Petraeus on Russia’s military shortcomings

“They need to conduct really rigorous training. What’s a mystery to me… is that they had months during which they were assembled on the borders of Ukraine… and as far as I can tell they did nothing in the way of training… [Gen. Gerasimov’s] options at this point are not particularly attractive… Putin’s overall objectives are still tied up with the notion that Ukraine doesn’t have a right to exist.” - Gen. David H. Petraeus

[@richardeddy9219]

It's simple they need to pack up and go home

[@teller1290]

They ain't going anywhere. It's in their front yard and they have a 3:1 manpower advantage, as well as a promise by this admin NOT to fight Russia in Ukraine. Putin knows he can't lose in the long run. And NATO knows that, too. This is theater. Truth is, the only way this ends right is for NATO to have seen this coming in 12/21-01/22, tell Russia we see this as a launching pad for Putin to take NATO apart by regaining the border of five NATO countries (along Ukr border). In other words, this may be disguised as a family squabble but that was obviously bs. All the Leopards and F-16 stuff should've started a year ago, if we were serious.

[@localbiztoweb]

Yes, that is the only right action that the Russian leaders and the Russian troops need to do, to evacuate Ukraine territory in 2023.

[@TommyTCGT]

Yup nutto needs to get out.. US/nutto -UKR shelled Donetsk and Lugansk for 8 years wrecking coal mines, electrical substations, water pumping stations and residential housing killing 21,000 civilians. Proof? 3 Brit Mercenaries Aiden Aslin, Andrew Hillb and Sean Pinner confessed to sniping R civvies during that time. One was prisoner swapped, others have been executed by firing squad.

[@teller1290]

@@TommyTCGT Russian Spetsnaz sent into those areas in plain clothes to force military response so mouthpieces like you could come on and mislead people away for understanding what this is: the same inexcusable, naked war of aggression that Russia has been waging on its neighbors forever.

[@donaldclifford5763]

@@localbiztoweb I would say a phased withdrawal, while securing strategic strongholds near the Russian border.

[@themightybrew3979]

So why are our former Generals coaching the Russians on what to do better via the media?

[@AbcDino843]

Because they like to pretend that they know the Russian troops better than the Russians themselves.

[@zergilli9719]

@@AnAfterthought Russia isn't that intelligent...

[@VTSteve]

good question, let them founder in their political quagmire

[@themaestro3034]

Their problems of disorganization and corruption are so deep seated that its unlikely that any advice would have an effect.

[@tilmanpott]

The Ruzzians cannot be coached, neither in person nor via media because the Red Army does not take advice from the "USA imperialists leading NATO sending Polish Nazis and US mercenaries in occupied fascist Ukraine, run by a banderite regime." Soviet doctrine and 20 years of Putins propaganda bullshit on TV have unfortunately created this narrative

[@ycplum7062]

As a general rule, initiative-taking is discouraged in the military of autocracies. They may take the initiative of overthrowing the government.

[@cpattullo1]

This is one of the key points here. The structure of the military is a feature of autocracy. It's like playing a video game and way back in the beginning you choose a character style that comes with inherent strengths and weaknesses. From then on you play to your strengths. Russia is trying to play its weaknesses.

[@johnny_eth]

Also, in autocracies the army is oppressed to do the leaderships war. None of those mobniks wants to be in Ukraine, they don't want to fight and they don't have initiative. At this point, their only choice is to move forward and get killed, move back and be shot by their own army, or get arrested and tortured.

[@cartesian_doubt6230]

That is nonsense. Tell me, the generals of the Roman Empire, whose Emperors held more power than any autocrat today, were they not geniuses who took initiative? Subutai never took the initiative because he served under Genghis Khan?

[@minsapint8007]

@@cartesian_doubt6230 I agree. Stalin's USSR was an autocracy. He had generals like Zhukov, Koniev, Rokossovsky and Vatutin. They all took the initiative in battle.

[@atlas42185]

@@cartesian_doubt6230 1. Rome is less relevant to describing modern gov't than direct observation of modern gov't is to describing modern gov't. 2. Modern autocracies organizing their militaries such that relatively few individuals make the bulk of tactical decisions is an extremely well-documented phenomenon. 3. When western military analysts state that Russian officers have problems taking initiative, they usually mean the number of ranks capable of making TACTICAL judgement calls (i.e., not asking for superiors' express permission) while the superiors stick to the STRATEGIC big picture is far less than in western militaries. This causes (a) decision-making bottlenecks rendering the whole organization unable to act on information in a timely fashion, (b) a huge volume of ongoing communications between general officers and subordinates that're exploitable by adversaries with sophisticated electronic warfare capability, which leads to (c) many high-ranking officers being killed in stand-off strikes when their comms signals are triangulated (especially if their communications are poorly secured). This failure of initiative is partly due to said autocracies' failure to maintain mostly or entirely professional (not conscript) militaries. Conscripts make inferior soldiers because they didn't volunteer. Volunteers have better morale, they usually have longer service terms, and they're more likely to reenlist for subsequent terms. This all means they've more time and are more eager to train to professional soldiers' proficiency levels, including proficiency in making well-informed, timely decisions under stress. It's also partly due to dictators deliberately giving relatively few people (who're selected based on their demonstrations of loyalty more than their competence) decision-making power b/c they are rightly concerned about delegating power to a system they can't effectively control if push comes to shove. It's easier to exercise control when you've fewer people and thus fewer points of failure where failure is defined the dictator's position being compromised.

[@Friendo111]

"Never interrupt your enemy when he is making mistakes" - Napoleon Bonaparte.

[@Friendo111]

@@davesnothere. Your point? I know you are trying to make one, lol.

[@eddietejera8179]

Didn't Russia defeat Napoleons army and Nazi Germany?

[@thor9563]

Exactly! What kind of 'general' brings out the play book and reads it to the enemy! Only the former 'general betray-us', or the current PFC Petraeus. What a loser!

[@tomheater6149]

It kills me when these guys tell the enemy what they're doing wrong. They don't call him "betrayus" for nothing

[@thor9563]

@@davesnothere. you're not evil - just dumb.

[@Handyman1703]

As a western general I would never give advice to the Russians no matter how trivial the advice is.

[@dancahill9585]

If the Russians actually followed that advice, you'd be reading stories of how the Russian Military overthrew Putin. Once you have a dedicated, professional Officer corps, you don't need crooks like Putin and Sergei Shoigu stealing the military blind.

[@charlesharper2357]

It's quite simple...you can't have a competent NCO corps in a Russian system because that would require a professional army coupled with freedom and personal initiative. Freedom and personal initiative are not allowed in Russia.

[@badstar9670]

Because of thier ego's, they will not imitate western battle tactics.. it just won't happen, it's likely not even possible to implement nco's or anything else like that because Russia is an authoritarian dictatorship and those guys want the power for themselves. Anyways, you're full of shit. I know this because I personally served under him and literally no one had anything bad to say about him. In fact he was revered

[@danieldickson8591]

Gen. Petraeus practically states that his advice is useless to Gen. Gerasimov, because he's in no position to implement it.

[@jimcroft3633]

Why would the Russians listen an incompetent boob?

[@donswearingen9805]

I'm glad he mentioned their lack of a professional NCO corps. For any army that is a major weakness.

[@johnm7267]

Then how come they are winning? Americans are not in a position to give military advice to anyone, given their own performances in the military arena. Vietnam and Afghanistan were hardly shining examples of their military prowess. No wonder they don’t want to face Russia, they get another tough people to face them, the Ukrainians who are Slavs the same as Russians and therefore tough

[@gurlilarsen6671]

Almost nobody in Russia envisioned the option of fighting a real war. They prepared for a show of force and overcoming some token resistance. Hence the widespread corruption in the army have gutted the war fighting capabilities without anyone worrying about it.

[@bovance801]

literally Russia v Russia rn

[@hgv1947]

Under the guise of a special operation they would

[@jeffshaw7035]

the reason Russia is failing is the same reason the USSR failed - they place loyalty ahead of truth. Some in the US might pause and consider this.

[@liverpoolscottish6430]

100% on point. The hubris of Putin led him to believe that a show of force, and artillery firepower demonstrations on the Ukraine border would culminate in the Ukrainian's simply rolling over. The Russian's thought that they would simply drive in a huge convoy into Kyiv as though they were conducting a May Day parade on Red Square. They have shown themselves to be militarily inept, incapable of conducting combined arms Op's, incapable of providing adequate logistical support, with poorly trained, abysmally led troops. Their obscene KIA and wounded casualty rate is more WW2, then 21st century. Russia is nothing more than a Paper Tiger. The best description I have heard regarding Russia came from an a British MOD advisor who described Russia as, "Belgium with nuclear weapons."

[@_HMCB_]

Why give them tips on what they should have done?! Boggles my mind.

[@themaestro3034]

Because they can magically create a professional noncommissioned officer corp over night? Or because they can on a whim eliminate the deep seated corruption of the entire service? Get real: even with the advice they couldnt do a damn thing toward implementing it in the near future.

[@sunwolf8290]

@@themaestro3034 Exactly!

[@_HMCB_]

@@themaestro3034 I wasn’t born yesterday so I completely understand what you’re saying but why educate your enemy ___at all___. I get it, these guys need to hear themselves talk and media has to give you something to chew on, but members of special forces aren’t allowed to disclose tactics so why would a multi-star general feel the need to do the same?!

[@themaestro3034]

@@_HMCB_ interesting thing about authoritative, autocratic governments: they are impervious to advice. Why listen to advisers when the general underlying assumed principle of the centralized government is that the deified autocrat is omniscient.

[@hobhamwich]

Remember how many Republicans lauded Putin when this started. They want a Russian victory because Trump likes Putin.

[@fergusmallon1337]

Yeah! Let's tell them how to win the war. Just keep quiet. Never disturb your enemy while they are making a mistake.

[@franciscouderq1100]

These military should be shut up in the name of Defense.

[@laurencekelly5081]

But don't you get it these guys know that Russia is winning this proxy war they are just trying to get out in front of this with an I told you so after all their Russia is done for interviews so next money maker for these talking heads is China.

[@danieldickson8591]

Every competent media military analyst in the Western world has been saying this openly for months. It's no secret that Russian military doctrine is outdated. If the Russian brass haven't become aware of it yet, it's because they don't want to.

[@blockheadivthewise7950]

What mistake the Russians are making? They are punching holes all over along the Ukrainian lines of defense.

[@driftwood757]

It's blatantly obvious what the issue is and it's way too late for Russia to fix it man

[@AAB463]

Please stop telling the Russians what they need. I know it’s not expected but they could learn. Help the Ukrainians.

[@PeterLawton]

I agree. I generally dislike calls for secrecy, when the facts presented are already out in public. But this interview seemed almost instructional, for the benefit of Russia.

[@S0ulinth3machin3]

1) the Russians won’t listen. They had every opportunity in the 90s but after Putin assumed power they went the other way. 2) the stuff Petraeus speaks of (NCO corps, expeditionary logistics) takes years, if not decades to implement. Even if the Russians started tomorrow, it would have no impact on the course of the current conflict. He’s not giving anything away. As stated earlier, we tried. Ukraine went with it, Russia did not.

[@sumiland6445]

Not only Russians listening and watching .... China, India and other dictatorships are watching & learning.

[@everTriumph]

Why should they listen to Western dis-information. The corrupt western states are intent on weakening the divine bloodline of Ruzzian family.

[@S0ulinth3machin3]

@@sumiland6445 It's easier said than done. Like Putin could declare that the Russian system needs to be more efficient. Would anything change? I doubt it. The entire system would have to be on board. Any leader can give orders, getting people to follow the orders is a different story. The As noted in this interview, the US military changed, but it took getting our ass kicked in the Vietnam War. IMO, a any large bureaucracy has to undergo some sort of existential trauma before undergoing substantive change. Bureaucracies are inherently resistant to change. And India and China: would those militaries change without fighting a war? Until they fight a war, they won't even know what's wrong (or right).

[@darayeth]

He's brilliant but he shouldn't tell Russia how to do it.

[@g4m3r222]

they cant do it for one day, they will need years and now it is too late

[@Luke_Sandy_High_Ground]

It’s not rocket science. Saying the Russians are badly trained isn’t a 200 iq statement

[@danieldickson8591]

Frankly, none of what Petraeus said is news. It's been openly discussed for months that Russian training and command practices are outdated.

[@nevinkuser9892]

They're not going to do it anyways.

[@davidbias2509]

“After action reviews” are vitally important. We used them at my city fire department after every fire. Getting those who were involved together to review the incident to reveal both the good and bad aspects of the situation is very important.

[@johnwhitehurst474]

My entire Army Career we always did that to improve on operations, pointing out weakness and strong points. How to improve.... People are born with sand between the ears or clay, my old boot instructor used to say. While the ones with clay you can mold, Build something, but the ones with sand it runs out their ears, retains nothing, that is Russians mainly Sand. They do the same thing over and over hoping something sticks, that is how they did it in WW II, and one must remember they won all by themselves, according to them, yea all by themselves. No Innovation, independent thought, a chain that must be followed even when you know the out come from four times before. No After action review you must have done something wrong not them. LOVE stupid when they are the enemy.

[@alanshackelford6450]

Their hierarchical system, culturally and politically, does not allow for the honest communication that an AAR depends. It's not unique to them. Many western business institutions face the same problem.

[@CodepageNet]

that would result in a lot of meetings, with less and less people :-)

[@savethedeveloper]

The interviewer does well by not interrupting

[@randyboisa6367]

Served under this man 82nd Airborne504th Devils. Respect for this professional.

[@romavillamiguel9845]

Mcgregor discrediting his ideas..this guy was nobody 😂

[@bishopofsahs]

I hear he likes to serve underneath prostitutes

[@rickmoore3730]

@@romavillamiguel9845 McGregor is a Russian shill and a nobody . I agree .

[@nicke0b]

@@romavillamiguel9845 McGregor is a 🤡

[@donaldclifford5763]

@@romavillamiguel9845 McGregor is Putin's puppy.

[@Eurocub]

Always good to listen to Gen Petraeus. Russia's tight ideologically-driven mindset doesn't like the idea of an NCO corps that can and must think for themselves. Huge centralised power corrupts (who said 'Power corupts; absolute power corrupts absolutely?).

[@rick91443]

Didn't Napoleon say "never tell your enemy what he's doing wrong?????"

[@hgv1947]

I think putin should watch KZbin

[@howiescott5865]

It doesn't matter in this case because "Everything is going as planned".

[@manfredschmalbach9023]

Do not keep Your enemy from making mistakes. The question here is whether Russia's actions or Petreaus himself were the bigger mistake.

[@hgv1947]

@@manfredschmalbach9023 Petraeus isn't running the russian military putin and his cronies are one example is put the losses of soldiers and military equipment on a Nato army what would be said

[@manfredschmalbach9023]

@@hgv1947 Petraeus is the one sporting a history of spilling confidentials to mistresses as pillowtalk - it is, absolutely, a question whether that man should have a TV-platform to rate Russian moves.

[@mossydog2385]

Russia can easily turn this around. What their troops need is _discipline_ - they need to groom properly, pack their kit properly, line up properly, march properly. Once they've attained these basic skills they need to line up at the crack of dawn, properly kitted, do a smart about turn and march right back to Moscow. Everybody wins. Slava Ukraini.

[@randyearles9286]

clever.

[@rickmoore3730]

Pack their kit properly ? They don't have any kit !

[@johnvine5731]

Lining up at dawn after a night on the vodka. I can imagine what that would look like. Lol.

[@georgesheffield1580]

They need the discipline to take Putin out and establish a real democracy and kick out the oligarchs.

[@egoless4762]

Russia is winning this war and the west knows it. Make all the jokes you want but Russia will achieve their goals.

[@davesutherland1864]

They could try attacking military targets instead of waiting so much of their munitions on civilian targets. However, that does not appear to be the Russian way based on what they have done in all operations since Putin came to power. Just pummelling civilian targets only works when you are not actually fighting a real army.

[@georgesheffield1580]

They are doing the same as Hitler made his capable generals do to loose

[@RobertB56]

Absolutely Germany made the same mistake during the Battle of Britain attacking London instead of military targets,led them to losing the air war .

[@thor9563]

'General' Betray-us needs to go to Russia as their war time consultant. He's doing just that here. And he's not 'general'. He's PFC Betray-us after violating the UCMJ, betraying his men and his family by piddling around with a Major Hoe.

[@canema7334]

You literally sounded what US did in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Yemen,syria.

[@OVER9000xDxD]

No, civilians were ordered with a official statement by the President of ukraine to pick up molotovs and resist with any means possible. Secondly, in all wars civilian infrastructure is completely demolished, in all wars. Derp.

[@jdryak]

Pardon my naivete', but as an ignorant layperson, I ask why are allied generals pontificating in public about what the enemy should do to succeed? Let the Russians figure it out! Why do we advertise how many tanks and what kind of munitions we are sending the Ukrainians? Let the enemy guess! Why not just invite the commanders of the opposing side to come for a stint in our war colleges and learn what we know about the Art of Warfare, then maybe they could win? What a novel idea! The problem I see with democracies is that we cannot keep our big mouths shut! We might just as well hand over the Crown Jewels to them.

[@charlesharper2357]

Because the enemy can't do it. Their system doesn't allow for personal initiative or criticism...and they've made army life so miserable intelligent, creative people don't stick around.

[@laurencekelly5081]

Why not save time and money and send them to spend time on tactics with the Taliban or the Vietnamese they both know something about the Art of Warfare as do the Russians and the Chinese share the load share the love man. We might just as well hand over the Crown Jewels to them no no nope the new King Charles he needs them for his coronation.

[@njikangclifford8259]

The idea is simple! to make the Russians 'shake' in their boots. As if they don't know about western weapons and their capabilities and won't have figured out how to counter them. It will be extremly naive to expect the Russians to do exactly what you want them to do, which is exactly what Gen Petaeus expecting.

[@julio-iz3sk]

I don’t understand why are you guys pointing out what are the Russians doing wrong. when your enemy is making a mistake DON’T INTERRUPT HIM

[@larryo6874]

Other generals have made similar comments about Russia’s mistakes, nothing new. I seriously doubt Russian generals watch American TV for war advice.

[@Brad-gk9jd]

Why are you asking a question that can help the Russians? 🤔

[@40watt_club]

Oc you are technically right, but I doubt Russians are capable of drawing conclusions .... so we might talk freely.

[@hartleyrobinson6793]

You both indirectly advicing Russia on a cunning terms of an interviww.

[@marcoleal4432]

why would a former US general respond to this question? why would a reporter who favors the west, ask this question? oh my, the things the media and NATO military leaders share to make themselves relevant.

[@fredyyfredfreddy]

Tanks they can almost certainly make( refurbish) But it seems like they will lack some of the more advanced upgrades.

[@warrennelson4286]

Why are we telling the world what Russia should do to improve? I can't understand this.

[@donaldclifford5763]

Come on. There nothing special here to help Putin and Russia.

[@rdmgwinn]

We /Ukraine doesn't need our generals suggesting ways they can improve on. We need to help russia OUT of Ukraine. If russia takes Ukraine who will be next.

[@ROKuberski]

I agree. Let's not give helpful suggestions to the enemy!

[@danieldickson8591]

As Gen. Petraeus points out, it would take a decade or more for the Russian military to implement his advice in any meaningful way. And he didn't say anything that every competent media military analyst hasn't said openly for months. If Gerasimov hasn't heard it by now, it's because he doesn't want to.

[@Amaking10000]

Why would the Russians take advice on this general who didn't even win in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria? 🤣

[@DieFlabbergast]

@@danieldickson8591 Gerasimov knows all this already. But knowing what to do is easy; knowing HOW to do it is a different matter.

[@DieFlabbergast]

@@Amaking10000 The American military DID win in Iraq; they took out Saddam Hussein's forces easily. They also held down the Taleban in Afghanistan for years. Most of the Iraqis killed over the next decade were killed by other Iraqis. The US was MUCH more successful in Afghanistan that the Russians had been. The people who failed were the politicians in Washington. You CANNOT simply remodel an entire society, nobody could or ever has. The United States should never have attempted it in the first place. But that was a political miscalculation, not a military one.

[@andrewmvenegas]

I really wish he has just refused to offer and answer to what the Russians can do. His opinions are world class and the Russians just got so m e free consultation.

[@gerrytushh]

Dictatorships like Putin's Russia don't learn anything from youtube. They only get it at the frontline. Ukraine needs jet fighters now.

[@patwilson2546]

If I was Gerasimov I would do what Surovikin started to do. Shift to a defensive stance while training and equipping an offensive force. The problem with that is potentially losing the initiative to Ukraine and also, with sanctions in place, the prospect that reequipping might be very problematic. As it stands right now Russia is back on the attack. They are making tiny gains around Bakhmut but the cost is enormous. Anyhow, whatever Gerasimov does, I hope he fails miserably at it.

[@ScoundrelzNTwK]

They will keep on the attack as long as they can. Just go through YT comments about Bakhmut and you'll see your friendly neighbourhood Russian bot army in full force rooting them on. So as long as Russia is attacking, the population is generally with them, that is way more important that the bodies piling up. Many have said it, Russia won't even blink until they hit 500k KIA, not causality. Long ways to go, the weapons to Ukraine need to move significantly faster, this is bad for moral.

[@BigDsGaming2022]

trench warfare never moves it only twitches

[@zemog1025]

Pretty sure that Putin's wishes would trump any military logic from Gerasimov.

[@patwilson2546]

@@BigDsGaming2022 It doesn't move until it does. Then it can move in a big way. Right now neither side has the ability to break through. The Ukrainians lack the equipment and the Russians lack properly trained soldiers and logistics.

[@BigDsGaming2022]

@@patwilson2546 spot on correct and a thumbs up !

[@johndunn9819]

I know divulging these trade secrets are real ratings getters but, does it ever seem like we should keep our successful military techniques from our enemies?

[@rupert5390]

Not when there is utube clicks toget - most American ex generals are media prostitutes

[@johnm7267]

What military techniques are they? America is in no position to offer advice about anything. Have you seen the state of America lately. Let me enlighten all you hubristic Americans. In the OECD list of the best countries to live in, America comes in at 10th. On the list of the best educated countries it comes halfway down the list. 70 million people are without health care, 60% have no money and are drowning in debt, tens of thousands live on the streets, the worst drug problem in the world, fifty thousand died of prescription drugs last year, over a million died of covid, a brutal and corrupt police force, a corrupt judiciary and government, crumbling infrastructure ( 46,000 bridges in urgent need of repair), children shot in school, crime out of control. Yet you have the nerve to take the moral high ground and criticise others.

[@johndunn9819]

@@johnm7267 Murika's got problems for sure. Gifts to Putin won't help matters in any way.

[@rupert5390]

@@johnm7267 Wow John you’ve got the shits up with America, where do you live?

[@marlenfras5490]

Good reporting. I hope Russia is not listening. Go Ukraine.

[@marcwhite6267]

They're listening; listening and watching in horror and dismay. Especially the-soon-to-be-mobilized cannon fodder. Imagine how many won't be there to see 2024 arrive.

[@johnnytampocao7671]

That's what I'm saying in my comment, Russian Commanders will learn something from the American General.😀

[@ralphcananzi2011]

no sh t

[@hmmcinerney]

They’re not listening, metaphorically speaking. Also there’s too many opulent palaces built from the army budget.

[@marlenfras5490]

@@hmmcinerney I think you will find that the palaces belonge to the Tsar Nicholas. They shoot the Tsar's family but their opulence they live in. It is quite bizarre.

[@glengarbera7367]

It's hard to do anything let alone run a war when everyone is drunk 18 hours a day.

[@ZDiddy7777]

Better than them all being strung out on krokodil

[@mbak7801]

Quite a few are going blind as well. Vodka or meths the average Russian does not know the difference. Tens of thousands blind will help their economy no end.

[@erb34]

Why give advice to them?

[@donaldclifford5763]

It's not advice so much as criticism.

[@Rnankn]

Can they provide any convincing explanation for what they are doing in another nations territory? Can they justify their tactics? Can they secure the consent of their people for committing violence in their name? Can they recognize having participated in an illegitimate war? Can they stage a coup and restore their own dignity by serving the citizens and facilitating the installation of a democratic government? Can they apologize to their victims? Can they go home and recount to their families what they have done? Can they demonstrate the honour to admit defeat?

[@edwardfletcher7790]

Autonomous command just isn't part of the Russian cultural system. This is a really good thing, because it means they'll continue to lose and lose badly 👍 Luckily they're also incapable of taking or implementing advice. #SlavaUkraini 💙💛

[@neddyladdy]

Nor was it in other militaries until relatively recently.

[@williamdillon4520]

Lol propagandists

[@edwardfletcher7790]

@@williamdillon4520 Ahhh Putin apologists..

[@edwardfletcher7790]

@@neddyladdy Prof Peter Campbell has a really great paper about this subject. Highly recommended 👍

[@OVER9000xDxD]

@@edwardfletcher7790 Apologists XD. First of all, The soviet union accounted for approx 80% of all german wehrmacht deaths, secondly the soviet union sacrificed 9 million military casualties to push the eastern front and capture Berlin. They did liberate multiple concentration camps. They did not liberate their own (in the soviet union), nor did the US liberate their own (US reservations after genocide & stealing land through discovery doctrine) so they are practically equitable in their standing morally. Also the US atomically bombed japan over a conventional attack on a military installation, but its obvious it was un-proportional only because the US waited too long to enter WW2, and was faced with japan invasion and dealing with europe, or just atomic bombing japan which made the pacific campaign substantially weaker then the front the soviets were on which was substantially more reinforced then the likes of normandy. Putin is irrelevant. The US fabricated WMDs in Iraq through Rafid Ahmed Alwan Al-janabi, and exile baghdad university dropout granted asylum in Germany for his lies. Disgusting petrarus the semite can get up here and speak publicly without being laughed out of the room. He is a clown. Literally oversaw illegal invasion and actively participated in protecting Saudi Arabia, where 15 of the 19 hijackers came from, where bin laden was from, where ISIS/Al Qaeda wahhabi/salafi ideology comes from, where all global jihadists export from, where there is a sharia law islamic state government royal family recognized by the US/West, where all oil sales in opec require buying USD first, where bin ladens father has a patent on all mosques built in the arab peninsula. The bush administration demanded bin laden be turned over by the taliban, osama was Al Qaeda not taliban, and he was not in custody. The taliban agreed initially but mullah omar intervened and stated bin laden was protected under muslim law of hospitality, and that the taliban would require proof he was responsible before he can be turned over to the US. The Bush administration stated it did not need to provide proof for a extradition (LOL?), and started an air campaign against talib ground targets. The taliban offered a second time to capture and turn bin laden over to a 3rd party with proof he was responsible, the bush administration declined and invaded. We don't need to deal with the source of the war on terror. na, lets invade talibs and cry about their human rights not letting girls go to school, LOL, and pretend this baghdad uni dropout guy is legit wmd expert. Guy drove taxi in iraq, LOL. Sick intel agencies, either incompetent or intentionally allowed it to happen. Whatever though, keep pretending they can't be brought to justice because they are US govt. They can be easily. I've seen every admin since start of GWOT intentionally false flag and protect saudi 9/11 hijacker country. Sad sapiens.

[@-BuddyGuy]

"Always interrupt your enemy when he's eating a sandwich" - Doink The Clown

[@erpollock]

An autocracy cannot overcome its lack of creative initiative. The rules of autocracy prevent top officers from doing anything new or unprecedented in Russia. Democracy wins, autocracy suffers from an internal disability. Petraeus is the best speaker on military strategy that we have. He makes total sense. And he has the advantage of working within a democratic culture which encourages independent thinking.

[@juanroberts]

Only idiots help an enemy.

[@medicinalplantskian1937]

Soldiers with no real goal and motivation can not win ANY battle.

[@johnshepherd4757]

So the US reorganised for Vietnam. That worked out well...

[@DieFlabbergast]

Militarily, it did work out well. But no country, however militarily powerful, can hold down an entire country indefinitely, unless they are prepared to commit genocide. America withdrew from Vietnam because there was no longer the political will to continue in the face of mass protests from young people.

[@guaybique4210]

Claiming a region could be not too tasking , holding on to it is way much on another level of difficulty

[@kibbyken5975]

The, and I don't want to incorrectly express this, but I think the major problem is that, by design, the induvial "premilitary" elements in the Russian society it, by defined, designed to fight against each other. The "traffic police" is different than the "physical" police, which is different than the Milicia and also the Military.

[@drobinbarker]

A huge problem facing Putin is the immense systematic morale problem most of Russia’s Military Personnel suffer because of the abusive ‘payroll distribution’ practices. All monies go directly to a unit’s Commander, who in too many cases corruptly withholds or outright steals it!!

[@nostradam96]

Well, I've found a stupid thing to laugh at. 😆The guy thinks that bundles of paper money of soldiers' salaries are brought directly to the front. And the commander takes most of it for himself, but tells the soldiers that there is nothing else. Great!🤗 Probably, the dude does not know that there are payments through bank cards in the world. And in Russia, without exception, all people, military and civilian, receive wages by transfer to a bank card. Moreover, the salary of soldiers fighting in Ukraine is several times higher than the average salary in Russia.

[@stephenhill545]

This happened in the Afghan army, and look what happened to them.

[@stephenhill545]

@@nostradam96 it is common in Russia to be paid in cash.

[@nostradam96]

@@stephenhill545 It's good. This is very correct. An arrogant opponent who looks into a crooked mirror is a significant part of our victory.

[@AstridinGeorgia]

It sounds great that Russia's military has a mess on their hands with very little chance of fixing it. I hope it continues.

[@operator9858]

It sounds great but its utter fantasy. We're the ones who are falling apart. And in spades...

[@AstridinGeorgia]

@@operator9858 LOL Not even a bot believes that.

[@tomstarcevich1147]

They will get it fixed

[@operator9858]

@@AstridinGeorgia oh ya? So whens the taliban going to be defeated and hows that search for saddams wmds coming along? You are talking crazy...

[@AstridinGeorgia]

@@operator9858 And still, the Russian military is a mess and will remain a mess.

[@robt3078]

Where can i get Russian subtitles? Asking for a ”friend”..

[@ataxpayer723]

I'm amazed. David didn't mention Leo Pards once!

[@jonathanhill5926]

Shouldn’t really be saying what opponents to be doing better ! 😮

[@customsmithmfg4377]

Nice.. just let them know what they kneed to do. GRRRR.. we know they stink at this and let them... do not give them any foot hold of ideas.....

[@HG-zm2dx]

Wars are not won by goose steps march. They’re won by never ending training, tenacity, willingness to fight and motivation to win. Same with China, they’ll win the goose steps march but will lose in the battlefield.

[@burtonlee22]

Why are US media and ex-US generals giving the Russian military advice on how to defeat Ukraine?? ARE YOU GUYS NUTS??

[@mrderp1292]

Petraeus should be an expert on "military shortcomings". He got his ass handed to him by a bunch of tribesmen in flip flops using 60 year old AK's.

[@clarabartha1737]

We are lucky that they were so bereft of skill and will, it's the number one reason 'we' will 'win' the war. Again, we are lucky, it could have been a different world right now and a whole lot bloodier, if you can imagine that.

[@phaniharamchary5522]

Grate talk but why not advise govts to explore other options before war turns dirty as they know dynamics better than politicians

[@PeterLawton]

Have you heard of Bucha? Did you hear that's all over Russian occupied territory? I don't know how you could mean "turns dirty". It already is dirty -- the war crimes investigators have already been gathering evidence for quite some time.

[@lizannewhitlow1085]

Lordy, these two speakers. ✊🏻✊🏻

[@bobleenko512]

History will indicate that Gen Petraeus is one of the greatest generals ever. His work in the middle east was incredible. His willingness to listen and be flexible/change when needed, based on troop input, were remarkable and quite frankly, in the middle east, largely untested. Hats off to this man. Thank you for your service and expertise General. The world is a safer place as a result of your work, along with thousands of men and women.

[@richardfeibel3154]

WHERE DID YOU GET YOUR INFO?? FROM CNN FOX ABC NBC CBS MOST LIKELY!!!!! DUMMY!!!!!

[@bobleenko512]

@@richardfeibel3154 was there Rich. Open anus, insert head ?

[@broyout3586]

Well played lol

[@OVER9000xDxD]

troop input, lmao. Eric shinseki said it required several hundred thousand troops to occupy iraq before the invasion even started. rumsfeld and wolfowitz disagreed. /watch?v=Ga5CcwMHKBI&t=25m18s Its almost like if rumsfeld wasnt so incompetent they wouldn't have had half the issues they had. You should watch that documentary as it displays multiple failures at the administration level, and includes statements and interviews of general jay garner, col paul hughes etc. Also, the world is safer? Lmao the power vacuum created by removing saddam resulted in ISIS/ISIL/Al-nusra insurgency in neighboring syria that resulted in a large part of eastern syria and western iraq to be controlled by the islamic state. The CIA under operation timber sycamore funded islamic extremists agian in 2013, as with operation cyclone during the 80s. They did not anticipate the forces crossing back into Iraq after failing to overthrow President Assad of syria. The Iraq invasion was based on WMDs that were fabricated by Rafid Ahmed Alwan Al-janabi, a baghdad university dropout. Your IQ is either room temperature or you are severely demoralized and indoctrinated.

[@bobleenko512]

@@OVER9000xDxD and it continues literally to this day. Always will. Are you safer in the U S now ? Serve bro

[@joem0088]

For a military wich fought the Taliban for 20y just to give the country back to them, should it reflect on its military shortcomings rather than Russia's. The latter after all has taken 20% of Ukraine so far.

[@DieFlabbergast]

The US forces didn't "fight" the Taliban; they held them down, and very successfully, too. There were no military shortcomings, only political ones. The US military are professionals, their politicians are bumbling idiots, particularly the current president. As for Russia's "success," any idiot can take 20% of the country NEXT DOOR, especially when they have a population almost four times the size. If you look at a globe, you'll see that Afghanistan is on the other side of the Earth from the United States. Germany took over almost the whole of Europe in WWII, and look how that ended. It's not taking some land that matters, it's KEEPING it.

[@joem0088]

@@DieFlabbergast On you last point. Russia has taken and kept 17m sq-km. Napoleon and H1tler couldn't take it from them. That was a long enough keep for you? The Brits peed under every tree and kept nothing. Now they are going to lose Scotland too. By that standard, the Ruskies did well, no ?

[@jshepard152]

The military didn't give it back. The US military is under civilian control. Doh!

[@danielbecker4365]

what? we only spent a couple trillion bucks there.

[@owengreene382]

Dease question should not be asked of an American retired General, with vast experience of taking part in foreign wars. Its just not done over the earwaves.

[@williamstack2063]

I was doing route clearance patrols for him In Iraq! Sappers forward !

[@williamnolan9979]

Seems Russia has no idea or ability to win

[@jg5875]

I know it’s bad to hear generals giving Russia guidance….but what they are saying has been public knowledge for many years.

[@destroyingangel14]

Oh thank yoooo...big Commander....I believe every word ......!

[@mbak7801]

Exactly, you might learn something but I am 100% certain you will not.

[@thedustyhead]

What advice could you give to help the Russians ?! Are you soliciting advice to help Russia now ? A lot of things I would like to talk to General Petraeus about , how to help Russia isn't one .

[@thinkerly1]

Don't worry. The major issues -- top-down command structure, lack of a noncom intermediary, train-based logistics, lack of microprocessor productions -- cannot be solved in years. The Russians face decades of military reform. And, given the level of corruption and the collapse of their economy, this will never happen. The Russians are screwed.

[@WeeWeeJumbo]

Amateurs really shouldn’t try to check experts, exhibit seventy nine grillion

[@islflamingo]

I agree what a dumb thing to ask.

[@thor9563]

@@thinkerly1 Still does not excuse the traitorous behavior of PFC Betray-us.

[@gm1937]

This guy is brilliant

[@seekthetruth6713]

Why. Because he wants to make war? That is not intelligent.

[@canalcreations]

Shhhhhh ffs...why tell the enemy what they need to do to sort their shxt out? Theyre obviously taking notes. This isnt a video game.

[@williamwells1862]

The Civll War what a great example.

[@johnnytampocao7671]

Why discuss this topic? If Gerasimov watch this video he will learn something to the disadvantage of Ukraine. The host should bring questions that won't jeopardize the UAF tactics In this war. This episode will aid Russian Commanders how to better engage in a war with Ukraine.

[@saucyinnit8799]

Surovikin can slap some facts and the situation in Ukraine into Gerasimov easily.

[@Sun-Tzu--]

Ukrainian soldiers only need to learn to duck.

[@johnvine5731]

Knowing how to build a house is one thing. Building the house is another story.

[@Victor-ov7hw]

Really? Hahaha are you some kind of clown?

[@jdunn501]

These general points of criticism of and for improving the Russian army have been widely discussed since the war began. The Russians have heard it all before. The real question is: Why haven’t they implemented these recommendations? As others have commented, maybe having a professional NCO corps and junior office cadre that acts independently will begin to “think” independently of the Kremlin too.

[@leewilkinson8609]

The more territory Russia takes, the more it's losing..Am I missing something here?

[@johnny_eth]

Do you understand the concept of trading land for loses ? That they are getting a lot of their solders dead and hardware destroyed ?

[@mbak7801]

If you lose 2% of your Army every kilometre you advance then Ukraine being 1316Km wide everyone will be dead/injured before you advance 4% of the width. The countryside is littered with Russian dead, they are even burning bodies on Rubbish tips just to try and hide them. The numbers are truly shocking and completely under reported.

[@mrunstoppable6711]

@@johnny_eth Russia hasn’t taken many loses. Ukraine is the one who’s taken over 150 thousand casualties. Stop listening to propaganda. Russia is destroying the NATO trained Ukraine military. Petraeus is a propagandist. He spent 20 years saying we were winning in Afghanistan. How did that go?

[@AIJohnsen]

The last thing you do is to tell your enemy what they need to do in order to defeat you!

[@user-gl9iz1bp1r]

The Empire (U.S./Brits/NATO/City of London/Davos) never wanted a Germany/Russia partnership that Nord Stream 2 would have provided. Germany (industrial power) & Russia (resource/energy power) together - not good for the Empire.

[@grahambates2681]

Agree with most of what he said apart from Ukraine winning the war. Biden stated how Ukraine was winning at every turn,citing some key cities taken by Ukraine but intentionally omniting others (like mariopol) , but how can that be when they have lost 15% of their country to Russia and are retreating in the Donbass area and not advancing anywhere along the 2500km front ?

[@DieFlabbergast]

Nobody ever defines what "winning the war" means.

[@edwardfletcher7790]

The Ukrainian people are proving to be Europe's premier badasses 👍 #SlavaUkraini 💙💛

[@louislemire6691]

200,000+ dead, 30% of their country lost. Real badasses aren't they?

[@edwardfletcher7790]

@@louislemire6691 What a childish comment, do you expect them to not defend themselves when invaded ?

[@RaysDad]

This interview was a political statement rather than a military analysis.

[@PetrusMaximus848]

In the second World - War , was the Brother of my Grandfather Fight Pilot of the German Air Strike , He said that the front Russian infantry soldiers had rifles and those from the fourth row only had ammunition in their pockets. If the foremost fell, those closest would pick up their weapons and charge on. He saw that clearly in low flight. This explains the unbelievable loss of a total of 11 million Russian soldiers, which is not due to necessity but to false ambition on the part of the Russian military leadership.

[@tekannon7803]

In all due respect to David, who is an excellent novelist, asking General Petraeus (Ret.) about what Russia should be doing under Gerasimov to beef up the Russian side is preposterous because any way General Plateaus could say how the Russians could get better is heresy when the Ukraine needs every break it can get to win the war. They will be listening to General Petraeus' every criticism.

[@martywanlass4774]

General Petraeus knows that, and his remarks are for the benefit of Russia. (to lead them down the wrong path.)

[@michaelsaint9181]

@@martywanlass4774 US success in Afghanistan against goat herders = 20 years & run away leaving billions of dollars in equipment.

[@fredtorres1703]

Ret. Gen. Petraeus should be given his own show!!!! ASAP

[@gmw3083]

A clown show

[@bishopofsahs]

How I got caught with a prostitute that’s the title. And how I gave away US secrets when I was sleeping with a prostitute that’s the plot!

[@blackadder3570]

And yet for all their shortcomings, the Russians are moving forward, strange that isn't it??

[@kimpowers4590]

General, Patraeus. Everyone keeps saying the Russians don’t have this and they don’t have that but they keep gaining ground. You seem to say that the Ukrainians have the largest military force but they seem to be spread too thin especially in Bakhmut. The Russians seem to have more troops with the waves of soldiers they keep sending.. please explain

[@Andre_XX]

Don't tell the Russians how to improve their military.

[@BigDsGaming2022]

they know what he is saying but they do not have the resources to make it happen their technology is trash

[@donaldclifford5763]

Best thing for Russia, get out of Ukraine, get some western made systems, join NATO, and defend against Muslims and China.

[@DennisMerwood-xk8wp]

How can you tell if Betrayus is lying? His lips are moving!

[@clutteredchicagogarage2720]

Nonsense. I don’t believe that those Russian troops in Belarus did no training before the full scale invasion on Feb 24, 2022. I think a squad of Russian soldiers could easily engage in combined maneuvers to down an entire case of vodka bottles much faster than any comparably-sized squad from the US Army or Marines. Such proficiency requires training.

[@moonmunster]

Shhhhhhhh......don't tell the Russians. Let them figure out for themselves.

[@abyrahman6610]

Is this the guy who was tellling us the war in Afghanistan was going well for 20 years?? LMAO

[@abyrahman6610]

@@UnCannyValley67 in fact, he's just one in a long line of US Generals who testified before Congress that the war was going well... LMAO

[@juliatodhunter6454]

Any U.S. General who would give advice to Russian military on KZbin should be punished. Why would any serious journalist ask that question?

[@IAm-NotHear]

Notice that the advice he gave was only useful in a historical sense. "The Russians should have done xyz"

[@Victor-ov7hw]

You think the Russian need advice from petraus you must be very dumb. They know well what they did wrong

[@barbarakauppi9915]

No kidding! The entire conversation is bloody obscene: "How to help brutal dictators to invade other countries more efficiently", a shameful legacy for a once respectable US General and a major media outlet. Unbelievable..

[@OVER9000xDxD]

@@IAm-NotHear I do that all the time, make me general? The US shouldn't have invaded iraq over fabricated WMDs by informant curveball Rafid Ahmed Alwan Al-janabi. The US military shouldn't have conducted war games on 9/11, since that was the day the attack happened. The US shouldn't have invaded afghanistan talibs funded by CIA operation cyclone to oppose soviet union occupation of afghanistan if they were not going to invade saudi arabia where bin laden, 15 hijackers, and the ISIS/Al Qaeda ideology is espoused from. Being general hindsight is fun, I might need 10 stars bud. scratch that, 50 stars. war on mirrors hue hue hue. never going to defeat terrorism without going door to door in the arab peninsula.

[@juliatodhunter6454]

@@IAm-NotHear Yes, I noticed, and I carefully listened to his response. My question was why a journalist would ask a general for advice for Russia. It seems to me the answer should be “I’m not going to do that” - but then the interview would be short, we would have our time back, and other inept journalists wouldn’t bother asking dumb questions, which would mean less attention for Petraeus. Perhaps he was trying to be polite 🤷‍♀️

[@eraseme747]

Why giving Putin these tips?

[@donaldclifford5763]

Nothing he hasn't heard before.

[@hoosierdaddy2308]

When I was in the Army back in the late 70's we trained against targets that looked like Russians. Popups. In the woods in basic there would be a sign that said "The threat " and it would show a pic of an east German or Russian soldier. They were never trained well..

[@jeffperteet2327]

It's difficult for me to buy Petraeus's take on combat, after we allowed Iran to fuel the insurgency for 3 years in Iraq and wouldn't touch them.

[@michaelsaint9181]

US success in Afghanistan against goat herders = 20 years & run away leaving billions of dollars in equipment.

[@randyboisa6367]

Don't blame the General, blame the gutless Obama administration. From 82nd Airborne 504th "Devils"

[@JK-br1mu]

That's because you don't understand much about Iraq, and don't know Petraeus wasn't in charge the first few years. He was a lower ranking general who worked his way up.......the generals who were in charge 2003-06, and more importantly Bush-Cheney, didn't want to fight Iran while they had their hands full in Iraq..............Petraeus brought us ultimate victory in Iraq after the Surge in late 2007-08, with more troops permanently based in hot spots and Sunnis helping us fight Al Qaeda in Iraq.

[@paulgibbon5991]

@@michaelsaint9181 How did Russia fare in Afghanistan again? Just remind the audience.

[@TheMichaelBeck]

From an American Army veteran, Slava Ukraini!

[@cityatlant1238]

Is it such a good idea to talk about Putin's military problems so openly? To show what needs to be done so he can do much better on the battle field? (Unless you are saying the opposite so that they can screw up even more! )

[@HG-zm2dx]

Gerasimov just make the right decision; get rid of Putin and tell his military to go home and leave Ukraine alone.

[@justayoutuber1906]

Russia appreciates us giving them free advice on how to win. STOP IT!

[@Kevin-hy8ok]

Don’t worry. There’s too much arrogance and incompetence in the Russian leadership to learn from their mistakes.

[@thor9563]

Exactly! PFC Betray-us needs to be given a dishonorable discharge and thrown into the brig.

[@duncansmith7562]

probably Russia needs more diversity and inclusion courses for their military, oh and a recruitment program that admits high school drop outs US style, that would help.

[@garyeuscher4499]

Cry because pouty poopy man heard something on Fox he didn’t like. Cry now!

[@paulgibbon5991]

I'm not sure if you're joking, but cutting down on the culture of abuse and hazing, as well as expanding their recruitment criteria, probably would legitimately help.

[@duncansmith7562]

@@paulgibbon5991 if expanding recruitment criteria = employing morons then that would indeed be a help....to Russia

[@paulgibbon5991]

@@broyout3586 Bigot reported.

[@broyout3586]

@@paulgibbon5991 Whom are you reporting Betrayus to, the American people?

[@mikestevens5837]

No American shortcomings in Afghanistan after 20years then.....

[@IHScoutII]

¡Viva Ukrania!🇺🇦🇺🇲🇪🇺

[@keysersoze1855]

Petraeus clearly hasn't been speaking to the Western "Volunteers" on the front near Bakhmut, they paint a very different picture, but then again, Petraeus wasn't head of the CIA for nothing

[@JK-br1mu]

I hope this made sense to you.

[@bishopofsahs]

Till you got a call with a prostitute

[@keysersoze1855]

@@JK-br1mu yeah it did

[@broyout3586]

You mean the "we lie, we cheat and we steal" organisation? It surely looks like a good fit.

[@davidsellars3851]

Why do you give Russia suggestions? I am surprised!

[@sammearns428]

In the real world. Ukraine is not going to get the tanks and men it needs quick enough and Russia have doubled the amount of men in the war. They have another 170k just waiting, and still being trained up from November. Ukraine is stretched on all fronts... They're holding on and reinforcing in Ugledar, but everywhere else, it's just a matter of time.

[@buixote]

Can we really take seriously a guy who shares classified documents with his Mistress? I prefer Scott Ritter, or Douglas Macgregor.

[@WeeWeeJumbo]

Scott Ritter, the convicted pedophile? You take pedos seriously? Well we know not to take you seriously so thanks for the info

[@donaldclifford5763]

You're sick!

[@louislemire6691]

@@donaldclifford5763 Convincing argument Donald. You want to explain yourself or just leave it that you're an airhead.

[@donaldclifford5763]

@@louislemire6691 First get help. Until then, I won't waste my time.

[@laurencekelly5081]

Yea your sick you just want the truth huh.

[@louistan7560]

A discredited former three star general.

[@rmw3957]

Hardly.

[@DieFlabbergast]

@@rmw3957 "Hardly" -- Translation to real English for the ironically challenged: "Not even close."

[@liberTvalance]

Bookmarked for this summer.

[@cemhami8929]

I can neither believe my eyes nor my ears that a US retired general is teaching what to do! Is this real? Am I dreaming?

[@petermclelland278]

If it isn't wife betrayus ? He's got integrity hasn't he ? Must listen to him !

[@dac545j]

Hmm, the force isn't strong with this one.

[@stephen2975]

Considering Russia is fighting so many countries they are not doing badly. I don't think any of the Western allies would have done as well. The UK would have run out of admonition after the first week!

[@michaelsaint9181]

@@wyyrdojim LATEST NEWS:.....General "Woke" Milley is assembling, & sending in a "Special Op Tranny Force" to reek havoc on the Bachdor area of Ukraine.

[@stickyrice9499]

Actually they are doing very well there is no wonder at all if Ukraine will be land lock country .

[@gmw3083]

Ukraine is being dismantled by Russia and will be rebuilt according to Russian blueprints

[@BjorckBengt]

If any western country had started with the same resources as russia, their fighting power would be 3-4 times what we see here, just due to NATO discipline, tactics and strategy. They are also too focused on inflicting pain on the civilians. Russians will be hated forever and it doesn't bring any military victories. Russia has lost 80-90% of all their available tanks while fighting a country 1/3rd their size.

[@cemyurdakul1128]

@@BjorckBengt Their airforce and intelligence seems really bad... Their tactics and strategy also sucks... but I don't believe Russia lost 80% of their tanks...