I thought that in order to succeed in the mission you need to understand its goal. This is the number one lesson in every type of school, military school or not. The difference is that a soldier's role is to execute the plan and not to make it. However, the soldier has to assimilate every single point of the scenario if they want the plan to work. It is a little difficult to fulfil a gaol if you are distracted or you can not fully understand it. If you do not know what is ``the thing'' that you are about to execute, maybe you will not execute it at all. I do not think that Putin does not understand or does not know the goal of Russia, but everyone makes mistakes and this is something different. Even the best plan may have misfires...that is why it matters to be prepared for the worst scenario even if you capable for the best one. Anyway, my viewpoint is, taking myself as an example, that when my goal is not clear in what I have to do, there is no mission, I will delay the task because I haven't seen the big picture or I do not have the complete idea to shape my goals. First you shape your goals and then you execute them (the mission), this is how it works...not the other way around.