美国国家公共电台 NPR Russian Defense Minister Says His Military Has Tested 162 Weapons In Syria

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ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

In Russia, it's Defender¹ of the Fatherland Day. This day was known in Soviet² times as Red Army Day. So yesterday on the eve of the holiday, Russia's defense³ minister visited the Parliament to boast about the Russian military, including its performance in Syria. NPR's Lucian Kim reports from Moscow.

LUCIAN KIM, BYLINE⁴: Sergei Shoigu, one of Russia's longest-serving ministers, showed up in Parliament wearing a general's uniform. Russia has never made a secret that its intervention⁵ on behalf of the Syrian government was also an excellent opportunity to show off its new military prowess.

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SERGEI SHOIGU: (Speaking Russian).

KIM: "We tested 162 types of weapons in Syria," he said, "which showed a high level of effectiveness." Shoigu added that only 10 weapon systems performed below expectations.

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KIM: Shortly after Russia went into Syria in September 2015, the navy fired cruise missiles at targets there, an event that coincided with President Vladimir Putin's 63rd birthday. The Air Force sent long-range Bear and Backfire bombers⁶ on missions over Syria.

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KIM: And Russia's only aircraft carrier traveled all the way from the Arctic Ocean to attack targets in Syria, as glorified⁷ in a defense ministry⁸ video.

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KIM: Of course testing weapons was not the primary reason for Russia's war in Syria. Aleksandr Golts, a fellow at the Kennan Institute in Washington, says the Kremlin wanted to force the U.S. to talk to Russia after its intervention in Ukraine. Moscow also wanted to keep its client, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, in power. Trying out new weapons, Golts says, was just a bonus.

ALEKSANDR GOLTS: (Foreign language spoken).

KIM: "It sounds cynical," he says, "but the fact remains⁹ that combat is the best way to test the condition of your weaponry."

There were also domestic political reasons. Many Russians felt humiliated¹⁰ after the Soviet Union fell apart and Russia stood on the sidelines as the U.S. led interventions¹¹ in Iraq and the former Yugoslavia. For President Putin, modernizing¹² the military has been one of his most important priorities to show that Russia is once again a player on the world stage. Dmitry Gorenburg, a defense analyst¹³ at the CNA think tank, says that in that sense, Russia has accomplished¹⁴ its mission.

DMITRY GORENBURG: By American standards, it was a small operation, but it was more than the experts really thought they were capable of.

KIM: The weapons Putin put on show in Syria demonstrated that he could stage a military operation far beyond Russia's borders. For example, Gorenburg says, the cruise missile showed that Russia could potentially reach targets deep within Europe. But human rights groups say the Russian air campaign has come at a terrible cost for civilians¹⁶ on the ground...

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KIM: ...As seen in this video from opposition¹⁷ activists¹⁸ in Syria showing the bodies of young children being extracted from a bombed apartment building.

LAMA FAKIH: Every statement we’ve sent to the Russians about a strike and questioning the legitimacy¹⁹ of the strike has been met with denials. But that doesn’t change what the obligations are.

KIM: That's Lama Fakih, deputy director for the Middle East at Human Rights Watch. She says Russia is obligated to conduct investigations²⁰ and pay compensation where the laws of war were violated. The Russian Defense Ministry rejects reports by Human Rights Watch and other groups as part of a, quote, "information war against Moscow."

GORENBURG: My sense is that they didn’t care that much - certainly not compared to how much Western countries’ militaries care about collateral²¹ damage and civilian¹⁵ casualties and so forth²².

KIM: Gorenburg says Russia's military thinking hasn't changed since the Kremlin crushed a rebellion by Chechen separatists 17 years ago just as Vladimir Putin was rising to power. Lucian Kim, NPR News, Moscow.

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