Modern War Institute

The war in Ukraine has been playing out in—and across—all domains. So it is perhaps surprising that Russia's invasion plan held almost no role for the type of operation designed to bridge two of those domains. There has been little sign that Russia sought to employ amphibious operations to gain a foothold in the south of the country—despite Ukraine's long Black Sea coast. Is this an indicator that such operations are a relic of the past? Or is it an anomaly? To help understand those questions, we're returning to an episode originally released early last year that featured a conversation with Tim Heck, MWI's deputy editorial director and coeditor of the book On Contested Shores: The Evolving Role of Amphibious Operations in the History of Warfare.

The decisions by the governments of Sweden and Finland to apply to join NATO mark a major departure from both countries' longstanding policies of nonalignment. But how, specifically, will it affect these countries’ defense capabilities—and those of NATO? How much needs to be done to achieve interoperability? And most fundamentally, while Russia’s invasion of Ukraine clearly triggered these decisions, why did both countries make this major decision at this particular moment? To unpack those questions and many more, John Amble is joined on this episode by Rasmus Hindren, the head of international relations at the European Center of Excellence for Countering Hybrid Threats, a senior nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council, and an experienced defense policy practitionerin his home country of Finland.

Almost every listener will be familiar with the Turkish-made TB-2 Bayraktar drone. Most will have seen the many reports of its operational effectiveness in the hands of Ukrainian forces defending against Russia's invasion of their country. But beyond that media coverage, the story of the drone's development, its particular capabilities, and its performance not just in Ukraine but in other recent conflict, as well, is an interesting one. To discuss these topics and explore the broader implications of the TB-2's effectiveness in Ukraine, John Amble is joined on this episode by Dr. Can Kasapoglu, director of the Security and Defense Studies Program at EDAM, a Turkish think tank, and a nonresident fellow at the Jamestown Foundation.

The ongoing war in Ukraine is giving observers a chance to forecast how future conflicts will take shape. Drones, advanced sensors, and other technologies are playing impactful roles in the fight. At the same time, artillery is demonstrating its enduring relevance in large-scale combat, air defense is reemerging as a criticial capability, and basic concepts like effective camouflage are proving to be as important as they are fundamental. Many, if not all, of these trends were on display more than a year earlier in another war that received considerably less attention but is similarly packed with lessons about the future of war. Dr. Jack Watling joins this episode to discuss the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh War. Note: This episode was originally released in October 2020.

Hypersonic missiles have become an increasingly frequent focus of defense and security discussions in recent years and the subject of growing public attention. But what truly sets them apart, beyond just velocity, from existing missile technology? Do they represent a game changer on the strategic landscape, or are they better understood as just an evolutionary step in missile development? What implications do they have from a defense perspective? To address those questions, John Amble is joined on this episode by Tom Karako, director of the Missile Defense Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

This episode features a discussion with retired Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges. He served until 2017 as the commanding general of US Army Europe and now holds the pershing Chair in Strategic Studies at the Center for European Policy Analysis. The discussion was originally recorded in the spring of 2021, and the strategic landscape has been dramatically transformed by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. But as the war in Ukraine unfolds, this conversation offers some exceptionally important broader context within which the events of today are taking place. It also offers a framework within which to understand what the invasion means—not only how it happened but also what impact it will have as we look forward.

This episode of the MWI Podcast tackles the topic of no-fly zones. Almost immediately after Russian forces invaded Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy began calling for a no-fly zone to be implemented over his country to negate the effects of Russian airpower. It’s a call that NATO leaders have resisted. To discuss why, and to offer a very unique perspective on what putting a no-fly zone in place actually entails, John Amble is joined by retired US Air Force Colonel Mike Pietrucha, a veteran aviator with extensive combat experience—including taking part in the enforcement of no-fly zones over both northern and southern Iraq and in the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s.

In recent weeks there has been a considerable amoung of questioning in public debate in the United States about Germany and—when it has been stated most bluntly—how reliable Germany is as an ally. The reason this is all being raised now is because of the Ukraine crisis. On a few very high-profile issues, Germany—according to this line of questioning—seems hesitant to cooperate fully with NATO partners in supporting Ukraine against the threat of Russian aggression. But the reality is much more complicated than simply saying Germany is or is not a reliable ally. Dr. Ulrike Franke joins this episode to discuss this complex issue and provide the nuance and context necessary to properly understand it.

From 2016 to 2018, Colonel Liam Collins played a key role in US efforts to assist the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense with a series of substantial reforms—ranging from organization and command and control to military training, medicine, and logistics. That experience gives him a unique perspective from which to assess the capabilities of Ukraine's military. With tensions rising amid a Russian troop buildup along its border with Ukraine, he joins the MWI Podcast to share that perspective.

This episode of the MWI Podcast features a conversation with August Cole, coauthor of a new book called Burn-In: A Novel of the Real Robotic Revolution. It’s a techno-thriller and a work of fiction, but it is also based on deep research and allows readers to examine the types of technologies that will increasingly characterize the future—from everyday life to the conduct of war. In fact, the seemingly remarkable technologies featured in the book's plot are already emerging and in many cases already exist.