So did Ukraine- Ukraine was setting up NATO grade defense fortifications in Donbass since 2014! GFOH!
what does air superiority have to do with winning wars? westerns swear by it but they've lost many wars while having it, so this is a dead point.
even without Russia going to total war Ukraine still cannot win, so Ukraine is in SERIOUS trouble regardless. Russia will enter total war status when NATO enters the Ukraine conflict with boots or receives a nuclear attack on its homeland.
Disabling the nazi Ukrainian state's threat to Russia - dont you listen to Russian leaders?
because Ukraine keeps crossing new lines, foolishly.
dont worry, IT JUST LIKE **** (said a US judge once)- we dont know what it is, but we know when we see it!
Back to making ignorant statements?
The virtual stalemate you see in Donbas is due to lack of air superiority. Neither Ukraine and nor Russia has the required level of Air Power to soften up enemy positions. Air Power can prevent a situation like this.
US applied its Air Power to devastating effect in World War 2 - a war that concluded with victory of US-led forces in various armed clashes, de-naazification of Germany, and political reboot in Japan.
US applied its Air Power to defeat Soviet Air Force in the Korean War - a war that concluded with victory of US-led forces in various armed clashes and liberation of South Korea from the combined might of China, North Korea, and Soviet Union.
US applied its Air Power to devastating effect in the Vietnam War in 1972 (Operation Linebacker II) - smart munitions were used for the first time in history to destroy high value targets in minutes that withstood dumb bombs otherwise. Vietcong was virtually crippled but Nixon chose to withdraw American troops. Vietcong took 3 years to recover and retake South Korea. This was an American political forfeit.
US applied its Air Power to devastating effect in the Gulf War in 1991 - a war that concluded with victory of US-led forces in various armed clashes and liberation of Kuwait from Iraq.
US applied its Air Power to devastating effect in Yugoslavia in 1999 - a war that concluded with liberation of Kosovo
without putting boots on the ground.
US has demonstrated effective applications of Air Power in the recent War On Terror saga as well to defeat a variety of opponents. Al-Qaeda Network was defeated in Tora Bora mountains in Afghanistan in 2002 (Operation Anaconda), Saddam regime was crippled in just 21 days in 2003 (Operation Iraqi Freedom), Qaddafi regime was crippled in Libya
without putting boots on the ground (Operation Odyssey Dawn), and ISIL was defeated across Iraq and Syria (Operation Inherent Resolve). This is the first war in which US demonstrated the utility of drones to eliminate terrorists or high value targets without the need to put troops at risk.
Air Power is the KEY to win battles and reduce losses in modern times - a fact that Iranians do not seem to understand. The alternative is to end up fighting like Iran when it was up against Iraq in the 1980s, or like Russians in Ukraine in the present with heavy losses.
Air Power = difference between a superpower and regional power in modern times.
Russia did well in Syria because its target was weak (Syrian rebels lacking in sophisticated equipment and capacity to regroup in another country), and by having an understanding with the US to not topple Assad regime. Prior to this, Russia fought a lengthy war in Chechnya where Russia had to try 2 times to defeat Chechen rebels (first attempt was a miss but second attempt succeeded). Prior to this, Soviet Union existed and the Cold War concluded with its dissolution.
So a country that can actually fight and win wars in modern times is a looser in your worldview? It is strange to see an American citizen having this view. I can imagine a thankless misfit having this view but not an American citizen who is doing well and proud of his country's achievements and contributions to the world in all aspects. I can understand a citizen of an underdeveloped country complaining about his country's faults, but Americans. Sure, US is not perfect (no country is), but its military and technological accomplishments are nothing to scoff at. I can see the obvious even from a distance.