Complexity in Modern War: Examining Hybrid War and Future U.S
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Committed During the Armed Conflict in Eastern Ukraine Between 2014–2018
VIOLENT CRIMES Committed During the Armed Conflict in Eastern Ukraine between 2014–2018 Kharkiv Human Rights Publisher 2018 УДК 355.012АТО(477)’’2014/2018’’(047)=111 Н31 THE List OF abbreviations This report was prepared with financial support of AI — Amnesty International; MTOT — Ministry of Temporarily Occupied Terri- tories and Internally Displaced Persons; ATO — Anti-Terrorist Operation; NGO — Non-Governmental Organization CC — Criminal Code of Ukraine; NPU — National Police of Ukraine; CMA — Civil-Military Administration; OTDLR — Occupied Territories of Donetsk and Lu- СMPO — Chief Military Prosecutor’s Office; hansk Regions; СP — Checkpoint; OSCE — Organization for Security and Coopera- CPC — Criminal Procedural Code; tion in Europe; EXCP — Entry-Exit Checkpoint; PLWHA — People Living with HIV/AIDS; DSA — District State Administration; RSA — Regional State Administration; RS — Rome Statute; ECHR — European Convention on Human Rights; Yuriy Aseev, Volodymyr Hlushchenko, Boris Knyrov, Natalia Okhotnikova, Anna Ovdiienko, LNR — the self-proclaimed “Luhansk People’s ECtHR — European Court of Human Rights; Olena Richko, Gennady Shcherbak, Pavlo Shvab, Yanina Smelyanska, Igor Sosonsky, Republic”; Gennadiy Tokarev, Martha Vovk, Anastasia Yegorova, Yevgeniy Zakharov GC — Geneva Convention(s) of 12 August 1949; DNR — the self-proclaimed “Donetsk People’s Н31 Violent Crimes Committed During the Armed Conflict in Eastern Ukraine between 2014–2018 / HRMM — UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission Republic”; compiler Yevgeniy Zakharov; CO “Kharkiv -
Offensive Against the Syrian City of Manbij May Be the Beginning of a Campaign to Liberate the Area Near the Syrian-Turkish Border from ISIS
June 23, 2016 Offensive against the Syrian City of Manbij May Be the Beginning of a Campaign to Liberate the Area near the Syrian-Turkish Border from ISIS Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) fighters at the western entrance to the city of Manbij (Fars, June 18, 2016). Overview 1. On May 31, 2016, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a Kurdish-dominated military alliance supported by the United States, initiated a campaign to liberate the northern Syrian city of Manbij from ISIS. Manbij lies west of the Euphrates, about 35 kilometers (about 22 miles) south of the Syrian-Turkish border. In the three weeks since the offensive began, the SDF forces, which number several thousand, captured the rural regions around Manbij, encircled the city and invaded it. According to reports, on June 19, 2016, an SDF force entered Manbij and occupied one of the key squares at the western entrance to the city. 2. The declared objective of the ground offensive is to occupy Manbij. However, the objective of the entire campaign may be to liberate the cities of Manbij, Jarabulus, Al-Bab and Al-Rai, which lie to the west of the Euphrates and are ISIS strongholds near the Turkish border. For ISIS, the loss of the area is liable to be a severe blow to its logistic links between the outside world and the centers of its control in eastern Syria (Al-Raqqah), Iraq (Mosul). Moreover, the loss of the region will further 112-16 112-16 2 2 weaken ISIS's standing in northern Syria and strengthen the military-political position and image of the Kurdish forces leading the anti-ISIS ground offensive. -
How Technology Impacts Doctrine in Asymmetric Warfare
0 How Technology Impacts Doctrine in Asymmetric Warfare Jeremiah Rozman Northfield Vermont Bachelors of Arts, University of Vermont, 2014 A Thesis presented to the Graduate Faculty of the University of Virginia in Candidacy for the Degree of Master of Arts Department of Foreign Affairs University of Virginia May, 2016 1 Abstract How does technology impact military doctrine, and how does this in turn impact political support for offensive, preventative or preemptive military action?1 I study defensive weapons systems, specifically focusing on missile defense in the theoretical context of technology and defense-based strategies as a whole. Through the study of Israel’s use of Iron Dome, I aim to demonstrate that technology can be an exogenous factor affecting military doctrine. Through careful case study analysis, I demonstrate that operationally successful defensive technologies can lead to the adoption of a defensive military doctrine by decreasing the political cost of inaction to the extent that allowing attrition becomes politically less costly than launching an offensive. Introduction A comparison of Israel’s two recent wars in Gaza, Operation Cast Lead in 2008/9 and Operation Protective Edge in 2014, indicates that the tactical success of Iron Dome, as a defensive military technology, can effect a change in military doctrine. The goal of this study is to demonstrate the effect of an unexpectedly successful defensive military technology on military doctrine, an effect which leads to prioritizing defense, allowing attrition, and moving away from a long-standing offense-based doctrine, specifically when dealing with asymmetric conflict. This study focuses on Israel, specifically in the Gaza theater of conflict and not in the Northern theater of conflict where Israel’s adversary, Hezbollah is 1 Preemptive war is defined as actor A launching a first strike in order to gain advantage in a situation where an attack by actor B is anticipated to be imminent. -
Is the European Migrant Crisis Another Stage of Hybrid War?
IS THE EUROPEAN MIGRANT CRISIS ANOTHER STAGE OF HYBRID WAR? Yurii Punda, Vitalii Shevchuk, Viljar Veebel Abstract: This article provides an overview of the roots of large-scale migration flows to the European Union (EU) during the past ten years. In addition, the article also explores the potential link between such migration flows and modern hybrid warfare, characterised by the coordination of various types of warfare (i.e. military and non-military means, conventional and non-conventional capabilities, state and non-state actors, etc.), all employed with an aim to cause instability and disorder. In the 2010s, the migration flows to EU countries increased significantly, particu- larly from the conflict areas in Syria, Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, as well as from Albania, Kosovo and Ukraine. The analysis focuses on the question of whether the increase in migration flows could be linked to the ongoing confronta- tion between Russia and the West. Specifically, the article focuses on two particular cases: Syria and Ukraine. The article explores the commonalities of the resulting migration flows to the EU and proposes policy recommendations for reducing the negative impact of such events in the future. Keywords: migration, hybrid warfare, security, European Union, Ukraine, Syria 1. Introduction During the 2015 European migration crisis, an unusually large number of refugees flowed into the European Union. During the past decade, the number of first-time asylum applications submitted by non-EU citizens has increased exponentially, peaking in 2015–2016 when more than a million people from non-EU countries applied for asylum in the EU over the course of just one year (Figure 1(a)). -
Asymmetric Warfare - the Siege of Fallujah
ASYMMETRIC WARFARE - THE SIEGE OF FALLUJAH Csér Orsolya Abstract: Asymmetric warfare is a tactical process based on policy objectives which can be used to force our will upon the enemy. The non-traditional, inexpensive actions involving material damage and human casualties (such as terrorism, deployment of weapons of mass destruction, threat of using them, information warfare); guerrilla- and partisan-type raids implemented with simple tools and techniques are considered its basic advantages. All these are usually the weapons of the party fighting in the occupied territories (eg. bombings, suicide attacks, actions against logistics, command posts, attacks against officers, command staff, destruction of supply routes and transportation routes). The detection of these weapons and the psychological preparation of the soldiers is very difficult, because the offenders do not comply with the conventions of warfare. The siege of Fallujah in Iraq, which wrote itself into the history books as one of the most infamous and serious insurgencies and in which the media and propaganda played a major role, is regarded as an example of asymmetric warfare. Keywords: asymmetry, insurgency, guerrilla, civilians, civilian victim, propaganda, military gain 1. Introduction Asymmetry doesn't mean anything other than the lack of symmetry between the belligerents, partially or wholly. Asymmetric warfare is: "A warfare for the sake of precisely outlined political aims, often based on ideological, religious, ethnic community of several organizations, implementing military and non-military operations, tactics and techniques building upon direct and indirect effects and intensifying each other's effects, endangering different dimensions of security, mainly tactical procedures, with whose effect altogether we may force our will upon the enemy." All of this is such an activity that can be connected to asymmetric challenges, when the executors - in most cases not even sparing their own lives - execute military actions, and is usually done against a belligerent on a higher technological level. -
Syrian Armed Opposition Powerbrokers
March 2016 Jennifer Cafarella and Genevieve Casagrande MIDDLE EAST SECURITY REPORT 29 SYRIAN ARMED OPPOSITION POWERBROKERS Cover: A rebel fighter of the Southern Front of the Free Syrian Army gestures while standing with his fellow fighter near their weapons at the front line in the north-west countryside of Deraa March 3, 2015. Syrian government forces have taken control of villages in southern Syria, state media said on Saturday, part of a campaign they started this month against insurgents posing one of the biggest remaining threats to Damascus. Picture taken March 3, 2015. REUTERS/Stringer All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. ©2016 by the Institute for the Study of War. Published in 2016 in the United States of America by the Institute for the Study of War. 1400 16th Street NW, Suite 515 | Washington, DC 20036 www.understandingwar.org Jennifer Cafarella and Genevieve Casagrande MIDDLE EAST SECURITY REPORT 29 SYRIAN ARMED OPPOSITION POWERBROKERS ABOUT THE AUTHORS Jennifer Cafarella is the Evans Hanson Fellow at the Institute for the Study of War where she focuses on the Syrian Civil War and opposition groups. Her research focuses particularly on the al Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al Nusra and their military capabilities, modes of governance, and long-term strategic vision. She is the author of Likely Courses of Action in the Syrian Civil War: June-December 2015, and Jabhat al-Nusra in Syria: An Islamic Emirate for al-Qaeda. -
International Crimes in Crimea
International Crimes in Crimea: An Assessment of Two and a Half Years of Russian Occupation SEPTEMBER 2016 Contents I. Introduction 6 A. Executive summary 6 B. The authors 7 C. Sources of information and methodology of documentation 7 II. Factual Background 8 A. A brief history of the Crimean Peninsula 8 B. Euromaidan 12 C. The invasion of Crimea 15 D. Two and a half years of occupation and the war in Donbas 23 III. Jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court 27 IV. Contextual elements of international crimes 28 A. War crimes 28 B. Crimes against humanity 34 V. Willful killing, murder and enforced disappearances 38 A. Overview 38 B. The law 38 C. Summary of the evidence 39 D. Documented cases 41 E. Analysis 45 F. Conclusion 45 VI. Torture and other forms of inhuman treatment 46 A. Overview 46 B. The law 46 C. Summary of the evidence 47 D. Documented cases of torture and other forms of inhuman treatment 50 E. Analysis 59 F. Conclusion 59 VII. Illegal detention 60 A. Overview 60 B. The law 60 C. Summary of the evidence 62 D. Documented cases of illegal detention 66 E. Analysis 87 F. Conclusion 87 VIII. Forced displacement 88 A. Overview 88 B. The law 88 C. Summary of evidence 90 D. Analysis 93 E. Conclusion 93 IX. Crimes against public, private and cultural property 94 A. Overview 94 B. The law 94 C. Summary of evidence 96 D. Documented cases 99 E. Analysis 110 F. Conclusion 110 X. Persecution and collective punishment 111 A. Overview 111 B. -
Connecting the Dots of PMC Wagner Strategic Actor Or Mere Business Opportunity? Author: Niklas M
University of Southern Denmark 1 June 2019 Faculty of Business and Social Sciences Connecting the dots of PMC Wagner Strategic actor or mere business opportunity? Author: Niklas M. Rendboe Date of birth: 04.07.1994 Characters: 187.484 Supervisor: Olivier Schmitt Abstract Russia has commenced a practice of using military companies to implement its foreign policy. This model is in part a continuation of a Russian tradition of using non-state act- ors, and partly a result of the contemporary thinking in Russia about war and politics as well as a consequence of the thorough reform process of the Russian military which began in 2008 under Anatolii Serdiukov. By using the subcontracting firms of business leader Evgenii Prigozhin as a channel for funding Wagner, the Kremlin has gained an armed structure which is relatively independent of its ocial military structures. The group was formed as part of a project to mobilise volunteers to fight in Ukraine in 2014- 15. The following year, Wagner went to Syria and made a valuable contribution to the Assad government’s eort to re-establish dominance in the Syrian theatre. Since then, evidence has surfaced pointing to 11 additional countries of operations. Of these, Libya, Sudan, Central Africa and Madagascar are relatively well supported. In all these coun- tries, Wagner’s ability to operate are dependent on Russia for logistics, contracts and equipment. Wagner is first and foremost a tool of Russian realpolitik; they will not win wars nor help bring about a new world order, but they further strategic interests in two key ways; they deploy to war where Russia has urgent interests, and they operate in countries where the interests of Russia are more diuse and long-term to enhance Rus- sian influence. -
Russia's Military Intervention in Syria. Its Operation Plan, Objectives, And
Introduction Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik German Institute for International and Security Affairs Comments Russia’s Military Intervention in Syria WP Its Operation Plan, Objectives, and Consequences for the West’s Policies Markus Kaim and Oliver Tamminga S The deployment and use of Russian air forces in Syria could be a turning-point for Presi- dent Bashar al-Assad’s regime. Since the start of the Russian air strikes on 30 September 2015, discussion has been rife in the media and in political circles as to what intentions Russia might be pursuing with its intervention in Syria. However, if one takes into ac- count the force package deployed to Syria, the manner in which the Russian air forces have proceeded, and the Kremlin’s official statements after the Assad visit to Moscow, the main features of an operation plan quickly emerge. It has repercussions far beyond Syria. On 30 September 2015, the Russian mili- Lebanese Hezbollah, even though these tary embarked on a series of operations actors are pursuing different interests. in Syria that had been prepared from the beginning of September onwards with the establishment of a base south of Latakia Russia’s military capacity in Syria and the deployment of the relevant forces. In the past few weeks, Russia has been However, the military and political aims increasing its deployment of military forces of the Russian government, as well as the to the air base near Latakia, in the north- motives behind the military intervention, west of Syria. are still unclear. The marines, T-90 tanks, combat vehicles The Russian government has never and artillery deployed there mainly serve hidden its willingness to act against all to protect the air base from attacks by IS forces fighting the Damascus regime. -
RUSSIA's HYBRID WAR and ITS IMPLICATIONS for DEFENCE and SECURITY in the UNITED KINGDOM Sascha-Dominik Dov Bachmann1 Universit
View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Bournemouth University Research Online 28 RUSSIA’S HYBRID WAR AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR DEFENCE AND SECURITY IN THE UNITED KINGDOM Sascha-Dominik Dov Bachmann1 University of Bournemouth Anthony Paphiti2 Abstract This article uses the example of Russia’s aggressive action against Ukraine as an example of a new form of contemporary war fighting, namely hybrid war, and discusses how Russia has been successful in exploiting vulnerabilities of its opponents. The article reports on the United Kingdom as a case study to discuss potential threats and how these can be countered. While using the United Kingdom as an example, the ramifications of such a hybrid approach also apply to South Africa as a state which is vulnerable in respect to economic warfare, cyberattacks and its energy sector. The suggested counteractions could also be seen as lessons learned for a future South African scenario. It is a further development of a short submission to the Defence Select Committee of the UK House of Commons. Introduction Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 and its open support of the separatists in the bloody conflict taking place in Eastern Ukraine since 2015 together with the global war against ISIL/Daesh in Iraq and Syria have brought a new terminus of conflict terminology into the dictionary: the term of Hybrid War.3 This article introduces the concept of hybrid warfare and discusses the vulnerabilities arising from the threat of Russia’s potential use of such a mode of war fighting against the United Kingdom Scientia Militaria, South African their legal context. -
Perception of the Russia-Ukraine Conflict in Germany and in Poland – an Evaluation Grzegorz Gromadzki
Perception of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in Germany and in Poland – an evaluation Grzegorz Gromadzki 1 Perception of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in Germany and in Poland – an evaluation Grzegorz Gromadzki Report commissioned and published by the Heinrich Böll Foundation Warsaw, 2015 Edited by Małgorzata Kopka, Liliana Religa Graphic design: Studio 27 Title picture: Ukraine separatists in Slovyansk, 8.07.2014, under the Creative Commons Attribution License. Author: Sasha Maksymenko. ISBN 978-83-61340-25-6 The views expressed in this publication are those of the author alone. They do not necessarily reflect the views of the Heinrich Böll Foundation. Published under the following Creative Commons License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0 . Attribution — You must attribute the work in the manner specified by the author or licensor (but not in any way that suggests that they endorse you or your use of the work). Nonommercial — You may not use this work for commercial purposes. No derivatives — If you remix, transform, or build uon the material, you may not distribute the modified material. Image copyright is indicated in the photo credit. Heinrich Böll Foundation ul. Żurawia 45 00-680 Warsaw T +48 22 59 42 333 E [email protected] W http://www.pl.boell.org 2 Perception of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in Germany and in Poland – an evaluation The Ukraine crisis, which is, de facto, the Russia-Ukraine conflict, has been discussed widely in the media and in public debate both in Poland and in Germany. The German media, whether right or left wing, has run subpages devoted to the situation in Ukraine.1 The conflict is also in the media spotlight in Poland. -
The Kremlin's Irregular Army: Ukrainian Separatist Order of Battle
THE KREMLIN’S IRREGULARY ARMY: UKRAINIAN SEPARATIST ORDER OF BATTLE | FRANKLIN HOLCOMB | AUGUST 2017 Franklin Holcomb September 2017 RUSSIA AND UKRAINE SECURITY REPORT 3 THE KREMLIN’S IRREGULAR ARMY: UKRAINIAN SEPARATIST ORDER OF BATTLE WWW.UNDERSTANDINGWAR.ORG 1 Cover: A Pro-Russian separatist sits at his position at Savur-Mohyla, a hill east of the city of Donetsk, August 28, 2014. REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov. Reproduced with permission. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing or from the publisher. ©2017 by the Institute for the Study of War. Published in 2017 in the United States of America by the Instittue for the Study of War. 1400 16th Street NW, Suite 515 | Washington, DC 20036 understandingwar.org 2 Franklin Holcomb The Kremlin’s Irregular Army: Ukrainian Separatist Order of Battle ABOUT THE AUTHOR Franklin Holcomb is a Russia and Ukraine Research Analyst at the Institute for the Study of War where he focuses on the war in Ukraine, Ukrainian politics, and Russian foreign policy in Eastern Europe. His current research focuses on studying the development of the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Russian-backed separatist formations operating in Eastern Ukraine, as well as analyzing Russian political and military activity in Moldova, the Baltic, and the Balkans. Mr. Holcomb is the author of “The Order of Battle of the Ukrainian Armed Forces: A Key Component in European Security,” “Moldova Update: Kremlin Will Likely Seek to Realign Chisinau”, “Ukraine Update: Russia’s Aggressive Subversion of Ukraine,” as well as ISW’s other monthly updates on the political and military situation in Ukraine.