Look at what we did during ww2, America and Britain, armies need discipline. When the war was over most of the sentences were commuted and that is what will happen here. It is more of a threat of accountability and empowers officers and NCOs to maintain discipline. They have a largely civilian army, unused to the discipline required for military life, the Russians are suffering casualties for lack of training and discipline. Liberal democracies will do extra ordinary things to preserve themselves in war and most willingly subject themselves to it for the common good, but they have to have confidence in competent leadership.