Sun Tzu's Art of War mentioned in his article on combat that the key to war is not to fight soldiers and horses, but to fight for money and food.
Sun Tzu said: In all the methods of military use, a thousand chariots, a thousand leather chariots, a hundred thousand armors, and food supplies for thousands of miles, then the internal and external expenses, the use of guests, the materials of glue and paint, and the support of chariots and armors cost a thousand gold per day, and then a hundred thousand troops can be raised..
The meaning is also very clear. Whether you can win a war ultimately depends on your food and grass. Because cold weapons were the mainstay in ancient times, there is no need to consider too many differences in weapons. If the combat model of Sun Tzu's Art of War is applied to the current battlefield, will compete with soldiers' salaries, wartime material support, and the number of high-end weapons.
Obviously these necessary conditions require a lot of money. Next, let’s take a look at the Russo-Ukrainian War.
Russia’s military expenditure is much greater than that of Ukraine. Russia’s military expenditure in 2021 is approximately US$61.7 billion, ranking fourth in the world. Ukraine’s military expenditure in 2021 is US$5.9 billion, which is less than 1/10 of Russia’s.
Russia has about 1.36 million active military personnel in 2021, including 240,000 in the army, 430,000 in the aerospace force, 120,000 in the rocket force, and 570,000 others including the navy, border defense, and airborne troops. Ukraine has about 240,000 soldiers in 2021.
Russia has countless high-end weapons. It ranks among the top three in the world just by relying on the armaments and weapons left over from the Soviet Union. There are also Zircon hypersonic anti-ship missiles, Dagger hypersonic missiles, Peresvet laser weapons, S500, S550 air defense missiles, Hunter heavy-duty stealth attack drones, Yasen M-class attack nuclear submarines and other advanced weapons. The only nuclear weapon that Ukraine could use, , was also forced to be destroyed in 1992.
So in terms of military spending and weapons, Russia absolutely crushes Ukraine. So why has this war, which is a must-win in Sun Tzu's Art of War, been fought for 9 months without victory? Is it just because Ukraine has Western support?
I think there are three reasons: First, Russia has not grasped the rhythm of the war and is very passive. Second, the media’s right to speak is firmly controlled by the West and is led by the other side. Third, Russia is still too benevolent.
The most feared thing about war is delay, especially for the attacker. The longer it is delayed, the more detrimental it will be to Russia. If Russia grasps the rhythm of the war from the beginning, within two weeks, it will directly bring out its elite troops and deterrent weapons to attack important military facilities, and then negotiate without being interfered by the outside world. It will stop immediately after the attack. Ukraine is very likely to be threatened by this crushing war. After all, it is recognized that the Russian family has a strong foundation.
Secondly, Russia speaks loudly but its actual actions are very inferior. For example, Russia initially said that either Russia would win or the earth would be destroyed. Such extreme words really demonstrated Russia's fighting national ethos, but it also allowed its opponents to see Russia's weakness - it is too merciful. We all know a saying, ruthless people don't talk much, this is actually the truth. When the United States fought the Gulf War, it didn't say that much at all. It directly bombed with heavy weapons, making its opponents truly fearful rather than verbally panicking.
Therefore, Russia still has a long way to go. It is not that Putin has nothing to do, but that the situation is not optimistic. Therefore, if you want to get rid of the current situation, you must make your opponent fearful, and the longer time passes, the harder it will be to make your opponent fearful.
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