Skip to main content
Disciplines
Automotive Business IT + Informatics Construction + Real Estate Electrical Engineering + Electronics Energy + Sustainability Insurance + Risk Finance + Banking Management + Leadership Marketing + Sales Mechanical Engineering + Materials
Events
DE
EN
Books
Journals
Topic Page
Marketing
Start single access now
Access for companies
EXTENDED SEARCH
Log in
Top
Published in:
Introduction Read chapter Read first chapter

2017 | OriginalPaper | Chapter

3. Contemporary Hybrid Warfare and the Evolution of Special Operations Theory

Author : Dennis Gyllensporre

Published in: Special Operations from a Small State Perspective

Publisher: Springer International Publishing

Log in

Activate our intelligent search to find suitable subject content or patents.

search-config
loading …

Abstract

The third chapter elaborates the theory of special operations against the backdrop of hybrid warfare, viz., the kind of war pursued by Russia in Ukraine. The author stresses that hybrid warfare is not new. However, contemporary Russian warfare has some distinct features as it involves eight phases, the first five of which are covert. It is further argued that contemporary hybrid warfare applies a mix of conventional and unconventional measures. Further, Gyllensporre argues that research by Arreguín-Toft provides a possibility for small states since it postulates that the use of indirect measures increases the likelihood of success significantly. Like a chameleon, the application of defensive strategies needs to continuously adjust to the environment and tailor special operations against enemy actions so that asymmetry is ensured.

Dont have a licence yet? Then find out more about our products and how to get one now:

Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik"

Online-Abonnement

Mit Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" erhalten Sie Zugriff auf:

  • über 102.000 Bücher
  • über 537 Zeitschriften

aus folgenden Fachgebieten:

  • Automobil + Motoren
  • Bauwesen + Immobilien
  • Business IT + Informatik
  • Elektrotechnik + Elektronik
  • Energie + Nachhaltigkeit
  • Finance + Banking
  • Management + Führung
  • Marketing + Vertrieb
  • Maschinenbau + Werkstoffe
  • Versicherung + Risiko

Jetzt Wissensvorsprung sichern!

inform now

Springer Professional "Wirtschaft"

Online-Abonnement

Mit Springer Professional "Wirtschaft" erhalten Sie Zugriff auf:

  • über 67.000 Bücher
  • über 340 Zeitschriften

aus folgenden Fachgebieten:

  • Bauwesen + Immobilien
  • Business IT + Informatik
  • Finance + Banking
  • Management + Führung
  • Marketing + Vertrieb
  • Versicherung + Risiko




Jetzt Wissensvorsprung sichern!

inform now
previous chapter Swedish Special Operations Forces: How It All Started
next chapter The Utility of Special Operations in Small States
Footnotes
1
Brailey, Malcolm. 2005. The Transformation of Special Operations Forces in Contemporary Conflict: Strategy, Missions, Organisation and Tactics. Duntroon, A.C.T.: Land Warfare Studies Centre.
 
2
Kiras, James D. 2006. Special Operations and Strategy: From World War II to the War on Terrorism. New York: Routledge.
 
3
McRaven, William. 1996. Spec ops: Case Studies in Special Operations Warfare: Theory and Practice. Novato: Presidio Press.
 
4
Spulak Robert. 2007. A Theory of Special Operations: The Origin, Qualities, and Use of SOF. No. JSOU-R-07–7. Sandia National Labs, Albuquerque NM.
 
5
Celeski, Joseph. 2011. “A Theory of SOF.” Briefing at the Joint Special Operations University SOF-Power Workshop, MacDill AFB, Florida. See also Yarger, Harry R. 2013. 21st century SOF: Toward an American Theory of Special Operations. No. JSOU-13–1. MacDill AFB FL.
 
6
Gray, Colin. 1999. “Handfuls of Heroes on desperate ventures: When do special operations succeed?” Parameters. For a discussion on Gray’s criteria, see Chapter 3 by Ronny Modigs.
 
7
Murray, Williamson, and Peter R. Mansoor, eds. 2012. Hybrid Warfare: Fighting Complex Opponents from the Ancient World to the Present. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
 
8
Bērziņš, Jānis. 2014 “Russia’s New Generation Warfare in Ukraine: Implications for Latvian Defense Policy.” National Defence Academy of Latvia Center for Security and Strategic Research. Accessed from http://​www.​sldinfo.​com/​wp-content/​uploads/​2014/​05/​New-Generation-Warfare.​pdf
 
9
Krepinevich, Andrew F. 1994. “Cavalry to Computer: The Pattern of Military Revolutions.” The National Interest, 37: 30–42.
 
10
Arreguin-Toft, Ivan. 2001. “How the Weak Win Wars: A Theory of Asymmetric Conflict.” International Security, 26(1): 93–128.
 
11
Gray, Colin. 2012. Modern Strategy. Oxford: Oxford University Press. See also Kiras, James D. 2006. Special Operations and Strategy: From World War II to the War on Terrorism. New York: Routledge.
 
12
Lind, W. S. et al. 1989. “The Changing Face of War: Into the Fourth Generation.” Marine Corps Gazette, 73(10): 22–26.
 
13
Hoffman, Frank G. 2007. Conflict in the 21st Century: The Rise of Hybrid Wars. Arlington, VA: Potomac Institute for Policy Studies. See also Phelan, P. 2011. “Fourth Generation Warfare and Its Challenges for the Military and Society.” Defence Studies, 11(1): 96–119.
 
14
Lind, W. S. et al. 1989. “The Changing Face of War: Into the Fourth Generation.” Marine Corps Gazette, 73(10): 22–26.
 
15
Lind, W. S. et al. 1989. “The Changing Face of War: Into the Fourth Generation.” Marine Corps Gazette, 73(10): 22–26.
 
16
McKercher, Brian, and Michael A. Hennessy. 1996. The Operational Art: Developments in the Theories of War. Westport: Praeger Publishers.
 
17
Gyllensporre, Dennis. 2015. “On the Future of Conventional Warfare- From Closed Minds to Open Systems.” The Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences Proceedings and Journal, 4: 136–147.
 
18
Lind, W. S. et al. 1989. “The Changing Face of War: Into the Fourth Generation.” Marine Corps Gazette, 73(10): 22–26.
 
19
Lind, W. S. et al. 1989. “The Changing Face of War: Into the Fourth Generation.” Marine Corps Gazette, 73(10): 22–26.
 
20
Lind, W. S. et al. 1989. “The Changing Face of War: Into the Fourth Generation.” Marine Corps Gazette, 73(10): 22–26.
 
21
Boyd, J. R. 1987. A Discourse on Winning and Losing. A collection of unpublished briefings and essays. Air University Library, Document No. M-U 43947.
 
22
Gyllensporre, Dennis. 2015. “On the Future of Conventional Warfare- From Closed Minds to Open Systems.” The Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences Proceedings and Journal, 4: 136–147.
 
23
Cebrowski, A. K., and Garstka, J. J. 1998. “Network-centric warfare: Its origin and future.” US Naval Institute Proceedings, 124(1): 28–35.
 
24
According to Greek mythology, the opening of the gates of Troy from within ensured a decisive outcome of the Trojan War. For a special operations perspective on the campaign, see Arquilla, John. 1996. From Troy to Entebbe: special operations in ancient and modern times. University Press of America.
 
25
Kiras, James D. 2006. Special Operations and Strategy: From World War II to the War on Terrorism. New York: Routledge.
 
26
Kiras, James D. 2006. Special Operations and Strategy: From World War II to the War on Terrorism. New York: Routledge.
 
27
McRaven, William. 1996. Spec ops: Case Studies in Special Operations Warfare: Theory and Practice. Novato: Presidio Press.
 
28
Lind, W. S. et al. 1989. “The Changing Face of War: Into the Fourth Generation.” Marine Corps Gazette, 73(10): 22–26.
 
29
van Creveld, M. 2000. “Through a Glass, Darkly.” Naval War College Review, 53(4): 25–44.
 
30
Smith, R. 2008. The Utility of Force: The Art of War in the Modern World. London: Random House LLC, p. 1.
 
31
Hammes, T. X. 2006. The Sling and the Stone: on War in the 21st Century. St. Paul, MN: Zenith Press.
 
32
Gyllensporre, Dennis. 2015. “On the Future of Conventional Warfare- From Closed Minds to Open Systems.” The Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences Proceedings and Journal, 4: 136–147.
 
33
Eland, I. 2013. The Failure of Counterinsurgency: Why Hearts and Minds Are Seldom Won: Why Hearts and Minds Are Seldom Won. Santa Barbara. See also Evans, M. 2005. “Elegant Irrelevance Revisited: A Critique of Fourth-Generation Warfare.” Contemporary Security Policy, 26(2): 242–249.
 
34
Hammes, T. X. 2006. The Sling and the Stone: On War in the 21st Century. St. Paul, MN: Zenith Press.
 
35
van Creveld, M. 1991. The Transformation of War: The Most Radical Reinterpretation of Armed Conflict Since Clausewitz. New York: The Free Press.
 
36
Gyllensporre, Dennis. 2015. “On the Future of Conventional Warfare- From Closed Minds to Open Systems.” The Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences Proceedings and Journal, 4: 136–147.
 
37
Benbow, T. 2008. “Talking ‘Bout Our Generation? Assessing the Concept of “Fourth-Generation Warfare.” Comparative Strategy, 27(2): 148–163.
 
38
Gyllensporre, Dennis. 2015. “On the Future of Conventional Warfare- From Closed Minds to Open Systems.” The Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences Proceedings and Journal, 4: 136–147.
 
39
Lind, W. S. et al. 1989. “The Changing Face of War: Into the Fourth Generation.” Marine Corps Gazette, 73(10): 22–26.
 
40
Somkuti, B and Kiss, P. 2009. “Are we there yet? A critique of 5GW” Academic and Applied Research in Military Science, 8(2): 261–274.
 
41
Kilcullen, David. 2009. The Accidental Guerrilla: Fighting Small Wars in the Midst of a Big One. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
 
42
Patterson, John. 2010. “A Long-Term Counterinsurgency Strategy.” Parameters, 40(3) (2010): 1.
 
43
Cockburn, Andrew. 2015. Kill Chain: The Rise of the High-Tech Assassins. Henry Holt and Company.
 
44
Kiras, James D. 2006. Special Operations and Strategy: From World War II to the War on Terrorism. New York: Routledge.
 
45
Spulak Robert. 2007. A Theory of Special Operations: The Origin, Qualities, and Use of SOF. No. JSOU-R-07-7. Sandia National Labs, Albuquerque NM, p. 4.
 
46
Watts, Barry D. 2004. “Clausewitzian Friction and Future War.” McNair Papers, 68 (2004).
 
47
Gray, Colin.2006. Another Bloody Century: Future Warfare. London: Phoenix.
 
48
Celeski, Joseph. 2011. “A theory of SOF.” Briefing at the Joint Special Operations University SOF-Power Workshop, MacDill AFB, Florida.
 
49
Celeski, Joseph. 2011. “A theory of SOF.” Briefing at the Joint Special Operations University SOF-Power Workshop, MacDill AFB, Florida, p. 22.
 
50
Yarger, Harry R. 2013. 21st Century SOF: Toward an American Theory of Special Operations. No. JSOU-13-1. MacDill AFB FL.
 
51
Glicken Turnley, Jessica. 2001. “Cross Cultural Competence and Small Groups: Why SOF Are the Way SOF are.” Hurlburt Field, FL: Joint Special Operations University, March (2011).
 
52
Qiao, L., and Wang, X. 2002. Unrestricted Warfare: China’ s Master Plan to Destroy America. Panama City, Panama: Pan American Publishing Company.
 
53
Qiao, L., and Wang, X. 2002. Unrestricted Warfare: China’s Master Plan to Destroy America. Panama City, Panama: Pan American Publishing Company, p. 43.
 
54
Qiao, L., and Wang, X. 2002. Unrestricted Warfare: China’s Master Plan to Destroy America. Panama City, Panama: Pan American Publishing Company.
 
55
Murray, Williamson, and Peter R. Mansoor, eds. 2012. Hybrid Warfare: Fighting Complex Opponents from the Ancient World to the Present. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
 
56
Hoffman, Frank G. 2007. Conflict in the 21st Century: The of Hybrid Wars. Arlington, VA: Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, p. 29.
 
57
Lanoszka, Alexander. 2016. “Russian Hybrid Warfare and Extended Deterrence in Eastern Europe.” International Affairs, 92(1) (2016): 175–195.
 
58
Bērziņš, Jānis. 2014. “Russia’s New Generation Warfare in Ukraine: Implications for Latvian Defense Policy.” National Defence Academy of Latvia Center for Security and Strategic Research. Accessed from http://​www.​sldinfo.​com/​wp-content/​uploads/​2014/​05/​New-Generation-Warfare.​pdf
 
59
Bērziņš, Jānis. 2014 “Russia’s New Generation Warfare in Ukraine: Implications for Latvian Defense Policy.” National Defence Academy of Latvia Center for Security and Strategic Research. Accessed from http://​www.​sldinfo.​com/​wp-content/​uploads/​2014/​05/​New-Generation-Warfare.​pdf.
 
60
Kuhn, T. 1962. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, 2d ed. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
 
61
Kane, Thomas M., and David J. Lonsdale. 2011. Understanding Contemporary Strategy. Miltonpark, Abingdon: Routledge.
 
62
Krepinevich, Andrew F. 1994. “Cavalry to Computer: The Pattern of Military Revolutions.” The National Interest, 37: 30–42.
 
63
NATO (Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence). 2014. Analysis of Russia’s Information Campaign against Ukraine Riga.
 
64
Nissen, Thomas Elkjer. (ed.). 2015. #TheWeaponizationOfSocialMedia:@ Characteristics_of_ Contemporary_Conflicts. Royal Danish Defence College.
 
65
NATO (Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence). 2014. Analysis of Russia’s Information Campaign against Ukraine Riga.
 
66
Reisinger, Heidi and Aleksandr Golts, 2014. “Russia’s Hybrid Warfare: Waging War Below the Radar of Traditional Collective Defence”, NDC Research Paper no. 105 (Brussels: NATO Defense College, Nov. 2014).
 
67
NATO (Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence). 2014. Analysis of Russia’s Information Campaign against Ukraine Riga.
 
68
Reisinger, Heidi and Aleksandr Golts, 2014. “Russia’s hybrid warfare: waging war below the radar of traditional collective defence”, NDC Research Paper no. 105.Brussels: NATO Defense College, Nov. 2014.
 
69
Mack, Andrew. 1975. “Why Big Nations Lose Small Wars: The Politics of Asymmetric Conflict.” World Politics, 27(02): 175–200.
 
70
Thucydides. 2008. History of the Peloponnesian War. United States: BiblioLife, p. 360.
 
71
Mack, Andrew. 1975. “Why Big Nations Lose Small Wars: The Politics of Asymmetric Conflict.” World Politics, 27(02): 175–200.
 
72
Arreguin-Toft, Ivan. 2001. “How the Weak Win Wars: A Theory of Asymmetric Conflict.” International Security, 26(1): 93–128.
 
73
Arreguin-Toft, Ivan. 2001. “How the Weak Win Wars: A Theory of Asymmetric Conflict.” International Security, 26(1): 93–128.
 
74
Ward, Christopher. 2014. Applying Deterrence Strategy to Agents of Asymmetrical Threats. Disseration. Monterey, CA: Naval Postgraduate School.
 
75
Snyder, Glenn. 1961. Deterrence and Defense: Toward a Theory of National Security. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press.
 
76
King, Anthony. 2015. “Close Quarters Battle: Urban Combat and ‘Special Forcification’.” Armed Forces & Society, 42(2): 276–300.
 
77
Kilcullen, David. 2009. The Accidental Guerrilla: Fighting Small Wars in the Midst of a Big One. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
 
78
Kiras, James D. 2012. “Special Operations and Strategies of Attrition.” Infinity Journal, 2(4).
 
79
NATO (Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence). 2014. Analysis of Russia’s Information Campaign against Ukraine Riga.
 
80
Arreguin-Toft, Ivan. 2001. “How the Weak Win Wars: A Theory of Asymmetric Conflict.” International Security, 26(1): 93–128.
 
81
Kiras, James D. 2006. Special Operations and Strategy: From World War II to the War on Terrorism. Routledge.
 
82
Beaufre, André. 1965. An Introduction to Strategy. New York: FA Praeger.
 
Metadata
Title
Contemporary Hybrid Warfare and the Evolution of Special Operations Theory
Author
Dennis Gyllensporre
Copyright Year
2017
Book
Special Operations from a Small State Perspective

Print ISBN: 978-3-319-43960-0

Electronic ISBN: 978-3-319-43961-7

Copyright Year: 2017

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-43961-7_3