Jörgen Elfving

Jörgen Elfving is a former Swedish army officer and an expert in military issues related to the Soviet Union and Russia. Since retiring from the army, he has worked as an author, translator and consultant for various Swedish governmental bodies and other agencies.

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    Articles by Jörgen Elfving

    Russia Flexes Muscles of Airborne Forces

    The Russian Airborne Troops (Vozdushno-Desantnye Voyska—VDV) and Military Transport Aviation (Voyenno-Transportnoy Aviatsii—VTA) carried out a comprehensive exercise in the Ryazan area, on July 9–13. Participation by the VTA was unprecedented,

    Russia Mobilizes Contracted Reservists

    As a result of the military reform initiated in 2008, Russia dramatically reduced the number of units in its ground forces from 1,890 to 172 (RIA, December 18, 2008). The

    Russian ICBMs: An Aging but Mixed Arsenal

    Undeniably, Russia has fewer deployed intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) today than the Soviet Union fielded during the Cold War (at its peak, in 1985, it had 1,398 such missiles at

    Waiting for Zapad 2017

    The Russian-Belarusian military exercise Zapad 2017 has gained a lot of attention even before it has started, which is not surprising considering the previous exercises in the “Zapad” series and

    Russian Private Military Companies—Redwater?

    Since 2012, there has been a debate in Russia regarding so-called private military companies, PMCs, known in Russia as Chastnye Voennie Companiy (ChVK); and several attempts were made in recent

    Gotland: Sweden’s Crown Jewel in the Baltic

    The strategically placed Gotland is the largest island in the Baltic Sea, with an area of 3,183.7 square kilometers—that is, slightly smaller than California’s Sacramento county. The island is situated

    Russian Information Warfare—Not Just Hackers and Trolls

    “Information warfare,” according to the Russian definition of the term, combines technology (i.e., cyber warfare and electronic warfare) with psychology (“winning hearts and minds”) (Encyclopedia.mil.ru, accessed October 27). When commenting

    Novel Developments in Russia’s Latest Snap Exercise

    Since 2013, when no-notice “snap” exercises were first introduced, they have become a regular feature in the training of the Russian Armed Forces. These more-or-less comprehensive exercises—regardless of the number

    The Russian Baltic Sea Fleet—A Nest of Crime?

    Russian Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu sacked the commander of the Baltic Sea Fleet (based out of Baltiysk, Kaliningrad oblast), Vice Admiral Viktor Kravchuk, and his chief of staff, Vice