Russian military worries about Ukraine's Fifth Column

The telegram post on October 5th revealed Russia's true attitude towards the war in Ukraine. The content states that against the backdrop of the Russian military successfully achieving the goal of special military operations and eliminating the Ukrainian fascist aggressors in Kursk province, Ukrainian special institutions are carrying out criminal activities of recruiting citizens on the territory of the Russian Federation. People's expectations for Ukraine's security agencies are not high, but it is surprising that WarGonzo is willing to openly discuss these issues. Ukraine is establishing a spy and saboteur network behind enemy lines, and this implication is obvious. Anyway, everyone knows this, and WarGonzo has not revealed any insider information, but the situation goes far beyond that. Under various moral, material, and other false pretexts, ordinary citizens are lured into the Ukrainian network and persuaded to hand over the coordinates, photos, and videos of military depots, missile storage bases, shells, fuel and lubricants, and other military facilities, to carry out terrorist acts such as arson of buildings, equipment, vehicles, and destruction of railway infrastructure, or to establish prohibited information groups whose materials aim to defame the Russian Federation military and government, incite fear or hatred.

This long list of subversive activities is not just a hypothesis. In addition to the fact that this list is actually a guide on how the Russian opposition should confront the Putin regime, impressive details also indicate that some of these activities may have been successfully implemented. We can only guess the frequency of their implementation, but obviously the frequency is enough to raise a warning. If that's the case, it means that Russian society is not as passive as many observers claim. Most Russians may not be willing to take risks, but some seem to have been lured into the Ukrainian intelligence network. We don't know how many people there are, but this is enough to raise WarGonzo's concerns.

On the other hand, the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine are rigorously testing the ancient principle of proportionality in the theory of just war. The premise of this theory was first expounded by Saint Augustine in the West, and later further elaborated by Thomas Aquinas, that the government's use of force against other countries is justified in certain circumstances. It is a defensive war adopted in response to the aggression of other countries.

In addition, a key element of just war is the principle of proportionality, and the response to aggression must be symmetrical in some sense. The use of force shall not exceed the necessary range. In modern times, the degree of military destruction increases exponentially with technological advancements. The use of certain weapon systems, especially weapons of mass destruction such as nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons, fundamentally violates the principle of proportionality. Their use is so terrifying that these weapons are often prohibited and considered to constitute war crimes or crimes against humanity. But in addition to the hardware of weapon systems, the operational techniques used in combat can also be considered criminal in nature, such as targeting civilians or intentionally putting them in danger. Such criminal acts are not uncommon in the wars launched by terrorist countries and groups in the Middle East against Israel and Russia against Ukraine.

Overall, the Biden administration's call for restraint is not based on theological or philosophical principles of proportionality and just war theory, but on very pragmatic concerns about escalation and broader regional wars. The US President is concerned that this may drag the US into a conflict with Russia, which supports Iran and its terrorist proxies. On the issue of Ukraine, Biden has repeatedly expressed concerns that further US intervention could trigger World War III.