Quote:
Originally Posted by peter12
It's pretty clear that what exists between Russia and Ukraine is coming close to total war. Both sides have almost entirely mobilized their societies towards defeating the other.
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Russian military spending in 2022 is only estimated to be about 50% higher than in prior years and their current budget for 2023 is about the same. By comparison, the US's military spending went up by 30x between 1940 and 1943 when they were in a total war. And Canada's annual military expenditures alone by the middle of WWII were higher than the entire federal government's expenditures in 1939.
Or put in other terms, Russia has drafted about 1% of the eligible pool so far. In WWII, about 20% of American draft-age men served in the military and in Canada it was even higher.
Now that's not to say that Russia is necessarily holding back or anything; they're likely incapable of waging total war. But there is a vast difference between the amount of resources they're putting into this war compared to what is traditionally seen as a state of total war. And the effect of the war on Russian society will reflect that.