MCRP 12-10B.1, page 352

fighters took advantage of this reticence, often using civilians, schools, and apartment buildings as a shield. While this may seem to be cold-blooded of the Chechen fighters, what must be understood is that the majority of the populace in Grozny were actually ethnic Russians, and that the ethnic Chechens had no remorse in using them in this manner. (3) Russian concerns for the safety of the Chechen populace and property declined. As the Russian troops became increasingly frustrated in their attempts to separate Chechen fighters from the local populace, and their casualties began to mount, concerns for civilian safety waned, resulting in greater civilian casualties and further alienating the Chechen people. (4) Rigorous communications security is essential, even against less sophisticated enemies. Much of the Russian tactical radio traffic was broadcast in the clear, which allowed the Chechens to intercept it. The Chechens were able to redirect Russian airstrikes onto Russian targets, and engage Russian artillery forward observers who broadcast their own position coordinates. (5) The Russians made extensive use of RPVs for reconnaissance. The Chechen campaign saw the first Russian use of unmanned aerial vehicles for reconnaissance and intelligence gathering. There were primarily used by Russian airborne forces. c. Maneuver. (1) Inadequate training in the most basic maneuver and combat skills inhibited Russian operations. Overall, poor Russian combat performance could be traced to a lack of training in fundamental military skills, a situation that was then exacerbated by an additional lack of training in specific urban combat skills. Individual skills training was so inadequate that some units were entirely incapable of undertaking combat operations. The Russian's ability to conduct large scale operations had been seriously eroded by a complete cessation of exercises at the division level in the 2 years prior to the Chechen campaign. Even regimental and battalion level exercises had been curtailed by 75 percent or more. Additionally, The air forces were not any better trained or prepared for their operational role in Chechnya. (2) Lack of cohesiveness among the Russian forces led to confusion and antagonism. The Russian ground forces consisted primarily of regular army units and Ministry of Interior Internal Troops, which were essentially a police force. With no real unified command and control, the two groups were usually conducting uncoordinated missions, which led to confusion and fratricide. (3) The nature of cities channels combat operations along narrow lanes of activity. Combat conditions in Grozny were characterized by narrow fields of view, limited fields of fire, and constricted avenues of approach. For the Russians, this meant movement along approaches well known and heavily defended by the Chechens. MCWP 3-35 .3 J-4