a defense perimeter in all directions,” Felgengauer says. “But the main enemy, of course, is America and also its allies and satellites like Ukraine.” The size of the exercise – it is to involve 300,000 personnel – makes it clear that “this is preparation for a global war,” not any local conflict.

Moscow has been organizing larger and larger military exercises with each passing year, the military analyst says because “the main thing in these large strategic exercises is the working out of mobilization and logistics” so that Moscow can dispatch them “in any direction” the political leadership decides is necessary.

Of course, Moscow will stress that all this is a defensive measure. After all, “Russia has always acted ‘only defensively’ for 500 years [and] as a result of these ‘just and defensive’ wars, the territory of Russia has increased 50 times compared to that of the small Muscovite principality.”

“The best defense for the Kremlin is the attack,” Felgengauer concludes. “And Russia as always is planning a war with the entire globe, although of course, the Kremlin does have allies, for example, Kyrgyzstan …”

Paul Goble

Paul Goble is a longtime specialist on ethnic and religious questions in Eurasia. Most recently, he was director of research and publications at the Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy. Earlier, he served as vice dean for the social sciences and humanities at Audentes University in Tallinn and a senior research associate at the EuroCollege of the University of Tartu in Estonia. He has served in various capacities in the U.S. State Department, the Central Intelligence Agency and the International Broadcasting Bureau as well as at the Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Mr. Goble maintains the Window on Eurasia blog and can be contacted directly at [email protected] .

2 thoughts on “Latest Military Exercise Shows ‘Kremlin Actively Preparing For A World War’ – OpEd

  • August 30, 2018 at 11:44 pm
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    Ha Ha Ha……..America the Enemy?? Get real guy.
    You are forgetting history……..

    Russia’s enemy is……..
    Well perhaps even a school boy knowledgeable in 20th century history can answer that.

    And even though Russia and this nation were buddies before WWII began..they became blood enemies overnight. Russia Never fears the USA. They DO fear ……….Europe!

    Reply
  • September 2, 2018 at 1:19 am
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    An increase in military exercise needs not be seen as a preparation for war per se, let alone World War. Eschew from being over enthused in seeing any war, unless other peoples’ dead bodies far away make someone feel safer. Hawkish mentality ought to be restrained.

    Reply

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