The Russian Army Leaders Affected by Medvedev’s Escalation Following Stalin’s Message

During the meeting, Medvedev, who is the former president of Russia, stressed the importance of fulfilling the obligations of the military-industrial complex to compensate for what was not done in 2022 in terms of producing weapons, especially missiles, air defense systems and drones.

Medvedev’s warnings and his use of Stalin’s letter indicate, according to the Ukrainian point of view, an armaments crisis within the army, while a Russian researcher believes that the meeting aims to develop the military industry and benefit from Western spoils in Russia’s hands to study it.

And between the two points of view that were presented by their owners to “Sky News Arabia”, does Russia really suffer from a shortage of armaments?

“Crisis from the beginning of the year”

Naumkin Purvat, a specialist in international politics at the Ukrainian University of Tavrisky, believes that “it is natural that there is a crisis in armaments despite Moscow’s constant denials,” listing several indicators from his point of view:

• Russia did not expect that its war would last for more than a year without any decisive result.
• Moscow’s use of Iranian weapons, especially drones, in bombing instead of missiles.
• The raging dispute between what he called “Wagner” mercenaries and the Russian army over ammunition.
• Medvedev’s recent meeting and his acknowledgment of the need to compensate for the shortcomings of last year.
• The battles for the city of Bakhmut had already exhausted the Russian forces, depleting their ammunition.

Meeting details

Medvedev posted clips on the Internet reading a telegram written by Stalin in 1941 to a factory asking him to speed up the production of tank parts, in which Stalin said: “If it becomes clear within a few days that you are violating your duty to the homeland, I will begin to beat you like criminals,” according to what was published by news agencies. .

What Moscow is seeking in the armament file:

• Multiple launch rocket systems will be of paramount importance to counter the US-made HIMARS missile launchers.
• Study of Javelin and NLAW anti-tank guided missiles.
• Provide greater protection for armored vehicles in battle.
• Studying drones and all systems related to communications and information transfer.

Medvedev the most escalating

Since the outbreak of the Ukraine war in February 2023, the level of escalation in Medvedev’s statements has been on the rise:

• Last September, he hinted at the use of nuclear weapons, saying: “Moscow will use every weapon in its arsenal, including strategic nuclear weapons, to protect the territories that join Russia in Ukraine.”
• On Friday, he told Russian news agencies that his country’s forces could advance to Kiev or Lviv in Ukraine.
• He declared that the weapons arriving in Kiev and the foreign specialists who arrived with them were legitimate targets for Moscow.
• Emphasizing his country’s continuation until achieving its goals in the war, he said: “The world has changed, and it has changed radically that I could not imagine a few years ago, and there is no way back, and things will not be the same, whether this is good or bad.”

The Russian academic at the University of “Friendship of Peoples” in Moscow, Dmitry Briga, comments that Medvedev is adopting a method of escalation that is more severe than the Russian Minister of Defense and the leader of the “Wagner” armed group.

Briga points out that Medvedev also spoke during the meeting the importance of increasing the number of army personnel, to resolve the battles.

A remarkable old thing that Briga reminds of, which is that Medvedev previously had a strong friendship with former US President Barack Obama, but he changed dramatically from a liberal open to the West, to a more severe one against the ruling regime in Russia against the West.