Russia is currently involved in a conflict with Ukraine.
The US is accusing both of them of breaking arms treaties, AND, they’re being sanctioned
by the international community.
If this were 50 years ago, we’d be talking about clashing super powers and the potential
for a world ending war.
But it’s not 50 years ago, there is no iron curtain, and Russia isn’t the Soviet Union
anymore.
Is Russia still even a Superpower?
Well, let’s start with the big guns.
Russia still has a huge nuclear arsenal of around 8,500 warheads, 1,800 of which are
operational - meaning they’re ready to fire at any moment.
That is a lot of firepower, but it’s also firepower that works only as a deterrent.
Firing their warheads at the US or anywhere else would bring the same amount of destruction
back their way.
It’d be an act of mutual destruction, so in a sense - their warheads are operational,
not actionable.
And as a result, they don’t carry much sway.
Russia has an estimated 845,000 active-duty troops, and as many as 2.5 million troops,
currently in reserves.
That’s closer in size to the South Korean Army than it is to the US Army.
And their high number of troops is actually one of their stronger points.
When you look at where those troops are stationed, and what resources they have access to, that’s
where you find Russia’s true weaknesses.
Outside of their own borders, Russia only has a handful of active military bases - somewhere
between 10 and 18, including their base in Cuba, which was recently described as “more
of a weigh station than a base.”
By comparison, the US has 598 military facilities outside of their borders.
France has 11.
Meaning Russian military reach is actually closer to that of France, than to the US.
The Russian army isn’t particularly well funded or well armed, either.
The US spent more than $600 billion on defense last year, while Russia spent less than $100
billion.
Plus, most of Russia’s equipment and military vehicles are holdovers from the Soviet era.
They do, however, have more tanks and corvettes than the US.
Some reports say the Russian Army has 74 corvettes - but others point out that only 10% of the
Russian army is even equipped with modern weapons.
And that may not change soon.
Russia’s military industrial complex completely collapsed after the fall of the Soviet Union.
Putin is trying to build it back up, but things are moving slowly.
A 20+ year lull in production is hard to make up for, and in the field of advanced weapons
technology - it may be impossible.
Russia is, as President Obama indicated this past March, “a regional power” - not a
super one.
To find out more about Russia and their involvement in Ukraine, click now to see our video on
the crash of flight MH17, and how Russia may have to pay for their involvement in it.
Or click the other box to see how much power the President actually has.
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