The Failed Logistics of Russia's Invasion of Ukraine

Please keep in mind that this comments section is very likely to have disinformation actors/trolls due to the nature of this conflict. It's likely not representative of actual opinions.

“Infantry wins battles, logistics wins wars” All hail Lord General Amazon

They aren’t sanctions. They’re special economic operations.

The logistics "push" approach is a holdover from the Soviet-era doctrine of planning everything centrally. Civilian supplies were planned five years at a time, so the military was positively speedy in comparison

Or to put it into words of a NATO analyst: Russian military is designed to defend the country. And so relying for example on its rail network makes sense. But it's not good for offensive actions. The US military is the opposite: It's built to attack other countries, no matter where on the planet. And they have the experience to do so. It's also quite logical from an historical point of view how their militaries developed during the last centuries. I wouldn't say that very western country would be better with logistics, it's also a matter of experience and they're pretty dependend on each others (just think about the retreat from Afghanistan - hardly a logistical masterpiece). Of course there are also other factors, like stricter hierarchy within the Russian military, different approach to morale and training. So it's not a good military for invading other countries and having to fight there for a long time. And when intelligence fails and the leaders think it'll be just a short trip without resistence failure is imminent. Invading Russia on the other side might be hard for any attacker. Maybe they should've sticked to defense...

Wendover is clearly trying to villainize trains in order to forward his pro-airplane agenda

When there's logistics and supply chain involved, you know this is the go-to channel!

First rule of attacking another country: Never assume the best case. Shit will go wrong. Enemy troops will fight harder than expected. Expect and plan for the worst case. If the worst case does not occur, you can be happily surprised!

"Infantry wins battles, Logistics wins wars" -John Perishing

It is extremely important to remember that while the russian military leaders expected a quick war, their soldiers expected the population to welcome them with open arms to defeat the nazis in control.

Logistics is also where the Germans failed during WW2. They got stuck in Russia during the winter with no fuel, no ammunition, no food, and no winter clothes.

I remember studying WW2 at school. WW2 in Europe was won by a combination of materiel & logistics support into Europe, and Russian ability to move their forces within the borders of Russia - coupled with the harsh winter in Eastern Europe plains (Ukraine & Western Russia). It seems nothing has changed. US can ship its materiel very effectively globally (good for empire building) Russia is focused within its borders. (Good for defense of 'motherland')

When Amazon has better logistics than the Russian military

This is better produced than half the docs I've seen on any war, let alone one that's currently going on.

Excellent summary! “Amateurs think tactics, professionals think logistics.” Thank-you for pulling together all these bits of information.

There is a supposed story from WW2 where an Axis soldiers and his buddies captured a shipment of US supplies, and found it contained various baked goods, shipped from the US in a short time and still fresh. And the soldier said he realized that if the US had the logistic resources to rush ship cup cakes and pies to their troops, while his side struggled to even supply ammo or fuel without huge delays…..that their side was doomed.

And now Russia abandoned all position North and Northeast of Kiev in something that can only described as "humiliating retreat"

An important video that masterfully breaks down two complex topics to the masses: 1) the importance of logistics 2) the stupidity of filming vertically

This is how Finland held back Russian forces for months in the 2nd world war. Finns didn't even have proper anti-tank weapons. They didn't have any tanks or armored vehicles that would have been relevant. They ran up to the tanks with satchel charges, rammed logs into the tracks, and came up with the Molotov's cocktail. But the main reason why the USSR forces were held back for so long, was their logistics failing. The soldiers were hungry, demoralized, and freezing in the Finnish winter. Finnish guerilla fighters were striking their supply trucks, which often traveled unprotected. The soviet war machine was heavily reliant on roads, so Finns mined the roads and set up ambushes, while the Finnish forces mainly used skis and horses for logistics near the front lines.

Awesome video very well done making the complex subject of military logistics simple. Great Job Guys!