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The Information War
Surprisingly, and contrary to the popular narrative, Russia is actually doing quite well
A war comprises far more than the physical battlespace, and consequently must be fought across all relevant domains. To ignore any aspect of the total battlespace is to court defeat, as the adversary can outflank you on whatever side you leave exposed.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has predictably involved a certain number of technical assaults (cyber attacks) not only on Ukrainian infrastructure but also on a wide variety of Western targets, presumably to serve both as a distraction and as a warning. Russia has, of course, poured significant quantities of personnel and materiel into the fight and has in consequence killed thousands of Ukrainians, reduced a huge proportion of the country to rubble, and now occupies around 22% of the country by area.
Less adeptly, Russia has notably failed to use the leverage provided by its hydrocarbons because it has discovered that although cutting Europe off from gas supplies would impose significant costs on the West it would also dramatically reduce the hundreds of millions of dollars per day from Europe that flow into the Russia’s coffers and thus directly fund the invasion.
