Yeah, he has a lot of controversial takes. One of the ones I disagree with is that allowing Iran to have nukes will make them a more-responsible state. I kind of think he's right on this one. I don't blame the West--this is on Putin--but I think it's easier to understand why Putin did it because of Mearshimer's explanation.
Track comes with the track pads installed so that armored vehicles are operational on and/or off road.
Right or wrong, I think his perception is that somebody (NATO) is creeping around in his backyard. He is concerned.
I think your bolded point is the most significant. My experience was that the Afghans, and to a lesser extent the Iraqis, never really saw themselves as a coherent whole. The Afghans saw themselves as Pashtun or Hazari or Uzbek or Tajik or whatever, and the Iraqis as Shia/Sunni/Kurd. No doubt there are significant cultural and ethnic divisions in Ukraine (ethnic Russian/ethnic Ukrainian) but there was enough "we are Ukriane" there to maintain coherence.
...and it's strongly suggested that may still be a low number.
There's always questions on the casualty figures but this one is particularly interesting given the Russian source:
In effect, it appears Russia has the lost the equivalent to 1 1/2 U.S. Army divisions in less than a month.
I've read a number of viewpoints as to contributing factors behind these huge losses. In addition to some of the more obvious things, like poor equipment, training, and tactics, another recurring theme is lack of medical support and casualty evac. One source questioned whether anyone had even seen any Russian equipment with red crosses on it. Supposedly, the 40 mile convoy outside Kiev may've contained a lot of med supplies before it was hit. Losing that would further inhibit Russia's ability to treat and evac wounded.
