13 February 2022

PODCASTS/VIDEOS:

‎Western Way of War: Ben Wallace: Not Tinkering Around the Edges on Apple Podcasts

The Kill Chain: Why America Faces the Prospect of Defeat – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Looking Back, Looking Forward: The Enduring Lessons of Security Force Assistance – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

MWI Podcast: How Capable is Ukraine’s Military? – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

MWI War Council – Fighting Terrorism in the City, The Battle of Marawi – YouTube

READINGS:

Sun Tzu’s Trap: The Illusion of Perpetual Competition – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

A retired Marine 3-star general explains ‘critical military theory’ (msn.com)

Smoke and mirrors: Western misperceptions of Russia in Ukraine – Institute of Modern Russia (imrussia.org)

Russia Is Teaching a Master Class in ‘Decision-Centric’ Warfare – Defense One

As Ukraine Faces Russian Aggression, What Should Small Countries Take Away from the Crisis? – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

The age of heroism is over in Europe: There will be no more ‘guerrilla wars’ — RT Russia & Former Soviet Union

More Odysseus, Less Achilles: Developing Special Operations Forces for the Challenges Ahead – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Old Habits Die Hard: Special Operations Forces, Twenty Years of Counterterrorism, and the New Era of Great Power Competition – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Are New and Emerging Technologies Game-Changers for Smaller Powers? – War on the Rocks

Bear, Meet Porcupine: Unconventional Deterrence for Ukraine – Defense One

Green Berets: Rebuilding the Guerrilla Leader Identity | Small Wars Journal

13 December 2021

PODCASTS/VIDEOS:

MWI Podcast: On Resistance – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Dr. Phillip Karber on the Russian Way of War – YouTube

Getting Back to Basics: Dr. James Derleth on the Army in a Challenging Global Operating Environment – YouTube

Episode 65: Katarzyna Zysk: Russian Creativity and Risk-Taking | Royal United Services Institute (rusi.org)

Episode 63: John Spencer: Urban Warfare as the Great Leveller | Royal United Services Institute (rusi.org)

Episode 62: Heather Venable: Gen Z – the Best Tacticians in History? | Royal United Services Institute (rusi.org)

READINGS:

A Framework for Irregular Warfare | Australian Army Research Centre (AARC)

Integrating deterrence across the gray — making it more than words (militarytimes.com)

Getting Competition Wrong: The US Military’s Looming Failure – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

The Future of US Security Force Assistance – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

The 2021 War on the Rocks Holiday Reading List – War on the Rocks

Russia vs Ukraine: Flaws in Western Grey Zone Theories | Royal United Services Institute (rusi.org)

Reflection on Failure By Major Matthew Tweedy, USMC (themaneuverist.org)

Time to Think About “Hybrid Defense” – War on the Rocks

20200918-afc-pam-71-20-4-afc-concept-for-special-operations-2028-final.pdf (army.mil)

Civilian-Based Resistance in the Baltic States: Historical Precedents and Current Capabilities | RAND

Full article: Resistance Resurgent: Resurrecting a Method of Irregular Warfare in Great Power Competition (tandfonline.com)

Past as Prelude? Envisioning the Future of Special Operations (thestrategybridge.org)

Countering Russia: The Role of Special Operations Forces in Strategic Competition | RAND

Conceptual Model of Advisor-Counterpart Interactions to Develop Institutional Viability | Small Wars Journal

5 November 2021

PODCASTS/VIDEOS:

Special Operations Forces and Great Power Competition – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

What Have We Learned from Twenty Years of War? – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Dr. Phillip Karber on the Russian Way of War – YouTube

Col. Pat Work on the Battle of Mosul – YouTube

READINGS:

LinkedIn

With an eye on China, Los Alamitos-based Army division looks at fighting in cities – Los Angeles Times (latimes.com)

Coup-plotters, Human Rights Violators, And Dictators Are The Exceptions Not The Norm – US Foreign Military Education and Training Is Much More Than Just Bad Examples (stratagem.no)

Lessons from the Winter War: Frozen Grit and Finland’s Fabian Defense (warontherocks.com)

Partner Capacity Building Needs a Serious Re-Examination} (realcleardefense.com)

The Future of NLD SOF: Towards an All-Domain Force – HCSS

Wanna Fight? Pushing Partners Aside in Afghanistan – War on the Rocks

Zapad 2021: What We Learned From Russia’s Massive Military Drills – The Moscow Times

The New Russian Security Concept and the ZAPAD-2021 Exercises – Strategy and Economics (berzins.eu)

Humans and Hardware: How Special Operations Can Pioneer Wearable Technology – War on the Rocks

5 October 2021

PODCASTS/VIDEOS:

‎Western Way of War: Katarzyna Zysk: Russian Creativity and Risk-Taking on Apple Podcasts

‎Western Way of War: John Spencer: Urban Warfare as the Great Leveller on Apple Podcasts

Harvard University’s Professor Stephen Rosen on Military Innovation and Power Projection – YouTube

“Modern War in Theory and Practice” presented by Dr. John A. Nagl – YouTube

READINGS:

Not Your Grandfather’s Resistance: The Unavoidable Truths about Small States’ Best Defense Against Aggression – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

US Security Force Assistance is Much More than Afghanistan, Iraq, and Vietnam | Small Wars Journal

Zapad 2021: What We Learned From Russia’s Massive Military Drills – The Moscow Times

Technology Innovation Is Great, But Strategy Is Better (thestrategybridge.org)

Foreign and defence policy in the German election – European Council on Foreign Relations (ecfr.eu)

John Arquilla on the New Challenge of Cyberwarfare – The Diplomat

Back to the Future: Rediscovering Operational Art in an Era of Great Power Competition – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

America’s unfortunate 9/11 legacy: Low strategic IQ | TheHill (ampproject.org)

Michelangelos of Strategy: Linguistic Chisels, Sculptural Forms, and the Art of Strategy (ampproject.org)

A Conversation with General Anthony Zinni (Ret.) on Leaders and Strategic Thinking | Center for International Maritime Security (cimsec.org)

8 September 2021

PODCASTS/VIDEOS:

Sean McFate on the New Rules of War – YouTube

China’s Strategically Irregular Approach: The Art of the Gray Zone – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Land Forces, Irregular Warfare, and a New Strategic Landscape – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Episode 30: Is the Era of Manoeuvre Warfare Dead? | Royal United Services Institute (rusi.org)

Episode 32: Vapourwear, Transformations and AirLand Battle | Royal United Services Institute (rusi.org)

A Conversation with Dr. Barnett Koven, Great Powers Competitive Strategy and Unconventional Warfare – YouTube

READINGS:

The New Rules of War: Victory in the Age of Durable Disorder: McFate, Sean: 9780062843586: Amazon.com: Books

The Transformation of War: The Most Radical Reinterpretation of Armed Conflict Since Clausewitz: Van Creveld, Martin: 9780029331552: Amazon.com: Books

The Return of Great-Power Proxy Wars – War on the Rocks

Afghan debacle doesn’t mean European military advance – POLITICO

US-educated foreign soldiers learn ‘democratic values,’ study shows – though America also trains future dictators (theconversation.com)

Why America Can’t Build Allied Armies | Foreign Affairs

How we as a nation and I as a military officer failed in Afghanistan (nypost.com)

IRREGULAR WARFARE IS GREAT POWER COMPETITION – PART 2 – War Room – U.S. Army War College (ampproject.org)

Army University Press > Journals > Military Review > English Edition Archives > July-August-2021 > Stringer-Russian-Occupied-Zone

Irregular Warfare: A Case Study in CIA and US Army Special Forces Operations in Northern Iraq, 2002-03 | Middle East Institute (mei.edu)How to Fight the Russians | AUSA

10 August 2021

PODCASTS/VIDEOS:

The Indigenous Approach – Concept of Resistance: Part 1 – Resistance in Europe (google.com)

Land Forces, Irregular Warfare, and a New Strategic Landscape – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Back to the Future: Resetting Special Operations Forces for Great Power Competition – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Irregular Warfare in the Next World War – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

READINGS:

Enabling the Fifth Column and the Relevancy of Unconventional Warfare | Small Wars Journal

Full Spectrum: Capabilities and Authorities in Cyber and the Information Environment – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Not Your Grandfather’s Counterinsurgency: The United States Must Prepare for Radically New Forms of Nonstate Violence – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Command and Staff College: Maximizing Learning without Living in the Library – The Field Grade Leader (themilitaryleader.com)

U.S. military once trained Colombians implicated in Haiti assassination plot, Pentagon says (msn.com)

Interview: John Arquilla, “Bitskrieg” – by Kent Anderson – The Geyser — Hot Takes & Deep Thinking on the Info Economy (substack.com)

Interpreting Sun Tzu: The Art of Failure? (thestrategybridge.org)

NATO Needs to Drop the 2% of GDP Requirement – 19FortyFiveTactics in an Era of Great Power Competition – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

7 July 2021

PODCASTS/VIDEOS:

Back to the Future: Resetting Special Operations Forces for Great Power Competition – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

American Decline: Losing the Campaign for Influence – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Learning from SolarWinds – War on the Rocks

Episode 30: Is the Era of Manoeuvre Warfare Dead? | Royal United Services Institute (rusi.org)

Episode 31: When Did We Stop Inventing Stuff? | Royal United Services Institute (rusi.org)

READINGS:

What Would Clausewitz Read? Professional Reading with a Purpose – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Political Science Can Go Dangerously Viral (foreignpolicy.com)

Winning Without War: Chinese Supremacy in Global Supply Chains (thestrategybridge.org)

Old Habits Die Hard: Special Operations Forces, Twenty Years of Counterterrorism, and the New Era of Great Power Competition – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Invisible Wounds: Proust Phenomenon Odors Evoking Wartime Memories | LinkedIn

Future Urban Conflict, Technology, and the Protection of Civilians • Stimson Center

NATO is not preparing for the next war :: NATO Briefs Series :: Foundation for Strategic Research :: FRS (frstrategie.org)

What America Didn’t Understand About Its Longest War – POLITICO

A Status Check on the Army’s Preparation for the Next War – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

China Isn’t That Strategic – The Atlantic

4 June 2021

PODCASTS/VIDEOS:

Multiple Interesting Podcasts: Western Way of War Podcast Series | RUSI

T.E. Lawrence on Weaponizing Social Movements – YouTube

‎War on the Rocks: Change or Die on Apple Podcasts

READINGS:

Irregular Versus Conventional Warfare: A Dichotomous Misconception – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Group-think: what it is and how to avoid it (theconversation.com)

It’s time to drop ‘competition’ from US defense strategy | TheHill (ampproject.org)

To Deter or Win Future Wars, the United States Must Reverse the Cost-Exchange Ratio | Proceedings – May 2021 Vol. 147/5/1,419 (usni.org)

Read Voraciously: General Miller’s  Reading Recommendations – From the Green Notebook

On American military strategic frames and self-imposed limitations: designing disruptive and alternative constructs | LinkedIn

The Truth About Tripwires: Why Small Force Deployments Do Not Deter Aggression – Texas National Security Review (tnsr.org)

Special Operations and Design Thinking: Through the Looking Glass of Organizational Knowledge Production: Special Operations Journal: Vol 2, No 1 (tandfonline.com)

Clausewitz and the Strategic Deficit » Wavell Room

The ambiguity of hybrid warfare: A qualitative content analysis of the United Kingdom’s political–military discourse on Russia’s hostile activities: Contemporary Security Policy: Vol 0, No 0 (tandfonline.com)

The UK Integrated Review and Future Generations | RUSI

Sharpening the Dagger: Optimising Special Forces for Future Conflict | RUSI

5 May 2021

PODCASTS/VIDEOS:

General Angus Campbell on War in 2025 – YouTube

What is “Strategic Thought”? – YouTube

How Small Wars Fit into Big Ones: Lessons from the Masters of Irregular Warfare – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

The Battle of Marawi – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

The Unconventional Future of Conventional War – War on the Rocks

READINGS:

Failing to Train: Conventional Forces in Irregular Warfare – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

CENTCOM Commander: Drones Dropping Explosives ‘Probably Concerns Me the Most’ – Homeland Security Today (hstoday.us)

Bombs in the Box: China’s Trojan Horse Navy – SpyTalk

Striking the Right Balance: How Russian Information Operations in the Baltic States Should Inform US Strategy in Great Power Competition – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Building and Enabling Urban Resistance Networks In Small Countries – A Crucial Role For U.S. Special Forces In Great Power Competition | Small Wars Journal

Historic Marine Plan to Reinvent The Corps EXCLUSIVE « Breaking Defense – Defense industry news, analysis and commentary

The Future of Sino-U.S. Proxy War – Texas National Security Review (tnsr.org)

Back to the Future: Getting Special Forces Ready for Great-Power Competition – War on the Rocks

Wargaming for the New Great Game – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

2 April 2021

PODCASTS/VIDEOS:

Hybrid is Everything and Everything is Hybrid | RUSI

How Small Wars Fit into Big Ones: Lessons from the Masters of Irregular Warfare – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

READINGS:

Maneuver Warfare: “Reports of My Death Have Been Greatly Exaggerated” – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Learning the lessons of Nagorno-Karabakh the Russian way (iiss.org)

Are U.S. Special Forces Quietly Using Armed Robots? (forbes.com)

Thinking beyond the Books: Sociological Biases of Our Military Institutions (af.edu)

Incorporating the Cyberspace Domain: How Russia and China Exploit Asymmetric Advantages in Great Power Competition – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Turkey’s New Joint Operational Concepts Foreshadow the Future of Armed Conflict – Georgetown Security Studies Review

Artificial Intelligence, Autonomy, and the Risk of Catalytic Nuclear War – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

An Irregular Upgrade to Operational Design – War on the Rocks

Russian Forces in Kaliningrad: Implications of the newly formed 18th Guards Motor Rifle Division – Russia Military Analysis (wordpress.com)

20210319-csa-paper-1-signed-print-version.pdf (army.mil)

1 March 2021

Total Defense: How the Baltic States Are Integrating Citizenry Into Their National Security Strategies | Small Wars Journal

Building the Next Generation of Boyds, Hoppers, Krulaks and Pattons – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Chemical Weapons and the Hierarchy of Victims – War on the Rocks

The Army Needs an Urban Warfare School and it Needs it Soon – Modern War Institute (usma.edu)

Poland | Simulation of war with Russia with the participation of F35 and Patriot turns into a fiasco | News on Defence, Security and International Relations (defenceredefined.com.cy)

Special operations (forces) explained | Militaire Spectator

Is the Department of Defense Making Enough Progress in Wargaming? – War on the Rocks

Military “Science”: What Have You Done For Me Lately? | by Grant Martin | Feb, 2021 | Medium

Resourcing Irregular and Conventional Warfare Capabilities | RealClearDefense

Kill the Homothetic Army: Gen. Guy Hubin’s Vision of the Future Battlefield – War on the Rocks

I’m Sorry for Creating the ‘Gerasimov Doctrine’ – Foreign Policy

What’s in a Name? Reimagining Irregular Warfare Activities for Competition – War on the Rocks

The Death of Critical Thinking in the Military? Here’s How to Fix It. | RealClearDefense

Paralysis in Peer Conflict? The Material Versus the Mental in 100 Years of Military Thinking – War on the Rocks

The Pentagon thinks urban warfare is obsolete. That’s wrong. – The Washington Post