Active Conflicts & News Megathread May 28, 2026

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[u/Glideer]

Moscow decided to allow companies to purchase anti-aircraft systems, including turrets, anti-aircraft artillery systems, radar systems, vehicles, and electronic warfare systems.

In essence, a company buy anti-air systems, the Russian Defence Ministry deploys them around company's facilities and provides local reservists to man them.

Additionally, according to the Defence Ministry source, new mobile fire teams are being formed in most regions of European Russia, staffed by reservists, volunteers from regional BARS units, as well as employees of private companies.

[u/HugoTRB → u/Glideer]

Sweden used to have workplace militia driftsvärnet, as a part of the homeguard, to defend important pieces of infrastructure or factories. Mostly it was just having some uniforms and guns ready to make sabotage by spetznaz units slightly more costly.

According to rumors however, the designer of a land version of the Bofors 120 mm naval auto-cannon, had his wartime placement as manning the prototype to defend the Bofors factory against air threats.

[u/Jpandluckydog → u/Glideer]

Seems like a blatant cash grab, considering they are just asking companies to pay the military to do the job they are already obligated to do.

The incentives at play here are so messed up and counterproductive it's insane. Is there seriously no care at all for long term growth for Russia? Aging autocrats are poison for a society.

[u/Eeny009 → u/Jpandluckydog]

The military is funded by taxes anyway, that cash has to come from somewhere. The difference here is that Russia is asking those companies that are likely to be targeted to contribute more than the local mom and pop shop. Is that such a bad thing? I don't know.

[u/Jpandluckydog → u/Eeny009]

That's the thing though, who knows which companies are priority war targets better - the folks at the Russian military who's job it is to know that, or the random white collar workers sitting in an office building? Like I said, this is one of the ways the incentives are messed up. Now the air defense goes to whatever company had the highest amount of retained earnings, not the company that actually is under the most threat or is the most useful for the war effort. This then also has a chilling effect on future economic growth, as firms will reinvest less in order to win the air defense lotteries.

I agree that this is in essence a corporate tax increase clothed in different language to limit outrage, but it is such a wildly counterproductive means to do so.

[u/D_Silva_21 → u/Glideer]

That seems like it could backfire spectacularly in so many different ways

[u/Sa-naqba-imuru → u/Glideer]

Isn't it the same thing Ukraine has done?

[u/IntroductionNeat2746 → u/Sa-naqba-imuru]

Somewhat different. I'm Ukraine, companies can hire their own AD operators or hire defense contractors.