Hidden Costs of Precision
How do drone strikes shape civilian behavior? Episode 164 of the Irregular Warfare Podcast explores research using 12 billion cell phone records from Yemen, revealing civilian displacement on par with natural disasters, and discusses what this means for the strategic logic of precision airpower.
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Podcasts
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The Future of War Part IV: Special Operations on a Global Battlefield
This episode of the Irregular Warfare Podcast concludes our four-part Future of War series, pairing author and futurist August Cole with senior special operations leaders to explore how tomorrow’s conflicts may unfold.
From Subversion to Resistance: Lessons from Russia’s War in Ukraine
This episode examines how Russian operatives and local militants in 2014 transformed political unrest in eastern Ukraine into an armed insurgency—and what it teaches us about subversion, resistance, and state resilience. Dr. Celeste Wallander and Dr. Serhiy Kudelia are the guests.
Five Years After the Withdrawal: Insights from the Afghanistan War Commission
Ahead of the fifth anniversary of the American withdrawal from Afghanistan, Dr. Colin Jackson and Colonel (Ret.) E.J. Degen join us to discuss initial insights from the Afghanistan War Commission’s work. In particular, the episode examines insights from Afghanistan for building partner armies.
Events
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Russian Intelligence, Europe, and Putin’s Secret War
How does Russia use intelligence operations to shape the political and security environment before, alongside, and below the threshold of open conflict — and how can Europe and its transatlantic partners deny those efforts' strategic effect?
Q&A with Lee Robinson, COO of General Matter
Lee Robinson, COO of General Matter, discusses why rebuilding U.S. uranium enrichment is critical to energy security, nuclear power, and America’s industrial base.
Geoeconomics of Irregular Warfare: Iran and the Global Ripple Effects — Part X
In Part Ten of Irregular Warfare Initiative’s special series on the conflict with Iran, presented by the Economic & Legal Warfare Team, Ioannis (Gianni) Koskinas (CEO, Hoplite Group), Matt Flug (Director, Economic & Legal Warfare Focus Area, IWI), and Richard Y. Newton III, Lt General, USAF (Ret), Founding Partner,
Articles
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What Iran's Crypto Insurance Proposal Means for Irregular Warfare and Shipping in Asia
Editor's note: The "Short of War" Podcast discussing this article is AI-generated. On May 17, 2026, Iran proposed a “Hormuz Safe” platform for ships seeking to cross the Strait of Hormuz. This Bitcoin-denominated platform would enable cargo owners to purchase cryptographically-backed insurance instead
Pakistan’s Nuclear Arsenal is Becoming More Vulnerable
Editor's note: The "Short of War" Podcast discussing this article is AI-generated. “We call on the Pakistani army and security services not to obey Pakistan’s corrupt political and military leadership and urge them to overthrow it,” al-Qaeda declared in an April appeal to
Why Iranian Propaganda Is Getting Uncomfortably Good
Editor's note: The "Short of War" Podcast discussing this article is AI-generated. How did Iran’s regime not just master social media but come to dominate the information space? Their propaganda rarely traveled far outside sympathetic political audiences until recently. Viewers recognized the visuals quickly.
Mexico’s Network War—Without a Network Strategy
Editor's note: The "Short of War" Podcast discussing this article is AI-generated. The aggressive campaign Mexico has sustained against organized crime for the past two decades has many of the characteristics of irregular warfare. While criminal organizations have ebbed and flowed across different political administrations
AI in Cyber Conflict: Short-term Offensive Opportunities, Long-term Defensive Advantage
Editor's note: The "Short of War" Podcast discussing this article is AI-generated. There is a palpable sense of apprehension among cybersecurity professionals and scholars that AI will revolutionize cyber conflict. A slew of recent reports conjure images of supercharged, AI-automated cyber attacks. The worst
The Future of Conflict and Special Operations Forces
Editor's note: The "Short of War" Podcast discussing this article is AI-generated. Since 9/11, Special Operations Forces (SOF) have often been cast as the United States’ sharpest instrument: they hunt high-value targets, train partners, and operate at the seams where conventional forces cannot
Irregular Warfare Is Not A Thing
Editor's note: The "Short of War" Podcast discussing this article is AI-generated. It is difficult to find anyone satisfied with the definition of irregular warfare. Even its parents recoil from the ugliness of the definitional baby. In a 2025 IWI podcast, Mark Crnkovich, the Pentagon
The Afghan Army: What Advisors Couldn’t See and Officers Couldn’t Change
What Afghan Military Corruption Actually Looked Like and What It Means for Future Partner Force Development
Bridging the gap between irregular warfare scholars, practitioners, and policymakers.
