10 Maps That Explain Russia’s Strategy

Russia is almost landlocked.

This map reveals Russia’s major weak point.

The country has limited access to global maritime trade—

which overall has a big political and economic impact.

Europe controls Russia’s access to the oceans.

European Russia has three access points to global

maritime trade: the Black Sea, St. Petersburg, and the Arctic

Ocean.

Europe, however, controls nearly all water passageways

from these points.

In other words, Russia is politically landlocked. This

demonstrates the country’s vulnerability to NATO.

Russia’s population clusters along its western border.

Russian agriculture is in the southwest.

Russia’s railroad network is oriented toward the west.

Simply put, the core of Russia’s infrastructure is positioned along the western border.

The country has few barriers to stop the enemy from paralyzing

its economic activity.

Now, let’s look back at history.

This is Russia’s position in 1914, just before WWI.

The Russian Empire’s penetration into Europe before WWI gave it a significant buffer

against the West.

The depth of this buffer allowed the Russians to fend off attacks from Germany and the Austro-

Hungarian Empire in 1914.

German-Occupied Europe in 1942

The extent of the German advance in the southeast during

WWII posed a big threat to Russia’s sovereignty.

The Germans seized almost all of the European Peninsula and, in their final thrust, moved east

and south into the Caucasus.

Ultimately, Russia defeated Germany through depth and the toughness of its troops.

If Russia didn’t have that strategic depth, it would have

lost the war.

The Furthest Russia Extended After WWII

No wonder Russia’s strategy at the close of and after World

War II was to push its frontiers as far west as possible.

Russia managed to seize the entirety of Eastern Europe

during the Cold War, which was an ideal position for the Soviet

Union.

However, when oil prices fell in the 1980s, the Russians could

not sustain the decline of revenue. This crippled the

Soviet Union.

With so few natural and political barriers, today’s Russia is at risk.

After 1991, Russia lost control of nearly all of Eastern Europe.

Its border had not been that close to Moscow in a very long

time.

The West absorbed the Baltics into NATO, bringing St.

Petersburg within a hundred miles of a NATO country.

Ukraine, however, has been the most critical buffer against the

West for the Russians.

The Ukrainian border goes through Russia’s agricultural

center, as well as large population centers and

transportation networks.

Letting a pro-Western regime gain a foothold so close to the Russian heartland would make Russia more vulnerable than

ever.

As a result, the Russians are unlikely to leave the Ukrainian

question where it is.

Russia has a very diverse yet united society.

Don’t underestimate the power of anti-Western solidarity in

Russia.

The inherent support for the Russian nation remains

powerful, despite the ethnic diversity and economic

difficulties.

It’s not prosperity, but shared idealization that holds the

country together.

All of this gives the Russians an opportunity.

However bad their economy is, the simplicity of Russia’s geographic position and

cultural character give them capabilities that can surprise

anyone.

In other words, now Russia has nothing to lose. That gives

them a strong psychological advantage against the West.

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