RUSI Journal Radio

Major Patrick Hinton, Former Chief of the General Staff's Visiting Fellow at RUSI, sheds light on the transformative power of AI in military wargaming. He discusses how modern AI tools enhance decision-making while retaining the essential human element. The conversation covers innovative data uses, like 3D body scans to preempt training injuries. Hinton also highlights the strategic integration of AI in military procurement, addressing challenges like bias and accountability. His reflections on the evolution of defense technology offer a compelling view of the future.

Ingvild Bode, Associate Professor of International Relations, discusses AI in military systems, focusing on norms and standards. Topics include autonomy in weapon systems, geopolitical competition in AI, workforce diversity, ethical AI, cultural perceptions, and realistic perspectives on AI technologies.

Carlos Solar discusses how shifting domestic politics influence the way Latin American countries behave on the international stage, and analyses their divergent narratives about conflict and the future of the international order. Dr Carlos Solar is Senior Research Fellow in the International Security Studies team at RUSI. His current research is focused on security dynamics in the Americas, notably on military, human security and international relations issues that connect with the West. He is the author of Cybersecurity Governance in Latin America (SUNY Press), Governing the Military (Manchester University Press) and Government and Governance of Security (Routledge), and co-edited Violence, Crime and Justice in Latin America (Routledge).

Tim Edmunds, a Professor of International Security and Director of the Global Insecurities Centre at the University of Bristol, sheds light on the evolving nature of maritime security shaped by geopolitical shifts and climate change. He discusses the dual role of conflict and collaboration in maritime security, highlighting threats like terrorism alongside international cooperative efforts. Edmunds also examines Arctic security challenges presented by melting ice and the impact of ocean industrialization, calling for enhanced global coordination to navigate these pressing issues.

Harriet Gray, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Politics and International Relations at the University of York, mental health nurse Nicola Lester and Emma Norton, lawyer and Director of the Centre for Military Justice, talk about their research on sexual violence in the British Armed Forces and discuss cultural and institutional responses.

Professor David Ucko, Professor at the College of International Security Affairs, National Defense University, in Washington, DC, discusses the history of counterinsurgency and irregular warfare, and the role of special operation forces in contemporary conflict.

Hosts Emma and Ed talk to Dr Jennifer Cole, Senior Lecturer in Global Planetary Health at Royal Holloway, and Dr Ivica Petrikova, Senior Lecturer in the Department of Politics, International Relations and Philosophy at Royal Holloway, discussing how the global food chain is affected by changing geopolitics, and how the UK can work to build a more resilient and fairer approach to food production and consumption.

A preview of the season’s upcoming episodes with RUSI Journal Editor Emma De Angelis and Deputy Editor Edward Mortimer.

In the second of two episodes on moral injury in the military, hosts Demi, Emma and Ed are joined by Katharine Campbell, a writer and neuroscientist. Katharine’s biography of her late father Sholto Douglas, Marshal of the Royal Air Force Lord Douglas of Kirtleside, was published in 2021. It highlights his lifelong battle with post-traumatic stress disorder and was shortlisted for the 2018 Tony Lothian Prize.  Katharine collaborates with historians across Europe and with world experts on PTSD and has participated in the Australian Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide. She also campaigns for the charity Combat Stress.

Academic Andrea Ellner and author Katharine Campbell discuss the concept of moral injury. In the first of two episodes on moral injury in the military, hosts Demi and Emma are joined by Andrea Ellner, a Lecturer in Defence Studies at the Defence Studies Department at King’s College London, based at the Joint Services Command and Staff College in Shrivenham. Andrea’s work focuses on gender and security, and civil-military relations and ethics, with a particular interest in moral injury. She is a Member of the Board of Directors for the Society of Military Ethics in Europe (EURO-ISME).