Recent moves by Russia to reform its military were assessed by the Congressional Research Service in a new report (pdf).
“This report… provides basic information about the [Russian] military’s leadership and structure, the arms industry and efforts to modernize weaponry (including through foreign arms technology transfers), power projection efforts, and the military budget.”
The CRS report on “Russian Military Reform and Defense Policy” is dated August 24, 2011, though it was actually published September 20.
Under congressional secrecy policy, CRS is not permitted to make its reports directly available to the public.
If this proposed rule were enacted it would have deleterious effects on government workers in general and federal researchers and scientists, specifically.
When we introduce “at-will” employment to government employees, we also introduce the potential for environments where people are more concerned about self-preservation than service to others.
There is no better time to re-invigorate America’s innovation edge by investing in R&D to create and capture “industries of the future,” re-shoring capital and expertise, and working closely with allies to expand our capabilities while safeguarding those technologies that are critical to our security.
Russia currently maintains nearly 5,460 nuclear warheads, with an estimated 1,718 deployed. This represents a slight decrease in total warheads from previous years but still positions Russia as the world’s largest nuclear power alongside the United States.