The Russian army routinely and systematically employs rape, mutilations, torture and humiliation as accepted tactics.
No armies behaviour is completely beyond repute however the repeated examples seen with Russia shows that this is their established culture and not only has there been no attempt to change this, it is almost certainly approved from the top down as everything else is in a country ruled by a dictator.
That's the crux of it. Whether we would like to admit it or not, armed forces will always have bad eggs (being polite there) due to the nature of the beast.
Militaries strike a balance between training men and women to be aggressive - to fight and kill - and show restraint, hence why discipline is key.
For me, a military must be judged by their values, training, leadership and what they do not condone, including the response when the boundaries* are crossed.
Russia not only condones but promotes tactics that for many are abhorrent, hence why Russia troops get their reputation. If the top brass wanted to stamp it out...
... they could. But they don't. Look at their experiences in Ukraine, Georgia, Chechnya, Afghanistan... the list goes on. This isn't a few bad eggs.
*The boundary itself is subject. What we may not condone is different in other forces.
