dailycaller.com, 2016/05/13
Russia’s ongoing military overhaul took an unfortunate misstep Thursday when a Russian general ripped off the door handle of a new military vehicle he was showing off to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
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Russian General Alexander Shevchenko was showing off the Russian military’s UAZ Patriot to Putin when his attempt to open its door led to the handle being completely torn from the vehicle. After realizing his mistake, the quick-thinking Shevchenko put his hand through the vehicle’s open window and unlocked the door from the inside.
Apparently Putin had a good sense of humor over the ordeal, laughing off the incident after saying “good.”
Russia is in the midst of a years-long campaign to modernize its military forces. Steven Pifer, director of the Arms Control and Non-Proliferation Initiative at the Brookings Institution, noted in a piece for the National Interest that Russia plans to have 70 percent of its conventional military force by 2020.