Irregular Warfare Initiative

The public discourse on cyber force generation remains relatively stagnant, caught in a perpetual argument for either a SOCOM like solution or the creation of a new service. Ironically, this does little to advance the situation. Neither of the options have been interrogated enough in public discourse for us to appreciate the challenges of implementation. We need to start exploring deeper into each course of action before we become anchored on any one. In this paper we tried to highlight some challenges of implementation, and break down the unnecessary dichotomy between the prevailing public opinions. We encourage the continual evaluation of creative solutions that will yield the most effective force generation model.

📢 How can we strengthen cyber forces to meet today’s complex digital challenges? 💻 In a new article for the Irregular Warfare Initiative Project Cyber, authors Skyler Onken, Nick Starck, Erica D. Lonergan, JC Fernandes, Todd Arnold, and Maggie Smith argue that conventional approaches to force generation may fall short in cyber warfare. Drawing insights from U.S. Special Operations Command (#SOCOM) processes, they propose an adaptive, flexible model that empowers cyber forces to rapidly respond to ever-evolving threats. 🛡️This SOCOM-like approach emphasizes specialized #recruitment, tailored training, and agile operational structures—essential elements for navigating the diverse landscape of modern #cyber conflict. Dive into their recommendations on force agility and the lessons SOCOM can teach us about future-proofing our cyber capabilities. 🔗 Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/g3MN5gMV #CyberWarfare #IrregularWarfare #CyberSecurity #ForceGeneration #SOCOM #NationalSecurity

🔄 Rethinking Counterinsurgent Force Design and Employment 🔄 Ryan C. Van Wie’s 2023 analysis remains a must-read for understanding effective COIN strategies. Here’s why it matters today: 🛡️ Mechanized units, when used strategically, can reduce civilian casualties. 📍 Case study: The 1/1 AD's success in Ramadi (2006-07) proves that adaptable force employment is more impactful than focusing solely on force type. 🔈 Call for change: Military doctrines must be updated to reflect these lessons on force structure and flexible leadership. Explore more insights on COIN dynamics and military strategy through the full analysis linked below 👇  #Counterinsurgency #MilitaryDoctrine #Leadership #IrregularWarfare https://lnkd.in/gpdnNZ-K

✨ Ukraine’s efforts to defend itself and safeguard Europe’s security are hindered by restrictions on the use of donated weapons. President Zelenskyy’s recent appeal to remove these limitations—which would allow strikes on North Korean troops training in Russia—underscores a critical point: these constraints risk ceding strategic initiative to Russia and its allies. Such restrictions enable authoritarian regimes in Moscow, Pyongyang, and beyond to act with greater confidence. To ensure Ukraine’s military can preempt threats and take decisive actions to protect its sovereignty and the broader region, such as striking North Korean troops inside Russia preparing to attack, these limitations must be lifted. Allowing unrestricted use of these capabilities would shift the strategic balance in Ukraine’s favor. ✨ In the meantime, the Ukrainian HRIM-2 missile system is now operational, affording some ability to disrupt and deter enemy forces. The HRIM-2 is a highly capable tactical ballistic missile system with an impressive range of up to 700 kilometers, allowing Ukraine to target strategic military assets deep behind enemy lines. This new capability will moderately alter the dynamics on the battlefield, providing Ukraine with the means to neutralize emerging threats, such as North Korean units supporting Russia. To maintain global stability, Western allies must urgently lift restrictive conditions, ensuring Ukraine’s full defensive capacity. Moreover, the West must apply additional pressure on Russia, Tehran, Beijing, and Pyongyang to cease their destabilizing activities. 💪 Details - https://lnkd.in/e6Z4z8K6 #SlavaUkraini #StandWithUkraine #ArmUkraineNow #DeOppressoLiber Special Operations Association of America Center for European Policy Analysis Irregular Warfare Initiative Irregular Warfare Center (IWC)

🤔 This is yet another sign that all is not going "according to plan" with the Kremlin's "three-day special military operation" as we approach the third anniversary of Russia's unprovoked invasion of neighboring Ukraine. 😕 ✨ The arrest of yet another Russian general, this time the deputy chief of logistics of the Russian National Guard Major General Mirza Mirzaev, for corruption underscores the endemic rot plaguing the Russian government and military command. This isn't an isolated event but rather a symptom of a larger, systemic issue that defines Russia's leadership. 🏛️⚖️ Former Senator John McCain famously characterized Russia as “a gas station run by the mafia masquerading as a state,” and recent events only reinforce this truth. As corruption runs deep in Moscow’s corridors of power, the Russian people and soldiers pay the price while Kremlin officials prioritize self-preservation over national well-being. The ripple effects of this corruption cripple effective governance and military operations alike, undermining their global ambitions. 🇺🇦✨ Meanwhile, the Ukrainian people have been engaged in a valiant fight to cast off the shadow of Russia’s corrupt influence since even before the Maidan Revolution of 2014. Ukraine’s ongoing struggle embodies the pursuit of democratic ideals, transparency, and national sovereignty. It is essential that we continue to provide unwavering support to Ukraine in its mission to secure its democratic future and stand resilient against the forces of authoritarianism. Let’s pressure not only Russia but also its enablers worldwide, ensuring that Ukraine’s aspirations for a free, sovereign, and transparent state are realized. 🌋 #SlavaUkraini #StandWithUkraine #ArmUkraineNow #DeOppressoLiber https://lnkd.in/eNGgJXac Special Operations Association of America Center for European Policy Analysis Irregular Warfare Initiative Irregular Warfare Center (IWC)

🌌 🛰 The U.S.-China #competition is reaching into space! Over the past decade, the #PRC has rapidly advanced its #space capabilities, including #infrastructure across #LatinAmerica. National security experts are raising the alarm 🚨—China’s space facilities in the #WesternHemisphere could enable #satellite surveillance, intercept sensitive data, and even support #hypersonic #missile guidance. 🚀 So, what is the full extent of the PRC's reach in the Western Hemisphere, and how does it impact U.S. and regional security? 🎙️ I had the opportunity to discuss these critical issues, hosted by Leland Lazarus from FIU Jack D Gordon Institute for Public Policy and Laura Delgado Lopez, Visiting Fellow at CSIS Americas Program and co-author of our piece. We dive into China’s South American space ambitions and implications for our national security and partner nations' sovereignty. 📡 🌎 🎧 Listen to the full conversation on #FIU's #JGI Policy #podcast! 👉 Full report: https://lnkd.in/exFEES4g Irregular Warfare Initiative Atlantic Council Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security Florida International University USSOCOM United States Southern Command Special Operations Command South Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) #NationalSecurity #SpaceRace #USChina #Geopolitics #SouthAmerica #PartnersandAllies #SharedNeighborhood #SpaceDefense #IrregularWarfare #StrategicCompetition #HypersonicMissiles #PRC #technology #Transparency #FreeandSafeSpace #Democracy #Sovereignty #Governance #InternationalNorms . https://lnkd.in/e4XXFhvx

Waiting in line at the polls? Listen to our latest article, “I Want to Live: Psychological Warfare for the Modern Era,” by Peter S. as a podcast! 📱In less than 20 minutes, you can learn more about Ukraine's “I Want to Live” (Хочу жити) program. By utilizing the widespread use of personal mobile devices among Russian military personnel, this program aims to deliver messages that encourage surrender or defection on an individual basis. 🎧 Listen now: https://lnkd.in/g3QShGc7 🔗 Or read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/eqNqhdde

How can psychological operations effectively engage enemy soldiers on a personal level? 🔹 Traditional psychological operations, such as leaflet drops or mass SMS campaigns, often employ a broad “shotgun” approach, targeting large groups without personalisation. 🔹 The “I Want to Live” (Хочу жити) programme, initiated by Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence (HUR) in September 2022, represents a more focused strategy. By utilising the widespread use of personal mobile devices among Russian military personnel, this programme aims to deliver messages that encourage surrender or defection on an individual basis. 🔹 The initiative employs popular messaging platforms like Signal and Telegram, combined with automated chatbots and conventional phone lines, to communicate directly with Russian soldiers. Since its inception, the programme has reportedly made over 40,000 contacts, leading to several hundred documented surrenders. 🔹 By transitioning from traditional mass outreach to direct digital engagement, the “I Want to Live” programme illustrates a significant shift in psychological operations, utilising modern technology to provide targeted messaging directly to soldiers’ smartphones. For an exploration of this topic, read my latest article on the Irregular Warfare Initiative website: https://lnkd.in/eRndb5vY The Irregular Warfare Initiative also provided an accompanying digital audio recording of the article: https://lnkd.in/e5BsHbXG This article is derived from my ongoing PhD research at the Faculteit Militaire Wetenschappen, Nederlandse Defensie Academie into the Ukrainian intelligence services' use of social media during the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war. #Psychological #Operations #Warfare #Intelligence #Ukraine #Digital #Strategy Faculteit Militaire Wetenschappen, Nederlandse Defensie Academie War Studies Research Centre (WSRC) Koninklijke Landmacht Netherlands Intelligence Studies Association 1 German-Netherlands Corps 1 CMI Commando

🔎 🇺🇦 Publication Alert | “I Want to Live”: Psychological Warfare for the Modern Era'' In this essay Peter S. analyzes Ukraine's "I Want to Live" project, a modern psychological operations (PSYOP) campaign that uses smartphones and social media to encourage Russian soldiers to surrender. The project, launched in September 2022, represents a significant evolution in military PSYOPs by leveraging digital technology to directly reach enemy forces with personalized messages, video testimonials from POWs, and practical surrender instructions. While the project has shown significant success - with over 48 million website visits and hundreds of Russian surrenders - the author also explores ethical concerns about the use of POW testimonials and discusses how this campaign reflects broader changes in modern warfare where battles increasingly take place in digital spaces. Want to read the full article? Follow the link! Link: https://lnkd.in/eqNqhdde Irregular Warfare Initiative Faculteit Militaire Wetenschappen, Nederlandse Defensie Academie Militaire Spectator

🧠 I Want to Live: #PsychologicalWarfare for the Modern Era 🇺🇦 "Digital influence and data-driven strategies [are] shaping military outcomes and extending conflict beyond physical battlefields into the digital domains of information and perception." The Irregular Warfare Initiative’s latest article, “I Want to Live: Psychological Warfare for the Modern Era,” by Peter S. explores the Ukrainian psychological operation (PSYOP) launched in September 2022—representing Ukraine’s strategic decision to use twenty-first-century technology to bolster its kinetic campaign 📝 Key Highlights: • Emotional and Cognitive Targeting: The project focus on emotional manipulation and cognitive biases, exploiting vulnerabilities to influence behavior on an individual and societal level. • Digital and Cyber Channels: By leveraging digital platforms and cyber tools, Ukraine is able to deploy tailored content across social media • Metrics-Driven Adaptation: By monitoring key metrics like message spread, surrender requests, and civilian inquiries about mobilization, the project can adjust its messaging to respond to battlefield developments and shifts in Russian public sentiment. This article is a must-read for professionals focused on understanding the rapid evolution of PSYOPs. 🔗 Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/eqNqhdde #InformationOperations #NationalSecurity #IrregularWarfare #Defense #Cyber #Ukraine #Russia Netherlands Defence Academy