by John Helmer, Moscow 
  @bears_with

Last week I asked Lieutenant General (retired) P.R. Shankar to analyse India’s victorious war against Pakistan which in fourteen days, December 3-16, 1971, ended in the capitulation of the Pakistan Army and the creation of the new state of Bangladesh; and compare that with Russia’s Special Military Operation (SVO) against the Ukraine which began on February 24, 2022, and is continuing after 1,110 days.  

The questions were: what lessons do you and Indian military and political analysts today draw from your victory in the war of 1971 which the Russians should apply to the Ukraine: intelligence; plans and readiness; the speed of operations; firepower and troop ratios; problems of coordination between military control and political command?   Also, what lessons do you draw from the involvement of the Americans on the other side forcing end-of-war terms in exchange for money. 

Listen to the podcast just published here.  

On February 27 General Shankar and I discussed the Ukraine war and the current end-of-war debates from the Russian and the Indian perspectives. For that hour-long podcast, click to listen.

Two years ago, in February 2023, General Shankar and I began our discussion with this assessment of the Special Military Operation.  

by Editor - Monday, March 10th, 2025