Asymmetric Warfare Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
In recent years, the idea of ‘swarming’ – that is, simultaneous multidirectional attack or maneuver by large number of independent or semi-independent small units – became a subject of a heated debate. Some believe this is the future of... more
In recent years, the idea of ‘swarming’ – that is, simultaneous multidirectional attack or maneuver by large number of independent or semi-independent small units – became a subject of a heated debate. Some believe this is the future of warfare, while others see this belief as ridiculous and dangerous. In the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), specifically, swarming was heralded as the new way of war before the 2006 Second Lebanon War. But during and after the war, the word itself was turned into a derogatory term, symbolizing all that was wrong with the IDF’s performance: relying on new, untested and unrealistic concepts to pretend that the Army has a silver bullet which will solve its problems quickly and easily, ignoring reality in the process. This article draws on six historical case studies, from the American airborne operation in the Normandy Invasion to the Second Lebanon War, to examine the method of swarming, its relevance and its uses. Finally, the article concludes that Swarming is not a revolutionary method, and not ‘The future of conflict’. However it is a very useful method in certain situations, provided that commanders know and understand its possibilities and limitations.
This article overviews the phenomenon of private military and security companies (PMSCs) through the prism of various theoretical concepts. The paper explores the heterogeneous nature of PMSCs, the reasons for their present-day increased... more
This article overviews the phenomenon of private military and security companies (PMSCs) through the prism of various theoretical concepts. The paper explores the heterogeneous nature of PMSCs, the reasons for their present-day increased activity, and interaction with state and non-state participants in global processes. The phenomenon manifests itself amid the change in the attitude towards traditional forms of violence, which allows states to partly outsource their security and law-enforcement functions. At the same time, some countries maintain their monopoly on violence and are even expanding the arsenal of mechanisms for consolidating their geopolitical influence through PMSCs. The study shows that PMSCs' activities in "weak" countries may impair the inviolability of their statehood. The article also discusses the possibility of democratic control of PMSCs' activities. Keywords: non-state actors, private military and security companies (PMSCs), sovereignty, asymmetric conflicts, new types of war, privatization and outsourcing in the security field, democratic control, state monopoly on legitimate violence
The article examines how new planning concepts and methods advanced by the RAND Corporation and adopted by the Pentagon during the 1990s served to inflate defense requirements. A version appeared in the March/April 1998 Bulletin of the... more
The article examines how new planning concepts and methods advanced by the RAND Corporation and adopted by the Pentagon during the 1990s served to inflate defense requirements. A version appeared in the March/April 1998 Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists as “Inventing Threats.”
The implementation of international humanitarian law (IHL) is confronted with many challenges. Some of them are inherent since IHL applies to armed conflicts: a situation must be classified before IHL can be applied. Existing... more
The implementation of international humanitarian law (IHL) is confronted with many challenges. Some of them are inherent since IHL applies to armed conflicts: a situation must be classified before IHL can be applied. Existing implementation mechanisms either do not function at all or have their limits. In certain conflicts, such as asymmetric conflicts, and with regard to certain players, such as armed groups, it is particularly difficult to obtain respect of IHL. Beyond that, there is a perhaps even more dangerous challenge in perception.The gap between the burgeoning promises of protection by the law made by doctrine, jurisprudence and sometimes even by States, and the systematic non-respect of that law, which (in the author's view wrongly) transpires from the media and NGO reports, undermines the credibility of the law and the willingness to respect it. The author advocates ways to reduce this gap.
Abstract This article examines the longstanding rivalry of Rome and Parthia, which began as an unintended consequence of Crassus’ decisive defeat at Carrhae in 53 BCE. It synthesizes the accounts and opinions of numerous Graeco-Roman... more
Abstract
This article examines the longstanding rivalry of Rome and Parthia, which began as an unintended consequence of Crassus’ decisive defeat at Carrhae in 53 BCE. It synthesizes the accounts and opinions of numerous Graeco-Roman writers from the Augustan Age to late antiquity in order to help illustrate the new and interconnected post-Carrhae world and its legacy. The rivalry of the Romans and Parthians became a primary focus of their foreign policies and drastically expanded their perceptions of the world in which they interacted. Even after the fall of the Parthians to the rebellious Sassanid Persians in the 220s CE, the Romans continued to find their three-century-long rivalry with the Parthians of interest and relevant to the changing world of late antiquity.
Jurnal ini memiliki tujuan untuk mengetahui bagaimana keterlibatan perempuan dalam aksi terorisme di Indonesia.Perspektif gender dan teori-teori feminisme mengkaji isu terorisme yang biasa dilekatkan dengan sifat kemaskulinan laki-laki... more
Jurnal ini memiliki tujuan untuk mengetahui bagaimana keterlibatan perempuan dalam aksi terorisme di Indonesia.Perspektif gender dan teori-teori feminisme mengkaji isu terorisme yang biasa dilekatkan dengan sifat kemaskulinan laki-laki serta pergeseran peran sosial perempuan melalui keterlibatannya tersebut. Keterlibatan perempuan dalam aksi terorisme dibuktikan dengankesamaan faktor, motivasi, dan tingkatan komitmen. Terdapat pergeseran peran sosial perempuan, yaitu terlibatnya perempuan dalam aktivitas yang maskulin seperti terorisme. Feminitas perempuan termanfaatkan dan disalahgunakan oleh laki-laki untuk dilibatkan dalam aktivitas menyangkut terorisme yang dijalaninya. Peran perempuan yang termanfaatkan dalam aktivitas tersebut menunjukkan bukti ancaman keamanan nasional dengan keberadaannya yang mempengaruhi komponen-komponen negara.
In the closing days of the 1982 Falklands War, Argentine forces successfully employed an improvised shore-based Exocet against HMS Glamorgan. The ship survived but was put out of action. 30 years later, the shadow of this half-forgotten... more
In the closing days of the 1982 Falklands War, Argentine forces successfully employed an improvised shore-based Exocet against HMS Glamorgan. The ship survived but was put out of action. 30 years later, the shadow of this half-forgotten incident looms large over East Asia, with shore-based anti-ship missiles being one of the asymmetrical technologies some voices are urging Taipei to adopt as a reaction to a worsening military balance in the Taiwan Strait. A key ethical and political issue is whether to deploy them in built-up areas, this being an essential difference between limited, and people's war.
Army generals unsurprisingly have tended to be remembered best for feats concocted on the battlefield when managing formations of soldiers pitted against similar opposition in an international or a civil war. But the changing nature of... more
Army generals unsurprisingly have tended to be remembered best for feats concocted on the battlefield when managing formations of soldiers pitted against similar opposition in an international or a civil war. But the changing nature of military conflict since the end of the Second World War has seen a diminution of all out wars between massed national armies and an increase in what are termed low intensity conflicts where a national army has to contend with an insurgency. The wars fought by the fading colonial powers Britain and France to put down insurrections in the postwar period such as occurred in Palestine, Indochina, Malaya, Kenya, Algeria and others, are notable examples. These conflicts provided fertile breeding ground for a type of soldier immersed in the sort of strategies and tactics not imparted in many staff colleges of the time which focused on conventional warfare. And while the idea of unorthodox warfare was not invented during this period, the experience of fighting against miscellaneous national liberation movements while utilizing irregular methods of warfare brought about new theoretical constructs that began to reshape the thinking of many military staff colleges about the manner in which they trained their officers.
This paper deals with the background, role players, sequence of events, geopolitical considerations and history of the Angolan War which took place from 1975 to 1990 between the Soviet Union and its allies & proxies on the one hand, and... more
This paper deals with the background, role players, sequence of events, geopolitical considerations and history of the Angolan War which took place from 1975 to 1990 between the Soviet Union and its allies & proxies on the one hand, and the Republic of South Africa and its allies on the other. It also has a section presenting a rebuttal of previously published material on this subject, and a section on disinformation techniques used in and by the Soviet Union.
The state of conflict is a natural state of affairs, either between the individuals or between sovereign states. In any kind of conflict, power matters. Just like the one with a weapon is more likely to prevail over the unarmed, the... more
The state of conflict is a natural state of affairs, either between the individuals or between sovereign states. In any kind of conflict, power matters. Just like the one with a weapon is more likely to prevail over the unarmed, the military superpower is more likely to destroy the military dwarf. However, it is not impossible for the inferiors to prevail. The history of military confrontations is not lacking the examples when the inherently inferior forces managed to achieve victory over the superior. This happened regardless of the fact that the handicap of power between adversaries was assessed as 5:1. In this regard, the aim of this dissertation is to understand the logics behind the unexpected losses of the military superpowers when confronted with the deficient powers. Such losses are scrutinized through the prism of the asymmetric wars. The latter envisages analysis of the existing theories which intend to explain frequently ambiguous outcomes of the asymmetric wars. This thesis also aims to examine the modern notion of warfare and connect it to the existing theories of asymmetric conflicts. In the end, a suggestion on the essence of contemporary asymmetric wars has been made. The overall victory is predefined by a series of spatial victories in social psychological confrontation, where the support of people becomes the strategic resource.
Cet article se veut un outil précis et fouillé à l’usage des chercheurs souhaitant approfondir le domaine de la petite guerre et des troupes légères (mise à jour, 2005). Depuis un article d’André Martel paru dans la « Revue Historique »... more
Cet article se veut un outil précis et fouillé à l’usage des chercheurs souhaitant approfondir le domaine de la petite guerre et des troupes légères (mise à jour, 2005).
Depuis un article d’André Martel paru dans la « Revue Historique » en 1971, la communauté des historiens militaires en France n’a cessé périodiquement de souligner jusqu’à nos jours – avec des approches actualisées – le renouveau de cette histoire militaire. L’intérêt pour la petite guerre s’inscrit dans ce mouvement. Il a été porté aussi par la réalité de beaucoup des conflits d’aujourd’hui, dits « de basse intensité », dans lesquels la tactique des troupes légères d’autrefois, alternative à la bataille, trouve son avatar contemporain. L’article attire d’abord l’attention sur la plus ou moins grande pertinence de l’emploi de l’expression de « petite guerre » dans l’historiographie, en français, en allemand et en anglais. Il procède ensuite à la généalogie de l’étude de la petite guerre à l’époque moderne (XVIe - XVIIIe siècles), en France et dans les mondes anglo-saxon et germanique. Il pointe enfin le problème du cloisonnement des travaux, entre les périodes historiques comme d’un pays à l’autre.
The attacks of September 11, 2001 (9/11) and two extended counterinsurgency campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan presented the United States with unconventional adversaries for which it was largely unprepared. These opponents did not fight... more
The attacks of September 11, 2001 (9/11) and two extended counterinsurgency campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan presented the United States with unconventional adversaries for which it was largely unprepared. These opponents did not fight as doctrinal formations or within clearly defined operational boundaries. Rather, they were organized as loose networks, comprised of individuals often indistinguishable from surrounding populations. Without uniforms and flags, the task of identifying and target- ing these entities presented an unprecedented operational challenge for which traditional warfighting approaches were largely unsuited. In response, the U.S. military and the broader national security apparatus embarked upon a decade of doctrinal, technical, and organizational innovations premised on the idea that individual combatants had become a salient national security concern and a legitimate object of military targeting. Within this new operational paradigm, the identification, screening, and targeting of individual combatants and their associated networks became the central focus for a new mode of state warfare—iWar.
Over the last decade, this approach to warfighting has emphasized the operational tasks of identifying key actors on the battlefield, penetrating their networks, and isolating them from larger populations, and, when necessary, conducting kill/capture operations against high-value insurgent and terrorist targets. This strategy required the adoption of new doctrinal concepts deeply influenced by network analysis theory and the use of identity-base targeting. These methods emphasized analytical approaches based upon the disaggregation of battlefield threats down to the lowest possible component—often the individual combatant—and introduced identity as a critical signature of military targeting.
Along with new doctrinal concepts, the conflicts of the last decade also generated a range of technology innovations specifically designed for the informational demands of identity-based operations. These included biometrics, expeditionary forensics, and DNA analysis, to name a few. However, the tools and methods of iWar were by no means limited to use on foreign battlefields. On the domestic front, similar technologies have been used to construct an expansive identity-based screening program that has kept borders, transportation networks, and American cities remarkably safe since 9/11. This achievement depended upon the accumulation of a dense informational base layer designed to support identity management, net- work analysis, and data sharing across the entire U.S. national security apparatus.
The challenges presented by post-9/11 adversaries were also the catalyst for a major bureaucratic transformation that has gradually eroded many of the traditional lines separating military operations, foreign intelligence activities, and domestic security functions. These changes reflect a new strategic calculus that has placed the threat from non-state actors and individual combatants on equal footing with adversarial states in the crafting of U.S. national security policy and as a driver of military innovation. This monograph examines the course of this doctrinal and technical transformation over the last decade and con- siders the implications for the future of U.S. national security strategy and military conflict in the age of iWar.
Tatar incursions into the south-eastern territory of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in early modern period had an extremely degrading effect on the functioning of the economy and demographic development of the areas affected by those... more
Tatar incursions into the south-eastern territory of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in early modern period had an extremely degrading effect on the functioning of the economy and demographic development of the areas affected by those slave hunting operations. However, as the military operations pursued by Tatar hordes were asymmetric, their impact was much broader, extending to multi-aspect socio-cultural processes which still await in-depth recognition by historical sciences. Some of these processes can be termed anomic, a social condition characterized by instability, desintegration and sense of anxiety. In the historical perspective, Tatar slave raids were the most traumatic experience, of existential significance, to the populations inhabiting the south-eastern provinces of the Kingdom of Poland, one of their consequences having been the post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This disease entity must have affected a considerable portion of the several hundred thousand captives abducted from the Poland-Lithuania’s territory by Tatar warriors in the seventeenth century. Among the main stressors that triggered traumatic experiences in the attacked communities was the practice of inciting large-scale fires of the built-up areas and economic infrastructures of villages and smaller urban centres. The particularly devastating practice of taking captives was frequently combined with demonstrative killing of the dwellers of the settlements under attack. Based on seventeenth-century source material of varied origin, the author traces the manifestations of traumatic experiences, highlighting the testimonies of psychic disorders among the people who were subjected to traumatising and limit experiences. The latter typically included brutally violent attacks of Tatar troops and the immediately consequent captivity — and, in most of the cases, exhaustive transfer of the captives towards the Black Sea steppes and conclusive separation from their closest relatives.
The evolution of war and conflict has been in step with the progress of mankind and civilisation. What probably started as simple differences and conflicts between and among clans, transformed over time to war as one now knows it - short... more
The evolution of war and conflict has been in step with the progress of mankind and civilisation. What probably started as simple differences and conflicts between and among clans, transformed over time to war as one now knows it - short or long but bloody. War has mutated over the years with the introduction
of new elements -- technology has been one of the important ones that has been instrumental
in changes in war and has been a big disrupter down the ages. The advent of ICT has added in rapid, and sometimes instantaneous, flow of information over great distances - even world wide. The results have been manifest in what has come to be termed as hybrid warfare. Where does air power come-in? And how does it gel with other instruments of national power?
Hybrid warfare strategies are currently a hot topic among military and security experts. The North Korean case shows that hybrid warfare is not, however, a completely new phenomenon. If one defines hybrid warfare as the integrated... more
Hybrid warfare strategies are currently a hot topic among military and security experts. The North Korean case shows that hybrid warfare is not, however, a completely new phenomenon. If one defines hybrid warfare as the integrated deployment by states of various means and actors in order to influence or coerce other states with the aim of achieving strategic objectives while avoiding actual armed conflict, North Korea has been using this strategy since the 1960s. In the past, this has also been labelled an ‘asymmetric’ or ‘unconventional’ strategy. Currently, however, the cyber dimension is a new addition to this strategy, which may contribute to the use of the new term ‘hybrid’. This essay describes the long-term aims and trends in North Korea’s strategies and means for ‘peacetime’ coercion below the level of armed conflict to reach strategic goals, as well as the rationale behind them.
This study aims to present the strategies from "Shock and Awe" to asymmetric warfare in modern military warfare. The main points in the article are: Introduction: The lessons of a war-The Yom Kippur War; In the years before the Yom Kippur... more
This study aims to present the strategies from "Shock and Awe" to asymmetric warfare in modern military warfare. The main points in the article are: Introduction: The lessons of a war-The Yom Kippur War; In the years before the Yom Kippur War; After the Yom Kippur War, the American military understood that it had to focus on mobile and rapid warfare against regular armies, an issue that had been neglected over the past decade; The "Shock and Awe" battle strategy. In conclusion: a very important element for coping with asymmetric warfare is the psychological strength of the civilian population. As stated, one of the ways of warfare of the weak side against the strong side is the marking the psychological sensitivity of the civilian population of the strong side as a target. A psychological attack on the civilian population can manifest itself in the launching of missiles at it, the control of its information, the multiplicity of casualties of its soldiers and the sowing of a sense of frustration in it due to prolonged confrontation.
The phenomena related to natural disasters and acts of war, bringing significant destruction and material losses, usually left an indelible mark in collective memory and identity of early modern era societies. This class of phenomena... more
The phenomena related to natural disasters and acts of war, bringing significant destruction and material losses, usually left an indelible mark in collective memory and identity of early modern era societies. This class of phenomena included a particular type of military-business activity of Tatar hordes, specifically long-range slave raids, which ravaged and weakened demographically the south-eastern territories
of the Polish-Lithuanian state from the late 15th to the end of the 17th century. Since military operations conducted by Tatar hordes were asymmetric warfare profile, focusing on civilian communities, mostly in rural areas, they constituted an existential threat to the civilians living there. This stemmed from the impact of such unconventional
military operations, which included catastrophic damages to buildings and economic infrastructure of attacked villages, as well as significant demographic losses, suffered by local populations. Thus, Tatar slave raids have left a permanent mark in the collective memory of victimized communities. The author utilizes a broad base of source materials dating back to 17th and 18th century, including narrative sources, visitation files of Latin Przemyśl diocese, treasury and tax sources, to focus on the transformation process of communicative (generational) memory into cultural memory. The latter began to memories into cultural memory were the representatives of local intellectual elites, most
often Catholic priests. Their activities, referring to the sacrum-profanum dichotomy and the providentialism idea, popular in the 17th–18th century Commonwealth, indicate a socially conditioned process of forming a cultural memory within the framework
of symbolically objectified and highly structured narrative, relating directly to Christian religion, which on one hand transcended individual experience of the members of local community, and on the other, responded to current social and cultural needs.
form around mid-18th century, when the last generation that directly witnessed Tatar pillage raids started dying out. Cultural memory is understood here — after German cultural studies scholar and Egyptologist Jan Assmann — as exteriorized and objectifi ed
memory of the given community about its own traumatic past. It is transmitted through textual sources and oral tradition, often supported by various “places of memory” existing in the local landscape, both material and intangible with great symbolic potential, such as legends, folk tales and songs. It seems that figures of key importance in transforming local communicative memories into cultural memory were the representatives of local intellectual elites, most often Catholic priests. Their activities, referring to the sacrum-profanum dichotomy and the providentialism idea, popular in the 17th–18th century Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, indicate a socially conditioned process of forming a cultural memory within the framework of symbolically objectifi ed and highly structured narrative, relating directly to Christian religion, which on one hand transcended individual experience of the members of local community, and on the other, responded to current social and cultural needs.
After a near quarter-century removed from its role as a global power broker, Russia remerged from its post-Cold War collapse with the 2008 invasion of Georgia. Since that time, and in response to a series of destabilizing conflicts... more
After a near quarter-century removed from its role as a global power broker, Russia remerged from its post-Cold War collapse with the 2008 invasion of Georgia. Since that time, and in response to a series of destabilizing conflicts underwritten by the West, Russia has developed its form of political warfare, known internally as hybrid warfare, that seeks to meld all the state's powers into a single, cohesive political force to overwhelm its enemies. This should come as no surprise, as Russia has a rich history of infusing politics directly into military operations. Over the past several years, first in Ukraine and then in Syria, the Kremlin has refined and honed this approach by focusing on the economy of force and adaptive strategies. While hybrid warfare has not led to attaining all operational goals, Russia has successfully reached its strategic goals in both theaters, most notably in Syria. Its continued success abroad will depend on how the Kremlin continues to evolve its force structures to conform to hybrid warfare, enabling a whole-of-government approach to warfare that can synergize diplomatic,
military, economic, and informational lines of effort.
Influencing the information environment is important in all wars, but it is crucial in an asymmetric conflict, which is more violent competitive theater than war: the belligerents play for the support of the population, and their messages... more
Influencing the information environment is important in all wars, but it is crucial in an asymmetric conflict, which is more violent competitive theater than war: the belligerents play for the support of the population, and their messages have greater importance than combat operations. The non-state belligerent generally understands this better than the state's security forces. Through some case studies the author shows some of the difficulties and some of the possibilities of Strategic Communications and Information Operations in asymmetric conflicts.
This is a work in progress. I will present it at a conference later in 2021. I shall publish the final version when the conference proceedings are published. Until then I request that you do not cite it. Meanwhile, I welcome all comments... more
This is a work in progress. I will present it at a conference later in 2021. I shall publish the final version when the conference proceedings are published. Until then I request that you do not cite it. Meanwhile, I welcome all comments and criticism.
Asymmetric warfare affects not only the country where the conflict is taking place, but also highly affects the neighboring countries. The spillover of massive migration and influx of arms leads to a crossover effect on the economic,... more
Asymmetric warfare affects not only the country where the conflict is taking place, but also highly affects the neighboring countries. The spillover of massive migration and influx of arms leads to a crossover effect on the economic, political, social, educational, and health conditions in the host communities. This crossover may be filtered by historical and current political, economic and cultural environment of the neighboring countries. This paper analyzes the direct spillover effect of the conflict and the crossover effect on the neighboring countries. It identifies the positive and negative consequences of the conflict on the neighboring countries by focusing on the possible negative and positive impacts of refugee influx. The paper utilizes existing data regarding the Syrian conflict and the refugee influx on the neighboring countries, as well as field visits to the neighboring countries to illustrate the Spillover–Crossover model. It also provides a description of the influx of migration including statistics and policies of the host communities to help identify the different possible consequences along with a detailed description of the crossover effect.
The Israeli-Palestinian dispute ranks among the most emotionally and widely discussed conflicts in contemporary international law. Leaving aside political debates over who is to blame for what and who ultimately bears the responsibility... more
The Israeli-Palestinian dispute ranks among the most emotionally and widely discussed conflicts in contemporary international law. Leaving aside political debates over who is to blame for what and who ultimately bears the responsibility for this decade-long tragedy as well as historical questions regarding the rightful owner of the “Holy Land”, it poses a variety of difficult and therefore interesting legal questions such as the territorial characterisation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the right of self-defence against irregular combatants operating from these territories to the oftentimes unresolvable issue of proportionality in asymmetric warfare. Aiming at providing a small insight into these topics, this paper is divided into three distinctive chapters; each one of them will start with a short introduction into the state of law in the respective field and then further elaborate on Israel’s position, while contrasting it with the findings of international lawyers, the International Court of Justice, non-governmental groups, and UN reports.
Malaysian Army had vast experience on counter insurgency warfare. With the challenges in this new era, asymmetric warfare can be one of the options to deal with the uncertainty scenario. Hence, the needs to familiarise with this kind of... more
Malaysian Army had vast experience on counter insurgency warfare. With the challenges in this new era, asymmetric warfare can be one of the options to deal with the uncertainty scenario. Hence, the needs to familiarise with this kind of warfare is vital.
Un abordaje a diferentes conceptualizaciones sobre conflictos armados no convencionales surgidas en EEUU hasta el presente. El objetivo es verificar si en esos casos el énfasis se circunscribe a la idea de asimetría, o si por el contrario... more
Un abordaje a diferentes conceptualizaciones sobre conflictos armados no convencionales surgidas en EEUU hasta el presente. El objetivo es verificar si en esos casos el énfasis se circunscribe a la idea de asimetría, o si por el contrario se la excede para incorporar otras consideraciones.
El trabajo describe el escenario doctrinario vigente en EEUU a inicios de los años 80, para analizar luego cinco conceptualizaciones sucesivas sobre conflictos armados no convencionales: Conflictos de Baja Intensidad; Operaciones de No-Guerra; Operaciones de Estabilización y Apoyo; Guerras
de Cuarta Generación; por último, Operaciones de Contrainsurgencia, en este caso en el escenario internacional ulterior a los atentados terroristas del 11 de septiembre de 2001
This intervention contributes to recent work in urban geography that integrates the conceptual frameworks of assemblages and actor-network theory by highlighting two additional directions that require a more rigorous and detailed... more
This intervention contributes to recent work in urban geography that integrates the conceptual frameworks of assemblages and actor-network theory by highlighting two additional directions that require a more rigorous and detailed theorization. The first direction concerns the relationship between contingency and necessity in urban assemblages and actor-networks and this paper delineates four specific propositions as a starting point for further reflection. The second direction suggests that urban assemblages and actor-networks require a more explicit vocabulary for thinking about competition and cooperation within and between cities. To this end, the paper introduces a new concept – delayed asymmetric counterforces – that can foster a better understanding of competition-induced urban change and destabilization. The novel concept is developed in conjunction with a typology of delays in competitive urban dynamics, which helps illuminate how delayed asymmetric counterforces are both a cause and an effect of the complexity inherent in the urban realm.
This article fills the gap in existing scholarship on asymmetric conflict, indigenous forces, and how socio-cultural codes shape the dynamics and outcomes of conflict transformation. Specifically, it identifies three key socio-cultural... more
This article fills the gap in existing scholarship on asymmetric conflict, indigenous forces, and how socio-cultural codes shape the dynamics and outcomes of conflict transformation. Specifically, it identifies three key socio-cultural values commonplace in honorific societies: retaliation, hospitality, and silence. As sources of effective pro-insurgent violent mobilisation and support from among the local population, these values provide insurgents with an asymmetric advantage over much stronger incumbents. Using the case studies of the two Russian counterinsurgencies in Chechnya, the article shows the mechanisms on the ground through which Moscow’s deployment of indigenous forces against insurgents helped to stem the tide of conflict, reversing the insurgents’ initial advantage in terms of asymmetry of values.
Low Intensity Conflict (LIC) is a significant feature of the contemporary world and it is a particular challenge to the armed forces of many states which are involved is such conflict, or are likely to become so. This thesis is not... more
Low Intensity Conflict (LIC) is a significant feature of the contemporary world and it is a particular challenge to the armed forces of many states which are involved is such conflict, or are likely to become so. This thesis is not concerned with how such difficult conflict situations arise. Rather it is concerned with how, from the point of view of the state, they may be contained and ultimately brought to a satisfactory resolution. The work is thus concerned with the practicalities of ending LIC. More specifically, the purpose of this research is to establish a framework of doctrinal and military principles applicable to the prevention and resolution of LIC. The principles of this thesis are based in numerous historical examples of LIC and six in depth case studies. These distilled principles are analysed in two central chapters, and are then applied in two latter defence force chapters so as to ensure there practicality and resilience. Numerous defence academics and military prac...
In the second half of the 1990s, the label “asymmetric” conflict rose to prominence among scholars and strategists, as a term for capturing the rising challenge that violent non-state actors posed to the liberal world order. However, the... more
In the second half of the 1990s, the label “asymmetric” conflict rose to prominence among scholars and strategists, as a term for capturing the rising challenge that violent non-state actors posed to the liberal world order. However, the concept soon became a catch-phrase for a range of disparate phenomena, and other buzzwords arose to describe the threats of concern to decision-makers. Conceptual confusion beset the field. This article dissects the notion of asymmetric conflicts, and distinguishes between asymmetries involving differences in (1) status, (2) capabilities, or (3) strategies between belligerents. It argues that “asymmetric” conflicts can take numerous forms depending on the combination of differences present, and offers a blue-print for keeping track of the meaning of this concept in the hope of bringing greater precision to future debates.
The dimensions of warfare have evolved over the centuries from Land and Sea to encompass Air and Outer Space in the 20th Century. With the heavy dependence on networks in the 21st Century, Cyberspace is emerging as an increasingly... more
The dimensions of warfare have evolved over the centuries from Land and Sea to encompass Air and Outer Space in the 20th Century. With the heavy dependence on networks in the 21st Century, Cyberspace is emerging as an increasingly contested domain, with critical importance for the projection of military force. In the first part of this two-piece write-up, the emergence of Cyberspace as an operational domain of warfare, as well as the types and classifications of cyber-attacks/ cyberwar were discussed. In this part, some real-world examples of cyberwar over the past decade will be described, and certain doctrinal aspects related to offensive cyberwar strategies as well as some legal implications of conducting cyberwar will be dwelt upon.
Konvansiyonel savaşların maliyetleri ve toplumlar üzerinde yarattığı ümitsizlik ve psikolojik baskı ortamı, post-modern dönem olarak isimlendirilen günümüzde istihbarat servislerini ve devletlerin ilgili kuruluşlarını asimetrik savaş... more
Konvansiyonel savaşların maliyetleri ve toplumlar üzerinde yarattığı ümitsizlik ve psikolojik baskı ortamı, post-modern dönem olarak isimlendirilen günümüzde istihbarat servislerini ve devletlerin ilgili kuruluşlarını asimetrik savaş konseptine yöneltmiştir. Nizami olmayan savaş yöntemleri arasında gösterilen psikolojik operasyonlar bu çalışmanın fikri altyapısını oluşturmaktadır. Psikolojik operasyon şemsiyesi içinde değerlendirilen; psikolojik savaş, psikolojik harekat ve propaganda faaliyetleri siyasi ve askeri paradigma çerçevesinde irdelenecektir. Genellikle birbirleri yerine kullanılan ve eksik veya hatalı tanımlamaları ile karıştırılan bu faaliyetler bu makalenin kapsamı içinde incelenecektir.
theaustralian.com.au/opinion/the-simplest-of-ideas-can-sting-your-enemy/news-story/8b14cc0c9138ded5cb231f147e5032ce OPINION The simplest of ideas can sting your enemy Illustration: Eric Lobbecke There is an urban myth that the US spent... more
theaustralian.com.au/opinion/the-simplest-of-ideas-can-sting-your-enemy/news-story/8b14cc0c9138ded5cb231f147e5032ce OPINION
The simplest of ideas can sting your enemy Illustration: Eric Lobbecke There is an urban myth that the US spent millions inventing a pen that could write in space while the Russians used a pencil. In war and most other contests for survival, it is often the simplest tools or actions that pierce the defences of an opponent, as is demonstrated by Hamas protesters in Gaza who, since March, have been sending kites with flaming payloads into Israeli farms, burning more than 900ha. While unlikely to inflict a devastating blow, the kites are an example of asymmetric warfare, frustrating the Israeli Defence Forces, one of the best trained and equipped in the world. The imagination of the kite builders is also a lesson for Australia with its acquisition of frigates, submarines and F-35 joint strike fighters; simple isn't stupid. We need to ask ourselves, what are the simplest ways our opponents can ruin our day, because it may not be with a nuclear weapon or a battleship. An F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) in action. Photo: Getty Images The kite builders know they are not going to destroy Israel. The point is to shape the battlefield, which also involves rearranging the minds of one's opponent. The Iron Dome missile defence system costs about US100million(US100 million (US100million(135m) per battery and Israel is
: The enormous costs of the American interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan have inevitably sparked a backlash against military interventions generally, especially as the magnitude of the American fiscal crisis has become apparent. While... more
: The enormous costs of the American interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan have inevitably sparked a backlash against military interventions generally, especially as the magnitude of the American fiscal crisis has become apparent. While many critics of nation-building argue that the United States should abandon military interventions altogether, others continue to accept that such interventions may be necessary to secure U.S. interests. Where the United States went wrong, these latter critics claim, is in the scale of its ambitions and the concomitant ways and means adopted to achieve them. These critics argue that, rather than seeking to transform the domestic politics of foreign countries a utopian or at least prohibitively costly goal the United States should commit only the minimum resources necessary to stabilize the target state. Such small-scale interventions what we in this volume term minimalist stabilization supposedly offer the opportunity to secure core U.S. interests at...