The Ancient Art of Modern Warfare

In Episode 64, Why Wagner, I said one possible risk associated the Wagner Group is the potential that, like previous elite and ostensibly politically reliable mercenary forces, Wagner could be a threat to the Russian government. But what is the likelihood of that happening? This episode explores how military or paramilitary forces might turn on their own governments in a coup d’état.

 

Disclaimer: The views in these podcasts are my own and do not represent the official position of any organization I might be affiliated with.

 

Music: Liszt: Les Preludes, recorded by the USMC Band. Public Domain

In the past few months, Moscow has used the Wagner Group as the centerpiece in recent military operations in Ukraine.  This is very different from how Wagner has been used in Africa. Why is Putin giving a quasi-mercenary organization such a central and visible role in its war with Ukraine? There could be different reasons, each of which present advantages and significant risks: risks for Putin, for Russia, for Ukraine, and for future conflict and conflict resolution.

 

Music: Liszt, Les Preludes; recorded by the USMC Band. Music and recording in Public Domain.

 

The difference between war and terrorism is that war is, in theory, governed by international law, whereas terrorism is criminal in nature and execution. So where does that leave the use of mercenaries in modern warfare, and particularly the infamous Wagner Group? Are they terrorists? Are they legitimate combatants? Are they both or something else? Can official designation as a Foreign Terrorist Organization close an accountability gap?

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For more information see:

The Department of Defense Law of War Manual, 2015

The Lawfare Blog: It’s Time to Designate the Wagner as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, June 30, 2022, https://www.lawfareblog.com/its-time-designate-wagner-group-foreign-terrorist-organization

 

Music:

Les Preludes: Liszt; Recorded by USMC Band (Public Domain)

Mecenaries: Per Killstofte/Machinasound (Licensed)

If there is one thing that pacifists and generals agree on, it is that war is terrible. The dictionary definition of terrible is “causing terror.” If war, by its very nature, causes terror, then what is the difference between war and terrorism? I explore that in this episode, leading up to the next episode, where I will apply this information to the war in Ukraine. That is the subject of the next few episodes of the Ancient Art of Modern Warfare. If you think these podcasts are worth listening to, please hit like.

 

Disclaimer: The information in these podcasts is my own analysis and opinion and does not represent the views of the Department of Defense or any organization I am or have been affiliated with.

What if I told you that neither Total War or Limited War reflect reality? Further that the West's concept of limited war only limits the ability of states to achieve the only acceptable goal of any war?

 

For further reading:

Stoker, Donald, Why America Loses Wars: Limited War and US Strategy from the Korean War to the present, ISBN978-1-009-22086-6

Summers, Harry, , On Strategy ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0891415637

With the current war in Ukraine, it may seem obvious that conventional war is still important. But less than a year ago, many prominent military experts said otherwise. Some writers and opinion leaders still maintain that the current conflict is an exception, an aberration, and focusing on conventional war, or traditional warfare does not prepare us for future conflict. They are wrong.

Twitter and You Tube can present an inaccurate picture of modern warfare. In the previous Podcast, I described how the tank continues to be relevant on the modern battlefield, despite social media images. This same social media depicts Combat aviation of all varieties falling from the sky on a daily basis, without apparent battlefield effect. Col. Jayson Altieri, US Army Retired, and instructor at the US Air War College joins me for an open discussion on the use and misuse of combat aviation in modern warfare.

Video clips show Russian tanks in Ukraine blowing up after being hit by various anti-tank guided missiles. Moscow has lost so many tanks that some reports say they are forced to pull obsolete models from reserve stocks or even museums. The conclusion in popular media is that the tank is dead, obsolete as a weapon of modern combat. I think that the tank is as important today as any time in history. Like all previous times in history, it is a matter of how it is used -- or misused.

 

Also please check out "No the Tank is Not Dead" by "The Chieftan: at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lI7T650RTT8

Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine disproves many recent predictions about the future of war. This includes the predictions about the death of the law of war. The perception of the legitimacy of war depends in large part on seemingly ancient notions of Jus Ad Bellum and Jus in Bello. The war in Ukraine shows that legitimacy, or loss of legitimacy, has serious consequences.

 

For more information on the material in this podcast see:

 

“The End of History”: https://www.c-span.org/video/?24282-1/the-end-history-man

 

“The Laws of War on Land”: https://ihl-databases.icrc.org/applic/ihl/ihl.nsf/Article.xsp?action=openDocument&documentId=B06FB334DC14CBD1C12563CD00515767

 

“Should the Laws of War Apply to Terrorists?” https://www.jstor.org/stable/25658249

 

“On the Nature of War”: Helmuth von Moltke: http://www.gwpda.org/1914m/moltke.html

 

Defense Department Law of War Manual: https://dod.defense.gov/Portals/1/Documents/pubs/DoD Law of War Manual - June 2015 Updated Dec 2016.pdf?ver=2016-12-13-172036-190

 

"Russia’s military is incompetent. That makes it more dangerous." https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2022/03/17/russia-military-failing-dangerous/

 

Col. Christopher T. Mayer, US Army Retired, is a former instructor of the US Army Command and General Staff College and the Naval War College, guest lecturer on national security at academic institutions in the United States and Europe, and developed operational and organizational concepts for future warfare. He is a veteran of combat operations in Iraq and peacekeeping operations in Africa and the Balkans.

 

The primary purpose of any nation’s military force is to fight and win its wars. However, the military instrument of national power does much more than that. Most of those things keep the nation from having to fight wars. US and NATO support to Ukraine provides examples of the non-conflict roles of the military instrument.  

If you think this material is worthwhile, please hit the like button, leave a comment, or share it with someone.

For more information about the role of Mercenaries in war and non-conflict situations please listen to these podcasts in the Ancient Art of Modern Warfare:

Episode 2: Who are these Russian quasi-mercenaries? https://mayhemxpc.podbean.com/e/who-are-these-russian-quasi-mercenaries/

Episode 3: The role of mercenaries in hybrid warfare

https://mayhemxpc.podbean.com/e/the-role-of-mercenaries-in-hybrid-warfare/

Episode 4: Why are Russian PMCs different from Western PMSCs?

https://mayhemxpc.podbean.com/e/why-are-russian-pmcs-different-from-western-pmscs-with-dr-jovana-ranito/

Episode 6: Meeting the Challenge of Russian Private Military Companies

https://mayhemxpc.podbean.com/e/meeting-the-challenge-of-russian-private-military-companies/

Episode 12: Mercenary: What is in a name?

https://mayhemxpc.podbean.com/e/e12-mercenary-whats-in-a-name/

Episode 19: The rise of Quasi-Mercenary Organizations

https://mayhemxpc.podbean.com/e/e19-the-rise-of-quasi-mercenary-organizations/