Inside the Sea Dragon: The Generations Within the Current People’s Liberation Army Navy Officer Corps

The author uses Karl Mannheim’s social generation theory to analyze the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) and argue that the current generation of rising leaders differs markedly from that of the past. Due to historical events and policy decisions, such as the end of the Cultural Revolution, the one-child policy, an expansionist foreign policy,… Continue Reading Inside the Sea Dragon: The Generations Within the Current People’s Liberation Army Navy Officer Corps

China’s Other Army: The People’s Armed Police in an Era of Reform

China’s premier paramilitary force—the People’s Armed Police (PAP)—is undergoing its most profound restructuring since its establishment in 1982.Previously under dual civilian and military command, the PAP has been placed firmly under China’s military. As chairman of the Central Military Commission, Xi Jinping now has direct control over all of China’s primary instruments of coercive power.… Continue Reading China’s Other Army: The People’s Armed Police in an Era of Reform

Grand Strategy is Attrition: The Logic of Integrating Various Forms of Power in Conflict

In this monograph, Dr. Lukas Milevski examines the logic of grand strategy in practice, defined by its most basic building block—combining military and non-military power in war. He lays out competing visions of how to define grand strategy and why the aforementioned building block is the most fundamental. The monograph establishes the essential logic of… Continue Reading Grand Strategy is Attrition: The Logic of Integrating Various Forms of Power in Conflict

Advanced Nuclear Reactors: Technology Overview and Current Issues

An “advanced nuclear reactor” is defined in legislation enacted in 2018 as “a nuclear fission reactor with significant improvements over the most recent generation of nuclear fission reactors” or a reactor using nuclear fusion (P.L. 115-248). Such reactors include LWR designs that are far smaller than existing reactors, as well as concepts that would use… Continue Reading Advanced Nuclear Reactors: Technology Overview and Current Issues

Riding the Hydra: How the Army Enterprise Went to War 2001-2007

  The history of the U.S. Army in Operation Iraqi Freedom is replete with tactical and operational studies, and the shifts in strategy are well documented. The Chief of Staff of the Army’s (CSA) official study, The U.S. Army in the Iraq War, provides an excellent analysis of the operational level of war. “Riding the… Continue Reading Riding the Hydra: How the Army Enterprise Went to War 2001-2007

“Radar Contact!”: The Beginnings of Army Air Forces Radar and Fighter Control

The emergence of radar and tactical fighter control is the genesis of today’s air battle managers. Army Signal Corps technicians and Air Corps aircraft operators comprised the aircraft warning service, creating a constant source of frustration to both communities. It is from this mixed environment that the first fighter control squadrons emerged. What air battle… Continue Reading “Radar Contact!”: The Beginnings of Army Air Forces Radar and Fighter Control

Autonomous Horizons: The Way Forward

Dr. Greg Zacharias, former Chief Scientist of the United States Air Force (2015–18), explores next steps in autonomous systems (AS) development, fielding, and training. Rapid advances in AS development and artificial intelligence (AI) research will change how we think about machines, whether they are individual vehicle platforms or networked enterprises. The payoff will be considerable,… Continue Reading Autonomous Horizons: The Way Forward

Cognitive Radio Cloud Networks: Assured Access in the Future Electromagnetic Operating Environment

Maj. Lawrence O. Jones, U.S. Marine Corps, explores cognitive radio cloud networks, or CRCN, as a solution to mitigate the growing problem of DOD access to the electromagnetic spectrum due to a heavily congested and contested environment. The collision between technological advances in software-defined radios, machine learning and cloud computing have created the opportunity to… Continue Reading Cognitive Radio Cloud Networks: Assured Access in the Future Electromagnetic Operating Environment

A Better State of War: Surmounting the Ethical Cliff in Cyber Warfare

This study analyzes the emergent field of cyber warfare through the lens of commonly accepted tenets of ethical warfare. By comparing the foundational understanding of concepts that determine the justice of wars (jus ad bellum) and justice in war (jus en bello) with the capabilities cyber warfare offers, this work highlights both causes for concern… Continue Reading A Better State of War: Surmounting the Ethical Cliff in Cyber Warfare