Special operations forces have been a favorite national security tool during the United States' post-9/11 wars. However, the release of the 2017 National Security Strategy pivoted the United States’ strategic focus from terrorism to near-peer competitors China and Russia. What will be the role of special operations forces (SOF) in this era of great power competition? Where is SOF falling short in the shift to meet this new focus area? Former Under Secretary of Defense for policy Michèle Flournoy and retired Admiral Eric T. Olson join this episode to discuss.
The United States and other nations have spent billions of dollars and invested untold effort, not to mention lives, in a global campaign against...
What is the role of security force assistance in achieving national security objectives? Where did security force assistance work well in the post-9/11 era,...
How do significant historical events and Russian cultural memory—especially those surrounding the collapse of the Soviet Union—shape the Russian worldview? How do they motiviate...