4 ms·

Killing defectors is quite useful, since it sends a strong message to others planning the same.

• mindslight 3y ago
  Tactically, sure, it has an effect. But it just reeks of strategic impotence, like targeting all those Ukrainian civilians. Can't take a city? Settle for destroying an apartment building instead. It's basically another point to the idea that this whole conflict being about Putin reenacting his trauma of the USSR and its collapse. During the cold war, punishing defectors or spending some soldiers lives in slow burn conflicts wasn't a significant waste of resources and it did shore up the lines of national identity. But what were relatively successful tactics back then have now been scaled up despite being completely inapplicable for the current reality.