The Military History of the Soviet Union pp 221-235 | Cite as
The Cold War on the Ground, 1945–1981
Abstract
As the twenty-first century begins, yet another Russian politician stakes his political future on the success of the nations armed forces in a struggle against a non-Russian foe. As it searches to define its new role nationally and internationally, the Russian military faces an expanding NATO and a resumption of the war in Chechnya with a nearly non-existent budget and gready reduced force levels. Once the most feared and respected Cold War military machine, the Russian Army today is hard-pressed to reclaim a small fragment of its former empire. It also faces the prospect of watching impotently as NATO follows the 1997 absorption of the Soviet Unions former cordon sanitaire in Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic with the inclusion of the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. The status of the Soviet Army during the Cold War, particularly in East-Central Europe, as a pillar of the USSR’s political regime, economic system, and foreign policy is difficult to perceive in todays walking shadow.
Keywords
Foreign Policy Military Spending General Staff Soviet Economy Military ElitePreview
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Sources and Recommended Readings
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