Russia's military modernization has transformed the former Soviet Union into a formidable force with a vast array of weaponry.
Since taking power, Russian President Vladimir Putin's effort to overhaul Soviet-era armaments is advanced enough to alarm the US Pentagon. The Russian army went on the offensive after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky decided to tough it out.
Russian Military Modernization
Ukrainian resistance has become stiff into a week of the campaign to rid the country of Nazis and free Donbas and Lugansk for Kyiv. One expert said the local resistance in several cities is facing an assault from Moscow's fearsome military, reported the Express.
The arms employed by Moscow have led to civilian casualties that include missile strikes. Standoff attacks have shown how far much damage they can do.
A convoy is on its way to Kyiv, waiting to do its part in Putin's campaign that is gaining media attention and what systems will be used for. The former Soviet forces and western intelligence have claimed that several cities are under control.
Ground attack forces are not the best components, but specific delivery systems with cutting-edge technologies developed after the cold war. Moreover, the flexibility of the payloads can be used for strike packages, from limited damage to even nuclear-capable.
Russia Holds Most Warheads
Russia has become a superpower with its arsenal developed in the 20th century, the center of the former Soviet Union.
Under the leadership of Joseph Stalin and later Soviet Leaders like Nikolai Khrushchev found its arsenal of nuclear warheads to reach 45,000. Russia's military modernization has made up for these many warheads.
But after the Cold War, treaties were signed to control the number of nuclear weapons, but Russia still has the most at 5,997 warheads. What was so large and clunky by western standards has seen Soviet equipment shrink and become deadlier and cheaper, said an expert.
According to Alexander Lanoszka, international security expert and political science assistant professor at the University of Waterloo in Canada, Russia has made significant changes over the years regarding its military technology.
He added that President Vladimir Putin pushed to remake the Soviet Forces into a modern and robust force that NATO has monitored in the last decade. Lanoszka said an example of these is the surprise development of the dual-capable hypersonic missile, the 9M729 Iskander-M, cited Tass.
Warheads are cluster explosives, fuel-air-explosive, bunker busters, and electromagnetic pulse warheads capable of knocking out US and NATO electronic systems. It also can use nuclear warheads concerning the western forces. He added the US and NATO were not agreeable to such weapons that caused the cancellation of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty in the Cold War era.
Added are modern subs that can fire missile systems that include the Burevestnik nuclear-propelled cruise missile, with thermonuclear warheads that can attack anywhere on earth, noted Military Today.
Putin announced it in March 2018 as a plan to rebalance nuclear capacities and modernization of Russian arms, most of the nuclear forces of the former Soviet are usable and more functional.
Lanoszka said they are lethal and destructive to use, adding Ukraine might suffer from the conflict. Russia's military modernization went beyond the bounds of treaties believing the West won't uphold its end, with eastern expansion to contain Russia.
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