I’ve touched on some of the logistical difficulties Russia has experienced in its Ukrainian invasion. But this video goes into more detail about how Russia built up logistical support for the invasion, the importance of its rail systems, and how it hasn’t been able to keep up post-invasion.

[quote]Some takeaways:

1. Ukrainian forces destroyed all rail links between the two countries.

2. Russian forces are relying on analog, unsecured radio communications rather than scrambled digital channels, and Ukrainian forces are listening in and jamming.

3. Poor logistics also helped Soviet forces lose in Afghanistan.

4. Russia has 30,000 strong military rail organization.

5. “Russia doesn’t have enough trucks.” They can’t operate effectively more than 90 miles from supply dumps.

6. A large percentage of truck transport was dedicated to rocket resupply, not fuel and food.

7. Russia only had 3-5 days of supplies when they invaded. When those ran out, they were screwed.

8. Russia’s military works on a “push” logistic system rather than a “pull” system used by the U.S. military, mean it’s not very flexible.

9. Russia has the capability to set up the infrastructure for a longer war, but it’s going to take time.

10. Russia’s failure to quickly achieve it’s objectives has seen it resort to more desperate and indiscriminate tactics.

And here’s a related Twitter thread that touches on rail network logistic issues: