This Means War

Financing Deterrence

The charter for the Defence, Security, and Resilience Bank (DSRB) has been signed and founding members – notably including both Canada and Luxenberg – are piling on the p

Land Power and contemporary conflict

The reticence of Western governments to use Land Forces on operations has been notable of late. Dr Jack Watling, from RUSI in London, talks through the reasons for this,

The DIP: It's not about national security

Despite all the diatribes written about the UK's 2026 Defence Investment Plan, the root of the issue wasn't identified; that the plan was about military hardware and not

Parliamentary Scrutiny of the Military: Society deserves better

The parliamentary committees responsible for scrutiny of the Ministry of Defence on behalf of society and tax-payers can't perform their roles effectively. Government dep

How Resilient or Prepared is Enough?

How prepared are states for national emergencies and contingencies? Russian actions in Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, and the Baltic States have triggered a n

Defending MDO

If you think MDO is a prescription for how the US will fight, think again. Colonel (retired) Richard Creed, Director, Combined Arms Doctrine Directorate at Fort Leavenwor

MDO: It's a terrible concept

A new book edited by Amos Fox and Franz Stefan Gady picks apart the concept of Multi Domain Operations in forensic detail. A collection of world class scholars and practi

What has Moscow got in store for 2026?

Have Europeans become desensitized to Moscow's actions? 2025 saw Moscow fly armed drones into Poland; aerial incursions in Estonia, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Germany, and

Show me the money! The DSR Bank

How do defence companies fund growth when the orders from politicians have been promised but the cash isn't forthcoming? Want to build a new factory to double Europe's 15

Mountain Warfare

A long held military truism is about commanding the high ground in any fight: often regarded as a precursor to victory. In the days of digital evangelism, much is made of

Battlefield AI

The disorderly arrival of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to the battlefield foretells of what is to come. The similarities to the hype around cyber warfare in the 2010s is

The State and The Soldier

That the military is subordinate to political (civil) authority seems like a no brainer. Headlines are made when challenges to this norm occur (see Trump 47 as an example

Training is credibility

In military circles, training can mean all things to different groups. Some think it is for making friends and building partnerships. Other parts of the national security

Debriefing the latest UK Strategic Defence Review

The was much to like about the 2025 UK SDR: an uncomfortable but honest diagnosis of the state of Britain's military; a characterisation of the world order and future thr

The Russian Meat Grinder

Given the way Russian military cheifs send their troops into combat without regard for rates of attrition and casualties, it seems to bamboozle many Western commentators

Air combat power vs IAMD

After more than 3 years of war in Ukraine, the Russian military is not a spent force: indeed, the combination of more flying hours for more aircrew, 3 years of combat exp

SDR Threat series: How to deter Russia?

The West has not deterred Russia from destabilising Europe, the Caucasus, North and Sub Saharan Africa, or the Middle East. Moscow has undertaken war-like activity in NAT

SDR Threat series: National Security without US guarantees

President Trump might have shocked some European leaders but the writing has been on the wall for decades: European states will have to take responsibility for their own

SDR Threat Series - Trust and Honesty

If the relationship between a government, the military, and industry is to really change from a transactional one towards a sincere partnership it must be underpinned by

SDR Threat Series – The Politics of a Defence Review

The politics of a review of a national security strategy are huge. What is the appetite for change? What is the appetite to deliver? What is the political reference and t