Russia's Navy Has a MASSIVE Problem

Paul J. Warburg 13 min

A functional navy is perhaps the most important factor in whether or not a nation can project global power. Russia is slowly or quickly becoming irrelevant as a naval power, and that is eroding their ability as a nation to be a global influencer.

  • Vladimir Putin

Chapters

  1. 0:00

    The Importance of Naval Power

    A functional navy is essential for global power projection, a lesson Russia has historically failed to learn.

  2. 2:06

    The Black Sea Fleet's Collapse

    Ukraine's asymmetric warfare using drones and missiles has annihilated over a third of Russia's Black Sea fleet.

  3. 4:44

    The Baltic Fleet's Irrelevance

    Finland and Sweden joining NATO makes the Baltic Fleet irrelevant by controlling choke points and deterring Russian expansion.

  4. 7:26

    Resource Constraints on Rebuilding

    Naval capabilities cannot be quickly replaced due to physical limits on dry docks and ship construction time.

  5. 10:23

    Loss of Western Technology

    Russia must now develop technologies previously sourced from the United States and the UK without their support. Norway can now focus on naval deterrence against Russia with support from Sweden and Finland. China is pressuring Russia to cede land near Vladivostok, forcing the Pacific fleet to protect against future Chinese aggression. Russia is becoming irrelevant as a naval power, eroding its ability to be a global influencer.

Key points

  • 0:29

    having a functional navy is perhaps the most important factor in whether or not a nation can project global power

  • 2:06

    Russia has lost over a third of its Black Sea fleet and over 40% of its naval tonnage in the Black Sea

  • 4:44

    the Baltic Fleet is basically irrelevant because of Sweden and Finland

  • 7:26

    there is a hard limit to which you can repair or grow your navy

  • 10:23

    Russia not only has to develop the technologies needed for tomorrow, but they also have to play catch-up

  • 10:23

    Norway, who's also a NATO nation, can now focus more of their efforts on building up a naval deterrence to Russia

  • 10:23

    China is now working to do things that are going to make Russia's position potentially weaker there in the long term

  • 10:23

    Russia is slowly or quickly becoming irrelevant as a naval power, and that is eroding their ability as a nation to be a global influencer

Who and where

People · 1

  • Drawing of Vladimir Putin

    Vladimir Putin 1

    President of the Russian Federation

    Photo 1

1. Photo: Пресс-служба Президента России, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons · Wikidata · redrawn in our house style (Vladimir Putin)

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