Optimists argue that alliances are a source of strength for American foreign policy, lending significant advantage over competitors like China. Skeptics argue that the United States overpays and overextends itself in its alliances, and should instead take on fewer commitments and encourage its allies to bear more of the burden. But what are the advantages and disadvantages of a more coercive approach to US alliances? What are best practices for US alliance management? How do these dynamics...

Last September, the Harding Project launched with the objective of renewing professional writing in the US Army. A priority of General Randy George, the Army chief of staff, the project is built on the premise that professional discourse will produce a more ready force, one prepared to meet the challenges it will confront as the character of warfare evolves more and more rapidly. In this episode, Major Gabe Royal is joined by Lieutenant Colonel Zachary Griffiths, the director of the Harding...

Every four years, Americans choose a new commander-in-chief. US presidents have significant authority to use force, manage a global network of alliances and partnerships, as well as direct American grand strategy. How do voters decide who they want to be commander-in-chief? To explore that question, Dr. Alexandra Chinchilla is joined on this episode by three guests who have studied and written extensively about it. Dr. Jeffrey Friedman is an associate professor of government at Dartmouth...

After the US-led coalition's invasion of Iraq and defeat of Iraqi forces in conventional operations, a series of new challenges arose. How can security forces be rebuilt and strengthened, for example, and how can peace and governance be restored? This episode is the second in a two-part discussion with Dr. Isaiah "Ike" Wilson. An Army veteran and scholar of the war in Iraq, he is the author of the book Thinking Beyond War. In this episode, he describes the challenges US forces faced in Iraq...

More than twenty-one years ago, when a US-led coalition invaded Iraq, the 101st Airborne Division was a key element of the operation. Dr. Isaiah "Ike" Wilson was an Army officer and the division's chief of plans. He later authored a book, Thinking Beyond War, that chronicled lessons learned from the experience. He joins this episode, the first in a two-part series, to reflect on the invasion. The discussion begins with an examination of prewar estimates of troop requirements and continues by...

Technology is rapidly changing the modern battlefield, making it crucial for armies to adapt how they think, fight, and train. But what should that adaptation look like? How can the US Army, for example, evolve at the tactical level to both meet the challenges and leverage the opportunities brought about by advancing technology? How should Army leaders and other decision-makers approach the hard choices they face—about everything from procurement to force structure to commitments across...

Are current trends in civil-military relations antithetical to healthy democratic norms? What can be done to ensure the civil-military relationship is a healthy one? And most fundamentally, how are Americans' views of the proper delineation of civilian and military authority changing? Dr. Ron Krebs is a professor of political science at the University of Minnesota and Dr. Scott Limbocker is an assistant professor of American politics at West Point. Both guests focus their research on critical...

Most discussions about Western support to Ukraine and its defense against Russia centers on materiel—artillery shells, F-16s, and a wide range of equipment. While these weapons and systems are crucial for Ukraine to continue its war effort, there is an additional consideration that often gets overlooked: defense reform, particularly how the West can help. Dr. Alexandra Chinchilla hosts this episode, and she is joined by Dr. Polina Beliakova and Donald Bowser. Each guest brings deep expertise...

How is increased nonstate actor access to drones impacting war today? That deeply challenging question is the focus of the first episode in the new season of Social Science of War. As always, the podcast sets out to bring together guests from both academia and the practitioner and policy worlds to apply cutting-edge scholarship to real-world challenges. Dr. Nakissa Jahanbani hosts this episode and is joined by retired Lieutenant General Ken Tovo, a former commanding general of US Special...

Since Samuel Huntington introduce the concept of objective control in his 1957 book The Soldier and the State, it has been the model of civil-military relations taught most widely in US professional military education. And yet the concept is not without critics. This episode features a fascinating discussion about civil-military relations, using Huntington’s model as a starting point before exploring topics such as partisanship in the military, what role service members should play in public...

The US military and those of its allies are faced with the challenges of shifting focus toward great power competition while still maintaining the ability to counter threats on the fringes. Where does the Army fit in this new strategic landscape? What are the broader implications for land forces? What constitutes success in competition? And what role does irregular warfare play in deterring near-peer competitors? This episode addresses these questions and more and features a fascinating...

In the previous episode of the Social Science of War, our guests explored the strategic and political dynamics of NATO. This episode continues the focus on European security, turning specifically to the tactical and operational lessons on display in the war in Ukraine. It features a discussion with three expert guests: retired Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, the former commander of US Army Europe; Major Ryan Van Wie, a former assistant professor in West Point's Department of Social Sciences...

How would the United States and its NATO allies fight together in a great power war? How does burden sharing between NATO members shape alliance dynamics? And what lessons can NATO learn from the ongoing war in Ukraine? In this first part of a two-episode series examining land warfare in Europe, our focus is on the strategic and political dynamics of NATO. Part two will be released in two weeks and will examine tactical and operational lessons from the war. Kyle Atwell is joined by two guests...

This episode tackles the subject of proxy warfare—specifically its role in a strategic environment characterized by great power competition. Why do states engage in proxy warfare? How does what scholars call principal-agent theory explain the way proxy warfare actually plays out—particularly the challenges that arise when the interests of a principal and a proxy diverge? And as the US military continues to prepare for large-scale combat operations, how should the ability to leverage proxies...

This episode examines the role of military power not only to fight wars but also to attract and influence partners and allies. Known as shaping, these activities include multinational training exercises with foreign militaries, establishing US military basing around the world, security force assistance and military aid, and more. Given the National Defense Strategy places a high priority on the US alliance and partner network, shaping is an essential concept to understand how the United...

This episode looks back at twenty years of the US-led war in Afghanistan to find lessons for the US Army. How should the war inform the way we make strategy going forward? What are the keys to effective security force assistance? And is it possible to disrupt the US government's tendency to overmilitarize efforts from the tactical to the strategic level? Three guests join this episode to discuss these questions and more. Retired Lieutenant General Doug Lute has had a long and distinguished...

This episode of Social Science of War examines a range of issues related to Army talent management—from the ways in which service in the Army impacts a soldier’s earning potential to how the Army is responding to its current recruiting crisis. To do so, Kyle Atwell is joined by two guests who bring both deeply relevant military experience and leading academic research to bear on these important subjects. Command Sergeant Major Faith Alexander is the senior enlisted advisor at the Army...

This episode of the Social Science of War podcast examines the challenges posed by cyber threats to the United States and how the nation and Army are adapting to the cyber domain. To do so, host Kyle Atwell is joined by Colonel Candice E. Frost, commander of the Joint Intelligence Operations Center at US Cyber Command, and Major Margeret Smith, an assistant professor in the Department of Social Sciences at West Point and a researcher at the Army Cyber Institute. They begin by outlining a few...

This is the very first episode of a new podcast from the Department of Social Sciences at West Point: Social Science of War. In it, host Kyle Atwell is joined by retired Lieutenant General Mark Hertling, former commanding general of US Army Europe, and Dr. Rob Person, an associate professor of international affairs at West Point. They tackle a timely and important question: What are the implications for the future of land warfare from the ongoing war in Ukraine? Combining both deep practical...