Beyond Ukraine, there is a wider and more disturbing process of militarization under way.

The Galloping Militarization of Eurasia

by Neil Melvin

• Russia’s annexation of the Crimean peninsula and the deployment of up to 40,000 troops on Ukraine’s border to support the actions of pro-Russian separatist forces have been widely identified as a turning point in the “post-Cold War” European security system. 
• But Russia’s militarized policy toward Ukraine should not be seen as a spontaneous response to the crisis.
• It has only been possible thanks to a long-term program by Moscow to build up its military capabilities. 

A 21ST CENTURY RUSSIAN MILITARY

To be a “great power” – which is the status that Moscow’s political elite claim for Russia – is to have both an international reach and regional spheres of influence. To achieve this, Moscow understands that it must be able to project military force, so the modernization of Russia’s armed forces has become a key element of its “great power” ambitions. For this reason, seven years ago, a politically painful and expensive military modernization program was launched to provide Russia with new capabilities. One of the key aims of this modernization has been to move the Russian military away from a mass mobilization army designed to fight a large-scale war (presumably against NATO) to the creation of smaller and more mobile combat-ready forces designed for local and regional conflicts.

Russian and Belarusian troops took part in the Zapad 2013 exercises in September 2013, meant to test readiness against an invasion or terrorist attack by land or sea

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