The widespread assumption that the United States can achieve favorable outcomes in war with more machines and fewer humans must be subjected to rigorous scrutiny. This article challenges that assumption through a historical inquiry guided by the catalysts for…
Committee hearings are a key mechanism by which Congress conducts oversight and shapes defense policy. The expertise Congress chooses to draw upon in these settings can have important implications for the substance of national security choices, the time…
In her introduction to Volume 8, Issue 2, our editor-in-chief, Sheena Chestnut Greitens, discusses how patterns of continuity and change interact to shape world politics—and the challenges for strategy and scholarship that emerge as a result.
In an age where power hangs on technological advantage, America's greatest saboteur may be itself. A World War II sabotage manual from the predecessor to the CIA reveals how bureaucracy drains the Defense Department of purpose and delays progress. But there is…
India is a case study for how the Soviet Union tried to use the Third World and decolonization to advance its geostrategic position in the Cold War world. From Nikita Khrushchev’s celebrated visit to India in 1955 until the dissolution of the Soviet Union in…
How does software contribute to military accidents? The stakes are high. During the Cold War, computerized early warning systems produced “near-miss” nuclear crises. In the future, military AI applications could fail with devastating consequences. To…
The specter of protracted large-scale ground combat has grown more real in the wake of Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine. As the United States and its partners debate the best way to prepare for such a conflict, it would be wise to review the experience of the…
Roundtables are where we get to hear from multiple experts on either a subject matter or a recently published book. These collections of essays allow for detailed debates and discussions from a variety of viewpoints so that we can deeply explore a given topic or book.
In this roundtable review, Mark Pomar, Kathryn Stoner, Carol Saivetz, Natasha Kuhrt, and Onur İşçi offer their thoughts on Sergey Radchenko’s new book, “To Run the World: The Kremlin’s Cold War Bid for Global Power.” These contributors offer a diverse range of perspectives on Soviet foreign policy — and implications for Russian policy today. Plus, Radchenko offers a response.
In this roundtable review, Michael Kofman, Dara Massicot, Cynthia Roberts, and Michael Petersen discuss Dima Adamsky’s new book, “The Russian Way of Deterrence: Strategic Culture, Coercion, and War.”
In his book, “Command: The Politics of Military Operations from Korea to Ukraine,” Lawrence Freedman highlights why an understanding of politics is a central component of military leadership. In this roundtable review, Jason Dempsey, Raphael Cohen, Susan Bryant, and Sonya Finley consider the lessons that leaders can draw from Freedman’s book and the importance of a political sensibility that allows commanders to navigate complex military and political environments.