Russia and Ukraine

[Thumpalumpacus]

Beyond that, the Russians have always had decent R&D for their gear, so I'm not sure how much this war will advance their weapons-development.

Their weapons suck, as does their military.  Unless they are just going to surrender outright, what's the alternative to retooling?

Their weapons aren't great, and of course many of them are indeed outdated. But I think they're pretty capable of developing some very high-tech stuff if they could find the funding, which has been the main thing hamstringing the Russian military for the last three decades. They didn't need a war to develop the S-500 or the Kalibr cruise missile, among other programs, for instance.