While I don't doubt it is an issue, the Russian military performance is adequately explained by: 1) Putin apparently thought the Ukrainian military officers ha

While I don't doubt it is an issue, the Russian military performance is adequately explained by: 1) Putin apparently thought the Ukrainian military officers had been bribed by the Russian FSB, but they had not, so he didn't expect as much resistance as he got (and thus wasn't ready for it) 2) The West (including non-NATO members such as Sweden and Finland) have contributed much more modern armaments (e.g. man-portable anti-tank weapons) than Russia (or maybe even the West) expected 3) Putin did not prepare Russia psychologically for a prolonged campaign, so most of the Russian soldiers did not expect to be sent to one, and were resentful upon discovering themselves in Ukraine for a fierce and prolonged fight I'm sure alcoholism doesn't help with any of that. But, it doesn't seem necessary to explain Russia's performance.