In a sign that any potential Russian military campaign might be able to draw on a wide range of attack possibilities, long-range rockets, special operations units, and missile defenses are being moved by Russia to the Ukrainian border.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby addressed this dynamic, saying that the forces being moved by Russia are significant by themselves, but that additional variables are also of great relevance.

“But what's important is not just the numbers, it's the capabilities. And what we see is that he is really putting in place robust—what we would call Combined Arms Capabilities in Belarus, and along that border with Ukraine in Russia.” Kirby added that this “means not just infantry, or tracked vehicles, but artillery and long-range fires, and air and missile defense, as well as special operations.”

Long-range fires, for example, can be used to enable a deeper invasion of a territory, as they are typically used to “soften up” or destroy defenses to better enable infantry and armored vehicles to advance on an enemy. Mobile air and missile defenses also contribute to this equation as they could give advancing forces an opportunity to defend against incoming rockets, artillery, and missiles intended to disrupt their forward advancement. Russian air defenses like the S-400 are road mobile and can travel on the back of large trucks in support of advancing ground forces. The intent here would of course be to defend against air attacks on maneuvering armored units. Notably, S-400s were recently sent to Belarus for joint military exercises.

Kirby also addressed what he said was a visible Russian effort to move medical supplies and other key equipment needed to provide logistical support for an extended military campaign.

“It's not just the Combined Arms Capabilities, it's the ability to sustain these troops in the field for a period of time. So even as he has added combat capability, he has also added logistics and sustainment capability. In other words, the ability to keep them in the field for longer and longer periods of time,” Kirby said.

Kris Osborn is the Defense Editor for the National Interest. Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a Highly Qualified Expert with the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army—Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at national TV networks. He has appeared as a guest military expert on Fox News, MSNBC, The Military Channel, and The History Channel. He also has a Master's Degree in Comparative Literature from Columbia University.

Image: Reuters.