The Pentagon Is Developing Strategies To Combat Hybrid Warfare

Armed pro-Russian separatists of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic pledge an oath during a ceremony in Donetsk on June 21.

Thomas Gibbons-Neff: Washington Post: The ‘new’ type of war that finally has the Pentagon’s attention

The Pentagon is increasingly concerned about how to combat “hybrid warfare,” the combination of stealth invasion, local proxy forces and international propaganda that Russia used to annex Crimea and destabilize eastern Ukraine, U.S. officials said.

Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, on Thursday released the 2015 National Military Strategy, in which he cited Russia’s actions in Ukraine and said “hybrid conflicts” will persist well into the future.

This kind of warfare transcends traditional notions of one military confronting another by incorporating conventional and unconventional forces, information warfare such as propaganda, as well as economic measures to undermine an enemy, according to Frank Hoffman, a professor at the National Defense University.

WNU Editor: For hybrid warfare to work you would also need the support of the local population .... which Russia has in both Crimea and eastern Ukraine .... especially after these populations felt alienated after the Ukraine revolution and the passing of draconian anti-Russian laws (which were later rescinded but it was too late .... the damage was done). To combat states that use hybrid warfare like Russia, the best way is to accommodate and compromise with the populations that may be most susceptible to that message. Ukraine is one example on what happens if this is not done, but the Baltic states currently are doing the same mistake .... and many Russians within these states are feeling alienated and discriminated against. I can understand why the military is concern in developing strategies to counter this, but this is more of a political problem that is driven by nationalism .... and it is on this level that a solution needs to be found, otherwise the turmoil and grievances would continue for generations.