This Research Guide details resources which examine Hybrid Warfare through the lens of the 2013-2014 Russia-Ukraine Conflict.
Resources listed represent only a small sampling of research material available, and we encourage students to explore our A-Z databases. A notable example is the Defense Technical Information Center (https://discover.dtic.mil/), which offers full-text Master's theses, technical reports, and other material from institutions like the Army War College, Air War College, Modern War Institute, Naval Postgraduate School, and the National Defense University.
The crisis in Ukraine and its implications for both the Crimean peninsula and Russia's relations with the West. The current conflict in Ukraine has spawned the most serious crisis between Russia and the West since the end of the Cold War. It has undermined European security, raised questions about NATO's future, and put an end to one of the most ambitious projects of U.S. foreign policy--building a partnership with Russia. It also threatens to undermine U.S. diplomatic efforts on issues ranging from terrorism to nuclear proliferation. And in the absence of direct negotiations, each side is betting that political and economic pressure will force the other to blink first. Caught in this dangerous game of chicken, the West cannot afford to lose sight of the importance of stable relations with Russia. This book puts the conflict in historical perspective by examining the evolution of the crisis and assessing its implications both for the Crimean peninsula and for Russia's relations with the West more generally. Experts in the international relations of post-Soviet states, political scientists Rajan Menon and Eugene Rumer clearly show what is at stake in Ukraine, explaining the key economic, political, and security challenges and prospects for overcoming them. They also discuss historical precedents, sketch likely outcomes, and propose policies for safeguarding U.S.-Russia relations in the future. In doing so, they provide a comprehensive and accessible study of a conflict whose consequences will be felt for many years to come.
The unfolding crisis in Ukraine has brought the world to the brink of a new Cold War. As Russia and Ukraine tussle for Crimea and the Eastern regions, relations between Putin and the West have reached an all-time low. How did we get here? Richard Sakwa here unpicks the story of Russo-Ukrainian relations and traces the path to the recent disturbances through five "revolutions," that have forced Ukraine, a country internally divided between East and West, to choose between a closer union with Europe or its historic ties with Russia. The first full account of the ongoing crisis, Frontline Ukraine explains the origins, developments and global significance of the battle for Crimea. With all eyes focused on the region, Sakwa unravels the myths and misunderstandings of the situation, providing an essential and highly readable account of the struggle for Europe's contested borderlands.
Putin's Propaganda Machine examines Russia's "information war," one of the most striking features of its intervention in Ukraine. Marcel H. Van Herpen argues that the Kremlin's propaganda offensive is a carefully prepared strategy, implemented and tested over the last decade. Initially intended as a tool to enhance Russia's soft power, it quickly developed into one of the main instruments of Russia's new imperialism, reminiscent of the height of the Cold War. The author describes a multifaceted strategy that makes use of diverse instruments, including mimicking Western public diplomacy initiatives, hiring Western public-relations firms, setting up front organizations, buying Western media outlets, financing political parties, organizing a worldwide propaganda offensive through the Kremlin's cable network RT, and publishing paid supplements in leading Western newspapers. In this information war, key roles are assigned to the Russian diaspora and the Russian Orthodox Church, the latter focused on spreading so-called traditional values and attacking universal human rights and Western democracy in international fora. Van Herpen demonstrates that the Kremlin's propaganda machine not only plays a central role in its "hybrid war" in Ukraine, but also has broader international objectives, targeting in particular Europe's two leading countries--France and Germany--with the goal of forming a geopolitical triangle, consisting of a Moscow-Berlin-Paris axis, intended to roll back the influence of NATO and the United States in Europe. Drawing on years of research, Van Herpen shows how the Kremlin has built an array of soft power instruments and transformed them into effective weapons in a new information war with the West.
"Brandishing the Cybered Bear: Information War and the Russia-Ukraine Conflict"
Unwala, Azhar and Ghori, Shaheen (2015), Military Cyber Affairs: Vol. 1 : Iss. 1, Article 7. Abstract: Russia's use of cyber power against Ukraine offered renewed insight to Russian cyber strategy and capabilities. This article dissects the Russia-Ukraine conflict by analyzing Russia's strategic doctrine, tactical maneuvers, and capabilities in the information realm. Understanding the Russia-Ukraine conflict in this manner can inform and strengthen U.S. cyber policy and strategy. In particular, U.S. strategic planners and cyber professionals should consider internalizing Russian strategic thinking regarding cyber power and promote tactical improvements in resilience, intelligence, and information among itself and its allies.
Hybrid, ambiguous, and non-linear? How new is Russia's 'new way of war'?
Integrating Technology into Future Hybrid Warfare Operations.
Ilan, Andrew S. 2018. Military Technology 42 (2): 35–37.
Wither, James K. 2016. Connections : The Quarterly Journal 15 (2): 73-87.
"Russia's Ambiguous Warfare and Implications for the U.S. Marine Corps"
Authors: Mary Ellen Connell and Ryan Evans; MCU Journal, Vol. 7, No. 1, Spring 2016, p. 30-45.
debate both nationally and internationally.
Bachmann, Sascha Dov, and Gunneriusson Håkan. Georgetown Journal of International Affairs, Fall 2015, 198-211.
Monaghan, Andrew. 2016. Parameters 45 (4): 65-74.
Downloadable versions of maps produced by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency.
Video in support of USASOC's "Little Green Men" primer (under the "Articles" tab); through the Assessing Revolutionary and Insurgent Strategies (ARIS) project, which consists of research conducted for the US Army Special Operations Command by the National Security Analysis Department of The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. Video is 6:48 in duration.
The United Kingdom Multinational Capability Development Campaign paper on Hybrid Warfare. This report takes the view that in order to solve a problem, one must first understand it. It sets out a framework – developed under the Multinational Capability Development Campaign (MCDC) Countering Hybrid Warfare (CHW) project – to help nations understand, detect and respond to hybrid warfare.