Russia-led wars through the prism of history: Falling into the same trap again and againWars make Russia walk into the same trap over and over againRussia has a very extensive history of military operations and wars. He repeatedly criticised the military component of the Russian Empire, dwelling in detail on how the Russian army was prepared for military campaigns. Cross-your-fingers mentality was typical of then Russian military leaders even though their plans were always ambitious. Commander-in-chief of the Russian Army Ivan Diebitsch went down in history for his decisive military actions after the sluggish leadership of Prince Wittgenstein. But the Turkish army also lost the factor of surprise during the attack on the Russian Black Sea region.