The Strategic Circumstances of the Russo-Ukraine War Introduction As the origin of its name implies, ‘borderland’,1 Ukraine has long served as a buffer state between Eastern and Western Europe. Its history reflects the continued and often violent contest for its allegiance, if not ownership. Ukraine’s importance has been recently underscored by its invasion on 24 February 2022 by the Russian Armed Forces. This was a significant escalation of the conflict which commenced with Russia’s annexation of the …

LTCOL Bruce Cameron, MC, psc, qtc, aic, CGIA (retd), served in the Australian Regular Army for nineteen years. After commanding the last troop of tanks in action in Vietnam, he completed a number of regimental, staff and training assignments. His last appointment involved responsibility for helping develop Army's future ground mobility requirements. He left the Army in 1987 to take up a position with the Office of Defence Production. He is the author of 'Canister! On! Fire! : Australian Tank Operations in …

A Framework for Irregular Warfare Australia has a long history with insurgency and considers its experience in Phuoc Tuy, Vietnam and Uruzghan, Afghanistan, as examples evidencing a reputation as a world leader in this space. An innate capability for insurgency and irregular warfare would seem logical given the frequency of insurgency in our region; almost all South-East Asian nations have experienced insurgency since World War II. [1] Despite this context and recent operational experience in Iraq and …

A Strategic Plan for Tunisia Tunisia is challenged by a dual insurgency, with affiliates of al-Qaeda and ISIS exploiting grievances within the population and leveraging Islam to mobilise support. The objective of these affiliates is to discredit the Tunisian authorities and install a sharia-ruled government. [1] Tunisia’s strategic partnership with Algeria has moderately suppressed a cross-border insurgency in Tunisia’s west, although the insurgency still leads the contest for the control of the …

The decision by President Biden’s Administration to withdraw from Afghanistan received strong criticism and opposition from many military veterans, former decision makers and policy analysts from Capitol Hill . While the basis for criticism is diverse, one common feature that emerges from the commentary is a strong sense that the US was unable to achieve an integrated civil-military strategy to underpin decision making in Afghanistan , and that the same fault beleaguered operations in Iraq and Syria. The …

The British Army on the Western Front 1917 By Ed Spencer Jones Helion , Warwick, 2022, 514pp, Images: 87 b/w photos, 21 maps 9781914059858 - Paperback Reviewed by BRIG Chris Roberts AM. CSC (Retd.)   This is the fourth in the series of splendid books edited by Dr Spencer Jones which provide insights into the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) on the Western Front.  Each volume covers a year of the war and this one delivers the same high standards of scholarship as its predecessors. The books’ value lies in …

The Defence of Portugal during the Peninsular War, 1807 – 1814 By Mark S. Thompson Helion , Warwick, 2021, 224pp, Images: 28 colour and 50 b/w illustrations, maps and diagrams 9781914059858 - Paperback Reviewed by BRIG Chris Roberts (Retd.)   In this meticulously researched book, Mark Thompson delivers a comprehensive study filled with a wealth of information on the planning, construction, and defence of the Lines of Torres Vedras. Along the way, the author challenges some earlier held views, providing …

Foreword The Australian soldier has a well-earned reputation for expertise in counter-insurgency. Perhaps this reputation is born from Australia’s experience of the Malayan Emergency, the Borneo Confrontation or the Vietnam War; and it was probably sustained through United Nations deployments as peacekeepers within generally fractured societies. Regardless of its genesis, this collection of papers responds to this tradition, by focussing academic inquiry into the irregular form of warfare. Examination of …

Lieutenant Colonel Clarence Hovell is an Australian Army Infantry Officer, a graduate of the Australian Command and Staff College, and formerly the Commanding Officer of Combat Training Centre – Live where he was responsible for improving the performance of Army’s largest teams through immersion in the Decisive Action Training Environment. Lieutenant Colonel Hovell has a Master of Military and Defence Studies from the Australia National University and a Master of Strategy and Security from the University …

By Elliot Ackerman and Admiral James Stavridis Penguin Press , 2021, 303pp ISBN 9781984881267 - Paperback ISBN 9781984881250 - Hardcover ISBN 9781984881267 - Ebook ISBN 9780593394748 - Audio Reviewed by Dr Albert Palazzo   In 1978, the retired British general Sir John Hackett published an account of a fictional war between the United States and the Soviet Union . Reading it is a distant memory for me, but at the time it formed a part of my foundation as a scholar of war. The Cold War was ongoing and …