Title: The Evolution of Modern Russian Warfare.
Creator: Mercado, Anthony (Major)
Date: 2016
Publisher: Quantico, Virginia. Marine Corps University, Command and Staff College.
Description: Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited.
Type: thesis
Format: 43 pages, 760 KB PDF
Sponsoring Agency/Branch: United States Marine Corps
Abstract: The purpose of this work is to examine current Russian military methods of waging non-linear warfare through the lens of Soviet operations beginning in 1941 through modern operations. Therefore, what defines the present has a long history. The full spectrum of western definitions characterizing today’s actions by Russia as some form of new warfare is inaccurate and demonstrates a lack of appreciation for the actual nature of war. This purposeful obfuscation reveals Russia’s willingness to see warfare as a system of systems, something defined as extending beyond a call to arms. When the political or economic systems are accomplishing their objective, the military is not used. These systems are interchangeable. This lesson has long roots and prevalent in modern Russian warfare. As these threats multiply and diversify as increasingly “hybrid,” “asymmetric,” and “ambiguous,” it is critical for US military thinkers, politicians, and strategists to first understand Russia to further their understanding of Russian warfare.