Europe & Russia

Reassessing the Barriers to Islamic Radicalization in Kazakhstan Ms Zhulduz Baizakova, Mr Roger N McDermott Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "The authors reassess the barriers to Islamic radicalization in the Republic of Kazakhstan. They provide crucial analysis and findings for policymakers seeking to engage with the country, while also presenting important insights into the historical and cultural impediments in the path of radicalizing its youth. Despite the proximity of the Central Asian Republics to Afghanistan and the Global War on Terrorism, unlike its neighbors, Kazakhstan has remained relatively stable and low risk in the face of international terrorism and extremism. This monograph examines some of the reasons as to why this is the case, proving that early judgements offered by commentators concerning Kazakhstan’s experience of domestic politically inspired violence in 2011-12, exaggerated the potential threat of growing Islamic radicalization. "

The New Russian Engagement with Latin America: Strategic Position, Commerce, and Dreams of the Past Dr R Evan Ellis Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "The present monograph by Strategic Studies Institute professor Dr. R. Evan Ellis is one of the first in-depth treatments of contemporary Russian engagement with the countries of Latin America and its significance from a national security perspective. As such, it provides important insights into both the nature of the challenge posed by Russia, as well as the evolving role and persistent importance of Latin America and the Caribbean to the national security of the United States. "

Russian Ballistic Missile Defense: Rhetoric and Reality Mr Keir Giles Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "Russia has made air and space defense, including ballistic missile defense (BMD), a top priority, while at the same time protesting vehemently against the deployment of U.S. missile defense technology in Europe, which Moscow claims upsets strategic stability and increases the danger of war. Russian declaratory policy provides U.S. policymakers with significant material to develop an approach intended to mitigate Russian obstructionism over European Phased Adaptive Approach (EPAA) and U.S. plans for BMD more broadly. Put simply, Russian complaints at the dangerous irresponsibility of the United States introducing new anti-missile capabilities ring hollow, when Russia is forging ahead with its own program to do precisely the same."

From Cooperation to Competition - The Future of U.S. - Russian Relations COL Gregory K Anderson, COL Karen L Briggman, COL Joseph E Hilbert, COL Gert-Jan Kooij, Lt Col Christopher T Lay, Dr James C McNaughton War Game Report by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership, Carlisle Scholars Program, Strategic Studies Institute "Russian aggression in 2014 caught U.S. policy and strategy off guard, forcing reactive measures and reevaluation of the U.S. approach toward Russia. Moscow employed nonlinear methodologies and operated just beneath traditional thresholds of conflict to take full advantage of U.S. and NATO policy and process limitations. In light of this strategic problem, the U.S. Army War College (USAWC), conducted a wargame that revealed four key considerations for future policy and strategy."

A Russian View on Landpower Mr Keir Giles, Maj Gen Aleksandr V Rogovoy Letort Paper by US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "In a time of rapid change for the U.S. Army, it is essential to retain awareness of how potential adversaries are also developing their concepts of Landpower. This Letort Paper, written by an influential Russian general, lays out an authoritative view on the importance of substantial conventional land forces, as seen from Moscow."

Parsing Chinese-Russian Military Exercises Dr Richard Weitz Letort Paper by US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "China and Russia have engaged in an increasing number of joint exercises in recent years. These drills aim to help the two countries deter, and if necessary defeat, potential threats—such as Islamist terrorists trying to destabilize Central Asian governments—while also reassuring their allies that China and Russia will protect them from such threats. Furthermore, the recurring exercises, and other joint Russia-China military activities, have a mutual reassurance function insofar as they inform Moscow and Beijing about the other’s military potential and thereby build mutual confidence."

Strategic Insights: From Ideology to Geopolitics: Russian Interests in Latin America José de Arimatéia da Cruz Article by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "The implosion of the Soviet Union on the eve of December 25, 1991, has been heralded by pundits and Sovietologists as an unprecedented event in world history. No one expected the powerful Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) to come to an end as uneventfully as it did. The implosion of the Soviet Union sent shockwaves throughout the world. Not only did the Soviet Union cease to exist on that Christmas night, but it also lost half of its territory and half of its population. Furthermore, the Soviets came to find out the morning after that most of its weapons of mass destruction were now in the hands of the newly independent states—former members of the USSR..."

Project 1704: A U.S. Army War College Analysis of Russian Strategy in Eastern Europe, an Appropriate U.S. Response, and the Implications for U.S. Landpower COL Douglas Mastriano, LTC Derek O'Malley Document by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "In the summer of 2014, Russia forcibly annexed Crimea from Ukraine and then actively supported ethnic Russian separatists in an on-going irredentist bid in Eastern Ukraine. This aggressive policy threatens to challenge NATO and the United States in its support of Ukraine and other nations of Eastern Europe. From this changing strategic environment, three central questions emerge: (1) What is the Russian strategy in their periphery? (2) What is the appropriate U.S. response? (3) What are the implications for U.S. landpower?"

Breaking the Nordic Defense Deadlock Dr Stefan Forss, COL Pekka Holopainen Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "Events in Ukraine in early-2014 have prompted a re-evaluation of national defense capabilities across Europe. In the case of the Nordic states (Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland), this renewed attention has highlighted the lack of military resources to fulfill nationally stated defense tasks. Two decades of underinvestment in defense, force reductions, and focus on expeditionary crisis management in support of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), have combined to hollow out the once fundamental principles of territorial defense. Northern Europe has been left dangerously exposed to military coercion in a time of greatly increased uncertainty."