Beyond Hardware : The "Human Factor" in Russian Military-Strategic Thought

The study implements a qualitative methodology, scrutinising core Russian-language texts to identify the key concepts, implicit assumptions, and logical associations that frame Russian reasoning on the ‘human factor.’ We draw extensively on original sources from authoritative authors in leading publications, including unclassified military writings such as Nezavisimoe Voennoe Obozrenie, Voennaya Mysl’, Voenno-promyshlennyi Kur’er, and Krasnaya Zvezda. We triangulate these sources with the analysis of Russian official documents (e.g., National Security Strategy, Military Doctrine) and secondary sources written by reputable Western observers.