{"id":11822,"date":"2016-02-10T15:19:54","date_gmt":"2016-02-10T21:19:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hcstx.org\/?p=11822"},"modified":"2016-02-10T15:19:54","modified_gmt":"2016-02-10T21:19:54","slug":"exploiting-gaps-russia-and-electronic-warfare","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thetacticalhermit.com\/index.php\/2016\/02\/10\/exploiting-gaps-russia-and-electronic-warfare\/","title":{"rendered":"Exploiting Gaps: Russia and Electronic Warfare"},"content":{"rendered":"

In an article I wrote on FO about\u00a0Russia’s EW Capabilities<\/a>,\u00a0I showed how NATO commanders were concerned about how far ahead Russia was in this department. That concern has not diminished, and for good reason as the article below shows. -SF<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\"EW\"<\/p>\n

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Much has been written<\/a> about the weakness of the Russian military. Commentators describe it as a\u201cpaper tiger\u201d<\/a>\u00a0that would not be effective against the more advanced weaponry of NATO. Even Pres. Barack Obama boasts<\/a> that the American military is superior to Russia\u2019s.<\/p>\n

When it comes to traditional conventional weapons there is much truth to these assertions. However, these claims of Washington\u2019s military superiority overlook a key fact. In the event of a war, Moscow possesses some critical asymmetrical advantages vis-\u00e0-vis the United States that the Kremlin would surely seek to exploit.<\/p>\n

Russia\u2019s electronic warfare strategy in Ukraine is one example of this. According to a recent article<\/a>in Foreign Policy<\/em>, after Russian electronic warfare equipment began arriving in Ukraine, Ukrainian troops noticed a problem \u2014 their phones and radios were unusable for hours at a time, essentially cutting off units\u2019 ability to communicate with each other.<\/p>\n

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe also felt the effect of Russia\u2019s electronic warfare capabilities. On at least three<\/a> separate occasions the OSCE reported its monitoring drones were subjected to military-grade electronic warfare while flying over territory controlled by the Russian-supported separatists. In each case, they were rendered blind and forced to end their missions.<\/p>\n

Russia\u2019s use of electronic warfare in Ukraine represents just the tip of the iceberg.<\/p>\n