Warfare and Military Operations
-
commentary
Sparing Civilian Lives in Gaza
How do you protect innocent civilians while conducting effective urban military operations against an enemy who is integrated into the civilian population and entrenched in a location's infrastructure? Despite the ferocity of the Hamas attack and the Israeli response, the moral obligation to reduce civilian harm cannot be ignored.
-
commentary
The Inevitable, Ongoing Failure of Israel's Gaza Strategy
The Hamas attack represented a spectacular failure of Israel's “mowing the grass” strategy in the Gaza Strip. If there's to be any hope of preventing the next war and the one after that, Israel will need to rebuild Gaza into something better than it was.
Oct 19, 2023
Los Angeles Times
-
Science, Technology, and Innovation Policy
commentary
Educating Academics Will Ease UK Universities' Foreign Influence Crisis
Tackling China's quest for foreign technologies is tough. China exploits the very principles—openness, freedom, collaboration—that have fostered scientific breakthroughs to acquire foreign technologies. This makes it difficult to intervene without damaging these values in the process.
Oct 19, 2023
Times Higher Education
-
commentary
Bridging Tech and Humanity: The Role of Foundation Models in Reducing Civilian Harm
Foundation models can recognize patterns and make predictions like human brains; however, they lack the subjective experiences, contextual reasoning, creativity, and embodied grounding that characterize human intelligence and cognition. While foundation models hold massive potential to limit civilian harm, they must be used to supplement—not replace—human analysts.
Alisa Laufer, Lucy Shearer, et al.
-
commentary
Dismantling the Disinformation Business of Chinese Influence Operations
Some commercial actors benefit from involvement in Chinese influence operations. What steps could the U.S. government take to address this?
Oct 17, 2023
The RAND Blog
Bilva Chandra, Lev Navarre Chao
-
blog
Israel-Hamas War, Overdose Deaths, Striking Health Care Workers: RAND Weekly Recap
This weekly recap focuses on historical context for the Israel-Hamas war, the link between education and fatal overdoses, why U.S. health care workers are striking, and more.
Oct 13, 2023
-
commentary
Negotiating with Russia Is Still a Bad Idea
Since the very outset of Russia's war against Ukraine, there have been calls for the United States to negotiate with Russia. As the war has dragged on, the rationale for negotiations has morphed with each phase. Once you scratch below the surface, however, the case for negotiating with Russia quickly falls apart.
Oct 12, 2023
Foreign Policy
-
commentary
Nuclear Weapons in the North Korean World View
As Kim Jong-un's actions become more threatening, the risks of a catastrophic accidental nuclear war become more likely. The United States needs to make North Korean denuclearization a long-term objective but focus in the immediate future on limiting the size and danger of the North Korean nuclear weapon force.
Oct 11, 2023
The National Interest
-
blog
Nuclear Deterrence, Russia and Iran, Deepfakes: RAND Weekly Recap
This weekly recap focuses on how much is “enough” for U.S. nuclear forces, the budding Russia-Iran partnership, the challenge of detecting deepfakes, and more.
Oct 6, 2023
-
commentary
The United States Isn't Ready for the New Age of AI-Fueled Disinformation
Generative AI offers China and other bad actors the potential to fulfill longstanding desires to shape the global conversation. It is vital that the U.S. government and social media platforms recognize this threat and work together to address it immediately.
-
commentary
F-16s Are No Magic Bullet for Ukraine, but They Are a Game Changer with the Right Munitions
Will F-16s win the war for Ukraine? No. Only ground victories and unacceptable Russian losses will force Putin to negotiate. However, a long-term commitment to supporting a well-equipped, sizable F-16 force will improve the likelihood of Ukrainian success even if an F-16 never shoots a Russian fighter.
-
commentary
Rightsizing the Russia Threat
A proper understanding of the threat Russia poses must begin with an accurate appraisal of Russian power. Putin might harbor fantasies of world conquest. But his military cannot even fully conquer any of the four Ukrainian provinces he claims to have annexed last year. Ultimately, those are the constraints that should bound the debate about the extent of the threat.
Oct 3, 2023
Foreign Affairs
Samuel Charap @scharap, Kaspar Pucek
-
commentary
North Korea and China Aren't the Allies You Think They Are
China and North Korea have a history of friction, despite being seen as allies. As Russia, China, and North Korea move toward a closer trilateral partnership, the United States and its allies need to recognize that there are seams in the relationships that can be used to undermine it.
-
commentary
Landmines in Ukraine: Lessons for China and Taiwan
In shaping patterns of future warfare, militaries across the world will be seeking to absorb the key lessons of the Russia-Ukraine War. Chinese strategists are particularly attuned to the major role that landmines have played in the conflict.
Lyle Goldstein, Nathan Waechter
-
North Atlantic Treaty Organization
commentary
Poland and Ukraine: Defending Europe's Future
In the Cold War, West Germany, with robust NATO support, stood guard at the center of the Iron Curtain. Looking ahead, Poland and Ukraine along with NATO will defend Europe's center at the front line. Insights from the West German experience might help them.
Sep 25, 2023
RealClearDefense
-
blog
Escalation in Ukraine, a Trilateral Imperialist Threat, Disaster Recovery: RAND Weekly Recap
This weekly recap focuses on the risk of escalation in Ukraine, the threat of a North-Korea-Russia-China partnership, the economics of disaster recovery, and more.
Sep 22, 2023