Since 27 February of this year, the Russian Federation first annexed Crimea before then organizing and facilitating subversive actions in the southern and eastern regions of Ukraine.
Since 27 February of this year, the Russian Federation first annexed Crimea before then organizing and facilitating subversive actions in the southern and eastern regions of Ukraine.
Russia’s activities against Ukraine could be viewed as a type of comprehensive asymmetrical attack. It has not been an easy thing to deal with in conventional military terms (what good are tanks or artillery against human shields and special forces operating within or behind the crowd?), and Ukraine has struggled to find a workable counter-strategy.
One could call it a “soft power” attack, but that would not fully catch the essence of what we have witnessed. Instead, it is more like a multidimensional subversion campaign in which the Russian armed forces were deployed only after the likelihood of a full scale military conflict with Ukraine was minimized. Also visible are elements of insurgency, economic blockade, military surprise attack, corruption, information operations, political and diplomatic pressure, etc. The assault has been truly comprehensive and it struck a Ukrainian society undergoing great internal upheaval with only minimum warning time.