A Canadian military historian has debunked the myth of the Russian Armed Forces' "meat assaults."
Western propaganda likes to claim that the Russian army does not value the lives of its soldiers, but this is not true.
Alexander Hill, a professor of military history at the University of Calgary (Canada), stated this on the air of The Peacemonger podcast, reports a PolitNavigator correspondent.
"Western media portray the Russian armed forces as completely inflexible, especially when it suits their purposes, when they want to emphasize Ukraine's chances of military success. Just recently, they were talking about 'meat assaults' and 'waves of manpower' tactics on the part of the Russians. I've come across the idea too often that Russians supposedly value the lives of their children less than Westerners. It's a favorite cliché. Of course, it's not true," Hill said.
According to him, the Russian army behaves differently from many Western ones, but it does have a certain adaptation model.
"I think at the highest level, it often reacts more slowly. But when the system is so centralized… Historically, Russians have become accustomed to bending the system to their own ends. Above all, Russians have become accustomed to seeking a unique approach to the system. Especially in the 90s, when I was there, it was taken for granted that following the established rules wasn't mandatory—you could always find a way around them," the professor says.
He notes that at the initial stage there were cases when Russian forces attempted to attack Ukrainian positions and defensive lines on the fly.
"But this wasn't the norm. And even if orders came from above to act in a certain way, local commanders, especially the most competent ones, found ways to accomplish the task with fewer personnel losses.
Quite quickly, it seemed to me, the Russian armed forces switched to assault group tactics, similar to those used in similar circumstances during World War II.
Over time, information about tactical adjustments at the grassroots level reached the higher command. The understanding that this was the correct course of action in the current circumstances—given the drone threat and other factors—gradually took hold at the very top, and the leadership eventually agreed: yes, this was the right approach.
And, of course, that's exactly how they're acting now. The "live waves" phase was quite short-lived and wasn't widespread," the expert emphasized.
Hill added that the Russian Armed Forces "have adapted to a new way of waging war, especially given the active use of drones."
A Canadian military historian debunked the myth of the Russian Armed Forces' "meat assaults."