Western Way of War
The Royal United Services Institute
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Top 10 Western Way of War Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Western Way of War episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Western Way of War for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Western Way of War episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
No Neat Battlefields
Western Way of War
04/15/21 • 34 min
Peter Maurer, the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross, sees no distinction between how the West and other belligerents wage war. In discussion with Professor Peter Roberts, Dr Maurer evinces a grimmer reality in which the cumulative effects of climate change, poverty and poor governance combine with the ‘democratisation’ of access to sophisticated weapons, which are now held by a multitude of actors. The result is a modern battlefield torn asunder by precision weapons, one which more resembles Armageddon than ideas of the beautiful ’surgical’ use of force that are often rehashed by military and political leaders. Sobering stuff.
Michèle Flournoy: The Enemy Went to School
Western Way of War
04/22/21 • 29 min
Former US Under Secretary for Defence for Policy Michèle Flournoy talks to Peter Roberts about technology, concepts, young minds and competitive spaces in warfare. The conversation is predicated on the idea of obeying the just war principles until deterrence fails. Thereafter, we (the West) want a distinctly unfair fight.
General Martin Dempsey: Failures of imagination
Western Way of War
04/29/21 • 32 min
The 18th Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Martin Dempsey, talks to Peter Roberts about how to deal with tensions and friction in civil–military relations within alliances. The discussion starts with why status quo powers are not as effective in using their power to shape conflict as revolutionary ones, and turns into a lament on how any compromise has become regarded as a failure.
Archer Macy: How Do You Know?
Western Way of War
05/06/21 • 35 min
As modern military systems increasingly rely on software coding to achieve virtual effects, the question of how one knows whether these weapons work becomes more difficult to answer – at least when compared to the old physical testing that validated weapons systems. Retired US Navy Rear Admiral Archer Macy talks to Peter Roberts about testing and evaluation, the pathological state of machines and our need for evidence.
Elsa B Kania: Catalysts for Change in the Chinese Military
Western Way of War
05/27/21 • 40 min
Many governments watched the display of US military power in 1991, and again in 2003, and were awestruck. For some, this was a wake-up call that had far reaching consequences. Elsa B Kania, China military expert at the Center for a New American Security, explains the significance to Peter Roberts in terms of People’s Liberation Army modernisation across fighting arms, as well as how we need to understand potential vulnerabilities and weaknesses based on the slower accompanying cultural change among those in uniform in China.
Highlights Season 2: More Optimistic Than Expected
Western Way of War
06/10/21 • 26 min
WWOW host Peter Roberts covers the five big themes of Season 2: The American Way of War – what went wrong and course corrections; continuity of concepts rather than radical change; systemic challenges in constructing concepts of fighting; how adversaries are preparing to fight wars; and the problems in ending conflicts. There is more optimism than you might expect and, with some of the most popular bits from the last six months, this smash-up of ‘everything warfare’ might go down a little bit like marmite.
Dr Jennifer Cole: Convergence and Civil Defence
Western Way of War
07/22/21 • 28 min
Dr Jenni Cole, biological anthropologist and public health policy guru, talks to Peter Roberts about pandemics, climate change and civil defence. The discussion covers the psychological barriers of the 'Dragons of Inaction', as well as why the military must learn to include better CivPop participation in their exercises. A must for those starting staff college soon.
Tarak Barkawi: The Vocation of Arms
Western Way of War
08/12/21 • 29 min
In analysing the myths of a Western way of war, historian of colonial warfare and iconoclast Professor Tarak Barkawi from the London School of Economics talks to Peter Roberts about commonalities in the vocation of war between militaries. Using examples as diverse as the battles of Isandlwana and Kunu-ri in Korea, Tarak explains how others might view the Western way of war – specifically, through the prism of defeats rather than victories.
The Future Rules of Warfare
Western Way of War
01/28/21 • 32 min
Technological change is creating an inflection point for Western states that will have radical implications on how they will fight in the future. Even if such rates of change are not so radical, the gap between how the West and adversaries are behaving on the battlefield nonetheless continues to diverge at an alarming rate. Norms and behaviours in contemporary conflict are markedly different to our expectations and it is not clear that the West is adapting in the appropriate way. What does it tell us about the future? Dr Paddy Walker, principal investigator in a new project on 'The Future Rules of Conflict', talks to Peter Roberts about the scope of his important work and where this trend might lead us.
Is the West Developing Innovation Fatigue?
Western Way of War
01/21/21 • 25 min
Acknowledging the power of innovation as a driver for building a competitive edge in warfare, new defence policies in the UK and US since 2015 began elevating military innovation as the chief development goal above all other processes. Laura Schousboe from the Royal Danish Defence College explores with Peter Roberts the possibility that this fixation has resulted in “innovation fatigue” in Western militaries, and tests the idea that the faddism over such a language may make innovation itself a toxic subject for future generations.
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FAQ
How many episodes does Western Way of War have?
Western Way of War currently has 78 episodes available.
What topics does Western Way of War cover?
The podcast is about Security, Defence, Society & Culture, Podcasts, Strategy and Government.
What is the most popular episode on Western Way of War?
The episode title 'Combined Arms, Military Culture, and the Failures of Leadership' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Western Way of War?
The average episode length on Western Way of War is 33 minutes.
How often are episodes of Western Way of War released?
Episodes of Western Way of War are typically released every 6 days, 23 hours.
When was the first episode of Western Way of War?
The first episode of Western Way of War was released on Jun 4, 2020.
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