Russia and its World
Russia in all its aspects has always exerted a pull on me. Its history, art, music, food, landscapes, dress in all varied ethnic glory, and, above all, its literature have a special access to my attention. A major challenge is Russia’s colossal size and diversity of geography. Another continual surprise is the number of its distinctive peoples, each with unique folkways and histories. Russia has had some epic totalitarian regimes over its long history — but it also has been the home of some of the world’s greatest, most creative, and most influential anarchist philosophers. Russia is big enough and complex enough to handle all sorts of contradictions and paradoxes — and to claim them all proudly (and fatalistically, a classic Russian trait).
Over the years I have noticed that my store has become home to a great range of literature, fiction and nonfiction, of the Russian soul and mind and heart. I share it here and may update it as often as possible.
Russia's Five-Day War: The Invasion of Georgia, August 2008
Russia's Five-Day War: The Invasion of Georgia, August 2008
A fascinating account of Russia's Five-Day War against Georgia in 2008, notable for its strategic mistakes which prompted President Putin to undertake major military reforms.
After Georgia's independence from Russia in 1991, President Saakashvili invited NATO advisers to assist in military reforms. Separatist groups in Georgia's border provinces rebelled which led to fighting in South Ossetia during August 2008. The Russian Army invaded Georgia alongside these forces, stripped it of these rebellious provinces, and garrisoned them to maintain a threat over Georgia. But despite the inevitable outcome of this hugely unbalanced conflict, it revealed serious Russian military weaknesses and incompetence, and the NATO-trained and partly Western-equipped Georgian Army put up a much more successful local resistance than Russia had expected. The conflict also demonstrated the first use of Russian cyber-warfare, and its so-called 'hybrid warfare' doctrine.
Author Mark Galeotti is an expert in the field of international relations and a former Foreign Office adviser on Russian security affairs. In this book, he provides a vivid snapshot of the Russian, Georgian, Abkhazian and South Ossetian forces and gives an in-depth analysis of the conflict. Using meticulous color artwork for uniforms, insignia and equipment, rare photographs and detailed 'fact-boxes' for significant units and individuals, this book is a compelling guide to Russia's Five-Day War in Georgia.