Of course, when they are part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization created to oppose world domination plans by USraeli, maybe they don't need a bigger army.
Related: Blessed Are the Peace-Makers
The Globalist Gambit
"Moscow commits to leaner military; Arms upgrades would be saved" by Philip P. Pan, Washington Post | March 18, 2009
MOSCOW - President Dmitry Medvedev vowed yesterday to press ahead with an ambitious overhaul of Russia's armed forces despite the nation's economic problems and vocal opposition from within the military. Medvedev promised weapons upgrades but also endorsed organizational changes that will cut the officer corps by more than half, or as many as 200,000 positions.
The plan, first disclosed in October, envisions the most dramatic transformation of the Russian military since World War II, abandoning a structure designed to mobilize large numbers of new troops to fight a major war and replacing it with a leaner, standing army that can respond more quickly to local conflicts. Thousands of combat units staffed now only with officers would be eliminated, and the military's four-level command structure would be trimmed to a three-tier hierarchy.
The plan has run into stiff resistance from officers worried about cuts as well as retired generals and opposition politicians who say it will leave Russia too weak to prevail in a war against a strong opponent such as NATO or China. Russia's most severe economic crisis in a decade has also exacerbated concerns about the welfare of demobilized officers and the government's ability to equip the smaller military with new weapons as promised.
But in a meeting with the Defense Ministry's top staff, Medvedev said Russia needed to push ahead with the changes because "serious potential for conflict remains in many regions." He cited the threat of terrorism and local crises such as the war with Georgia in August, as well as "attempts to expand the military infrastructure of NATO near Russia's borders."
"All this requires a qualitative modernization of our armed forces," he said. "We now have all the necessary conditions for this despite the current financial difficulties."
By mentioning NATO, Medvedev seemed to be trying to answer critics who say the plan represents a downscaling of Russian military ambitions because it focuses on regional conflicts and gives up on trying to maintain an army capable of winning a war against the West.
But Alexander Golts, a Russian military analyst who has written a book about failed efforts to revamp the armed forces, said the facts of the plan undermine the Kremlin's rhetoric about the threat posed by NATO. "If you really believed in the possibility of military confrontation with NATO and the United States, you can't move to an armed forces of this kind," he said....
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