Modern War Institute

Latest Episodes:

The Conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh is Giving Us a Glimpse into the Future of War Oct 14, 2020

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In this episode Dr. Jack Watling, Research Fellow for Land Warfare at the Royal United Services Institute, discusses the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan that has erupted since late September surrounding the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. He examines what we can learn from it about ground combat on the modern battlefield. Among other things, he discusses the saturation of the battlefield with a variety of sensors, challenges associated with electronic warfare, and the importance of camouflage. Collectively, these represent a problem set that the US military and those of its allies largely have not encountered during nearly two decades of military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan—which makes the lessons he discusses especially important.

MWI Podcast: The Space Domain is Getting Crowded Oct 01, 2020

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In this episode of the MWI Podcast, John Amble talks to Dr. Moriba Jah, an aerospace engineer who has worked for NASA and the Air Force Research Laboratory. He is now an associate professor at the University of Texas, where he monitors space and works to track thousands of objects—a number that continues to grow—orbiting Earth.

Note: This episode was originally released in May 2019.

Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, and the Modern Battlefield Sep 16, 2020

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This episode examines how special operations forces are integrating high-tech tools like artificial intelligence and machine learning to optimize their operations. Dr. Richard Shultz of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy and Gen. Richard Clarke, commander of US Special Operations Command, join the podcast to trace the history of US special operations forces' efforts in Iraq to adapt to the counterterrorism fight there, explain how these forces made use of data to enable a remarkably rapid operational tempo, and describe how a program called Project Maven took shape to harness new technological capabilities.

Command on the Modern Battlefield Sep 02, 2020

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This episode of the MWI Podcast features a conversation with Dr. Anthony King, author of the book Command: The Twenty-First-Century General. He explains how the way in which military leaders exercise command is now remarkably different from the way they did so in the last century.

Note: This episode was originally released in March 2019.

Crafting a US Strategy for the Twenty-First Century Aug 19, 2020

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In this episode of the Modern War Institute Podcast, John Amble is joined by Rebecca Lissner and Mira Rapp-Hooper, authors of the new book An Open World: How America Can Win the Contest for Twenty-First-Century Order. Amid global power shifts and a changing world order, as well as tumultuous domestic political dynamics and rapid technological change, they make the case that US success in the decades to come will hinge on policymakers' pursuit of openness as a defining characteristic of American grand strategy.

The Other Foreign Fighters Aug 05, 2020

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In this episode, we talk to American University Professor Joseph Young and the Brookings Institution's Jason Fritz about a phenomenon they've been studying: American citizens who traveled independently to the Middle East to fight ISIS. They interviewed many of these individuals, and they share what they learned about them and why they chose to go and fight in Iraq and Syria. Note: This episode was originally released in April 2018.

Competition, Conflict, and the Future of Irregular Warfare Jul 22, 2020

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This episode of the Modern War Institute Podcast features a conversation with Dave Stephenson, the director of the Joint Staff’s Office of Irregular Warfare and Competition. The conversation dives deeply into the role of irregular warfare in the current and future global operation environments. How does it fit into the notion of great-power competition? Why is a joint approach to irregular warfare, which brings together the perspectives and accounts for the capabilities of all US armed services, especially important? These are just a few of the questions the discussion covers.

Security Force Assistance in an Era of Great-Power Competition Jul 08, 2020

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This episode of the Modern War Institute Podcast features a conversation with Col. Curt Taylor, commander of the 5th Security Force Assistance Brigade. The unit was formally activated in May, and he shares his perspective on everything that goes into creating such a unique organization. He also describes how SFABs recruit and select officers and noncommissioned officers for the advising mission, and what role advising has in an era of great-power competition.

Is Great-Power Competition a Strategy? Jun 24, 2020

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This episode of the MWI Podcast features a discussion with Ali Wyne. He is a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council and a nonresident fellow at the Modern War Institute whose recent research has been focused on great-power competition. This has become a framing mechanism within which to think about and plan US interactions with other actors. But is it a strategy? Have we defined what it entails, practically and considering all instruments of national power? The discussion tackles these and several other questions.

Women in Defense and Security Jun 10, 2020

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In this episode, four remarkably accomplished women in the field of national security join to share their experiences and observations on the evolving dynamics surrounding the vital contributions women make to US security.

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