Putin’s Cold War tactics show ‘preparation for future war against Nato’

Russia’s military districts (Picture: Metro.co.uk)

Vladimir Putin has reshaped the landscape of Russia’s military in a maneuver reminiscent of Cold War-era tactics.

A breakdown of two decrees issued by the president on February 26 shows he is preparing for a ‘potential large-scale conventional war against Nato’ in the future.

As part of major efforts to restructure the military, Putin officially reestablished the Moscow and Leningrad Military Districts (MMD and LMD).

The Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said the move has two objectives: support the warlord’s effort to consolidate control over Russia’s invasion in Ukraine – and to prepare for a conflict with the military alliance.

A map showing the changes of military control (Picture: Metro.co.uk)

Metro.co.uk mapped out the changes, which mark his continuous efforts to assert his dominance, particularly in Eastern Europe.

The re-separated LMD will now run along Nato’s northeastern border, while the MMD will border northeastern Ukraine and Poland.

The first decree strips the Northern Fleet in the Arctic of its status as an ‘interservice strategic territorial organisation,’ effectively transferring command of the Northwestern Federal Okrug to the newly formed LMD.

This move redefines the boundaries of military control, with LMD now including territories, previously in the jurisdiction of the Northern Fleet.

At the same time, the second decree formally reinstates both districts, with MMD assuming control over areas formerly under the Western Military District.

What are the new borders of the two military districts?

The Leningrad Military District – Republic of Karelia, the Republic of Komi, the Arkhangelsk, Vologda, Kaliningrad, Leningrad, Murmansk, Novgorod and Pskov Regions, the city of St Petersburg and the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Region.

The Moscow Military District – Belgorod, Bryansk, Vladimir, Voronezh, Ivanovo, Kaluga, Kostroma, Kursk, Lipetsk, Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod, Oryol, Ryazan, Smolensk, Tambov, Tver, Tula and Yaroslavl Regions and the city of Moscow.

Putin also incorporated occupied Ukrainian territories into the Southern Military District (SMD), including Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk, Luhansk oblasts, and Crimea.

This expansion suggests Russia’s ongoing territorial ambitions in Ukraine, aiming to fully integrate these regions.

‘The inclusion of both the occupied and un-occupied parts of Ukrainian territory further suggests that Russia maintains maximalist objectives in Ukraine and seeks to fully absorb all five of these Ukrainian territories into the Russian Federation,’ the ISW said.

Russian military analyst Yuri Fedorov previously told investigative site Agentstvo that the recreation of the LMD suggests that Russia is gearing up for conflicts with the Baltic States and Nato.

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