Articles
Our articles cut through the noise on irregular warfare to connect strategic theory to operational reality and translate complexity into insight for practitioners and policymakers. No time to read? Check out our podcast, "Insider: Short of War," which transforms our articles into concise, engaging audio pieces you can listen to anywhere. Available directly in most of our articles and on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and all major platforms.
How to Challenge China's Military Deception Tactics
The United States’ pivot from counterinsurgency to peer conflict over the past decade has exposed a critical vulnerability: a diminished focus on detecting deception by operational and tactical level practitioners. Throughout history, US military strategy has adapted to specific threats. During the Cold War, the AH-64 Apache helicopter was
The Emergence of Two Distinct Jihadist Ways of War
On November 27, the jihadist organization Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in Syria initiated an offensive against the regime of embattled dictator Bashar al-Assad. In a matter of 11 days, HTS forces advanced more than 50 miles east and 200 miles south from its bases in the northwest Idlib
The Age of Decentralized Information Warfare is Here
Since February 2022, Russia has focused its war effort across numerous fronts, one of which is informational warfare. Throughout the past two years, Russia has found success in spreading disinformation to undermine support for Ukraine in the West. The information battlefield is equally as important as the physical battlefield, as
Solar Diplomacy: The Role of Renewable Energy in Great Power Competition
The United States, in its quest to counter Russia and China, neglects Central Asia’s key geopolitical advantage by focusing resources on Europe and the Asia-Pacific. Within Central Asia, the United States has the opportunity to actively encourage private sector investment in the region’s promising renewable energy industries
The Wagner Group’s Use of Chinese Space Intelligence
Editor’s note: This article is part of Project Air & Space Power, which explores and advocates for the totality of air, aviation, and space power in irregular, hybrid, and gray-zone environments. We invite you to contribute to the discussion, explore the difficult questions, and help influence the future
Money Talks and Hunger Walks: Buying Down State-Actor Influence Risk
Editor’s note: This article is part of Project Cyber, which explores and characterizes the myriad threats facing the United States and its allies in cyberspace, the information environment, and conventional and irregular spaces. Please contact us if you would like to propose an article, podcast, or event environment. We
The Day After Nasrallah: Succession and Strategic Opportunities
On October 15, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) released an interrogation video of the first captured Hezbollah militant since the beginning of Israel’s ground incursion in southern Lebanon. Wadah Younis, who was found hiding in a tunnel, describes a demoralized movement mired in fear and internal chaos. Starting with
Beyond Binaries: Cyber Force Generation and the SOCOM-like Model
This article is part of Project Cyber, which explores and characterizes the myriad threats facing the United States and its allies in cyberspace, the information environment, and conventional and irregular spaces. Please contact us if you would like to propose an article, podcast, or event environment. We invite you to
“I Want to Live”: Psychological Warfare for the Modern Era
In the evening of August 6, 2024, the smartphones of Russian soldiers in Kursk Oblast lit up with messages decrying “the flames of war unleashed by Putin” that “have spread to the Kursk region” and the “senseless bloodbath in Ukraine.” They called on Russian troops to “extinguish this fire” by
Israel, Hezbollah, and Arab Hostility
Israel is conducting extensive attacks against Lebanon—for the sixth time in their shared history—after months of a military back-and-forth with the Lebanese Shia militant group Hezbollah. In late September, Israel assassinated Hezbollah’s Secretary-General, Hasan Nasrallah, as part of a systematic offensive against dozens of
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