This thesis contends that the current attempts by the Russian Federation to assert its influence in the Western Pacific region through naval power are destined to fail. President Vladimir Putin appears determined to make the Russian Federation a prominent actor in the region through the assertion of Russian naval power, and by forming an alliance of convenience with the PRC to minimize U.S. influence in the region. Four reasons provide an explanation for what will be Moscow's ultimate failure to influence events in the Western Pacific region. First, historically Russia has proven unable to sustain a naval build-up. Second, Russia's major interests lie in the Europe. Third, the Russian Federation has limited common interests with the countries of the Western Pacific region beyond residual anti-Americanism. Finally, arms sales provide only short-term leverage in the projection of international influence.

This thesis contends that the current attempts by the Russian Federation to assert its influence in the Western Pacific region through naval power are destined to fail. President Vladimir Putin appears determined to make the Russian Federation a prominent actor in the region through the assertion of Russian naval power, and by forming an alliance of convenience with the PRC to minimize U.S. influence in the region. Four reasons provide an explanation for what will be Moscow's ultimate failure to influence events in the Western Pacific region. First, historically Russia has proven unable to sustain a naval build-up. Second, Russia's major interests lie in the Europe. Third, the russian Federation has limited common interests with the countries of the Western Pacific region beyond residual anti-Americanism. Finally, arms sales provide only short-term leverage in the projection of international influence.

For the first two decades after the Cold War, Russian naval power hardly featured in the Euro-Atlantic community’s strategic thinking. This began to change in the mid-2010s, as the idea that the Russian navy poses a threat to NATO began to gain ground. That threat took shockingly real form in February 2022, when Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine. The sea in Russian strategy is the first sustained examination of Russian maritime power in the period since the fall of the Soviet Union. It brings together leading specialists from public policy and academia to reflect on historical and contemporary aspects of Russia's naval strategy and capacities. At a time of mounting tensions, which some observers have named the ‘Fourth Battle of the Atlantic’, the book offers an informed and nuanced discussion, taking into account the view from Moscow and how this differs from western perspectives. It sketches a trajectory of Russia’s power at sea and reflects on current capabilities and problems, as well as Moscow’s strategic planning for the future.

Russia's maritime development focuses on support of land forces and protection of its coastal territory. Its naval strategy has not changed greatly from the Soviet era. The fleet is greatly reduced in size and will likely continue to decrease as older ships decommission. The fleet's newest ships and submarines field significant offensive capability on relatively small platforms. Russia's poor economic situation and corruption throughout the Ministry of Defense and shipbuilding industry will hinder the construction and maintenance of ships. A reduced military budget will further inhibit maritime development. The Northern and Pacific Fleets continue to be home to Russia's strategic forces. The Black Sea Fleet is receiving the greatest improvements as Russia seeks to increase its presence in the Mediterranean Sea and the Middle East. Moscow considers NATO its primary adversary and will likely focus its reduced budget on improving its land and air forces instead of continuing large-scale naval development. This thesis uses analysis of Russian policy documents and Moscow's corresponding actions, fleet composition of the Russian Federation Navy, and the economic status of Russia to provide insight into Russian naval strategy and outlook.This compilation includes a reproduction of the 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community.Western states and Russia are often antagonistic toward each other. Russia, at the eastern edge of Europe, frequently has adopted a posture of defensive expansionism in that it seeks to create a buffer-zone between itself and perceived aggressor states. During the Soviet period, the buffer zone was the Soviet Republics surrounding Russia's borders; following the collapse of the Soviet Union, it remains, primarily, the former Soviet Republics. Moscow sees the West as both a model to follow on a path to modernity and the aggressor against Russian power. Russia oscillates between those concepts, and its policies regarding the West are inconsistent, particularly since the collapse of the Soviet Union. At the beginning of Russia's modern history, at its weakest point, Russia attempted to become democratic, which might have led to modernization of its society and economy. That, however, did not happen. Instead, Russia reverted to a quasi-democracy becoming far more assertive and outspoken against Western unilateral actions as Russia's economy strengthened under Putin. Russia's navy has not, since the end of the Soviet Union, been a significant factor in global politics or on the world's oceans. Russia's naval fleet sat in disrepair for decades. Keels laid for construction sat unfinished due to lack of funds or initiative to finish the ships. Surface ships and submarines sat pier-side with limited funding and crews to sail them for strategic or training purposes. That is slowly changing. Moscow instituted new maritime policy, began and completed not only new construction, but new ship designs with updated technology, improved its ballistic missile submarine capability and added new aircraft to the naval aviation fleet. Why has Moscow decided to upgrade the fleet after years of disrepair and neglect, and what is the intent for its resurgent navy?

Force Structure, Tactics, and Modernization of the Russian Ground Forces The mighty Soviet Army is no more. The feckless Russian Army that stumbled into Chechnya is no more. Today's Russian Army is modern, better manned, better equipped and designed for maneuver combat under nuclear-threatened conditions. This is your source for the tactics, equipment, force structure and theoretical underpinnings of a major Eurasian power. Here's what the experts are saying: "A superb baseline study for understanding how and why the modern Russian Army functions as it does. Essential for specialist and generalist alike." -Colonel (Ret) David M. Glantz, foremost Western author on the Soviet Union in World War II and Editor of The Journal of Slavic Military Studies. "Congratulations to Les Grau and Chuck Bartles on filling a gap which has yawned steadily wider since the end of the USSR. Their book addresses evolving Russian views on war, including the blurring of its nature and levels, and the consequent Russian approaches to the Ground Forces' force structuring, manning, equipping, and tactics. Confidence is conferred on the validity of their arguments and conclusions by copious footnoting, mostly from an impressive array of primary sources. It is this firm grounding in Russian military writings, coupled with the authors' understanding of war and the Russian way of thinking about it, that imparts such an authoritative tone to this impressive work." -Charles Dick, former Director of the Combat Studies Research Centre, Senior Fellow at the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom, author of the 1991 British Army Field Manual, Volume 2, A Treatise on Soviet Operational Art and author of From Victory to Stalemate The Western Front, Summer 1944 and From Defeat to Victory, The Eastern Front, Summer 1944. "Dr. Lester Grau's and Chuck Bartles' professional research on the Russian Armed Forces is widely read throughout the world and especially in Russia. Russia's Armed Forces have changed much since the large-scale reforms of 2008, which brought the Russian Army to the level of the world's other leading armies. The speed of reform combined with limited information about their core mechanisms represented a difficult challenge to the authors. They have done a great job and created a book which could be called an encyclopedia of the modern armed forces of Russia. They used their wisdom and talents to explore vital elements of the Russian military machine: the system of recruitment and training, structure of units of different levels, methods and tactics in defense and offence and even such little-known fields as the Arctic forces and the latest Russian combat robotics." -Dr. Vadim Kozyulin, Professor of Military Science and Project Director, Project on Asian Security, Emerging Technologies and Global Security Project PIR Center, Moscow. "Probably the best book on the Russian Armed Forces published in North America during the past ten years. A must read for all analysts and professionals following Russian affairs. A reliable account of the strong and weak aspects of the Russian Army. Provides the first look on what the Russian Ministry of Defense learned from best Western practices and then applied them on Russian soil." -Ruslan Pukhov, Director of the Moscow-based Centre for the Analysis of Strategies and Technologies (CAST) and member of the Public Council of the Russian Federation Ministry of Defense. Author of Brothers Armed: Military Aspects of the Crisis in Ukraine, Russia's New Army, and The Tanks of August.

East Asia is a potential area of international conflict, with a number of possible 'flashpoints' and with the absence of strong regional organisations able to deal with conflict resolution. At the same time, global powers frequently get involved in the international politics of the region in order to protect their interests. This book presents a comprehensive overview of the geopolitics of the region. It focuses in particular on the way geographical and historical forces continue to play a key role in shaping international relations here. It considers the role of both regional and international powers, and assesses the risks of war in the region.