Retired Col.JESweet2022 and economist MCTothSTL ask: How many dead Russian soldiers are too many for Putin?
As Russia enters its 11th month of President Vladimir Putin’s"special military operation" in Ukraine, casualties will likely soon surpass 100,000. Most of these casualties come from Russia’s most highly trained units. They cannot simply be replaced with mobilized reservists or conscripts. It takes years to build and develop these formations fully, and once gone, only unit patches remain.
The wholesale slaughter is justified, in Putin’s mind, as a fixing force, and thus, the soldiers are expendable. Still, Russian mothers may have a different opinion than Putin. They contributed to the withdrawal of Russian forces from Afghanistan and are once again making their voices heard alongside the wives of the Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine. Putin is aware and has now tried to reach out to them — twice. The first time came 12 days into the invasion, after being accused of using their sons as"cannon fodder" in the war with Ukraine.
Sometimes the internal threat is as dangerous as the external. Russian mothers, elites, nationalists, leaders of mercenary groups, and saboteurs working deep within the interior of Russia targeting infrastructure — all pose threats to Putin. Ten-thousand casualties a month does not help.Jonathan Sweet, a retired Army colonel, served 30 years as a military intelligence officer. Follow him on Twitter @JESweet2022.
Mark Toth is a retired economist, historian, and entrepreneur who has worked in banking, insurance, publishing, and global commerce. Follow him on Twitter @MCTothSTL.
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