Telling the history of the war that’s reshaping the world. In Ep.5: As Putin’s assault falters and his army degenerates into retreat and atrocity, Russia’s self-image as a bulwark against fascism falls into tatters. Arthur Snell looks at the incompetence, factionalism, corruption and failure to plan which created this debacle – how Russia remains obsessed with the Great Patriotic War – how Chechnya and Georgia provided dry runs for Ukraine — and the cocktail of self-destructive impulses, self-pity and authority-worship that still drive ordinary Russians to support the war.

Hear next week’s edition of Doomsday Watch: The Ukraine War immediately when you support the podcast on Patreon: http://www.doomsdaywatch.co.uk

• “At Hostomel, the Russian obsession with information security meant that they didn’t brief their own troops until it was too late.” – Jack Watling

• “The Russian Army is a top-down organisation where initiative is frowned upon. It specialises in plodding assaults.” – Mike Martin

• “You see Russia’s self-destructive tradition in its drinking and suicide rates, in the way power is distributed. We need to worry about that urge and who gets pulled into its vortex.” – Peter Pomerantsev

• “The Russian attitude is, we saved the West from fascism. Now look at these ingrates.” – Jade McGlynn

• “Putin was a pretty mediocre director of the FSB. He was always ‘talk big, fight small’ and Ukraine is his first truly big war, thrown together not by generals but by him and a few spooks.” – Mark Galeotti

Photograph courtesy Anatolii Stepanov

Incidental music in order of appearance:

• Thy Resurrection’ performed by the Music of the Kyiv-Pechersk Monastery

• Gustav Mahler’s Symphony Number 5, performed by Jason Weinberger and the WCF Symphony

• Gustav Mahler’s Symphony Number 9 (First Movement) performed by the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra

Written and presented by Arthur Snell. Produced by Robin Leeburn. Original theme music by Paul Hartnoll – https://www.orbitalofficial.com. Group Editor Andrew Harrison. Doomsday Watch is a Podmasters production

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