Small Wars Journal

“Alibaba Sellers Offer Shahed Drone Copies for Russia Delivery Despite China’s Export Controls.” The SOFX report below highlights how Chinese drone sellers may be circumventing export controls by offering Shahed-style attack drones to Russia through Alibaba listings. A Chinese drone seller confirmed to The Jerusalem Post that a product listed on Alibaba as a “model plane” was a functional copy of Iran’s …
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This 60 Minutes Overtime report explains how drones have fundamentally transformed modern warfare, particularly in Ukraine. The battlefield has shifted from trench warfare to a wide “kill zone” where drones can detect and strike targets across large areas. The report highlights a rapid drone arms race, with constant innovation required to stay ahead of adversaries. The front line in Ukraine …
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The post Drone Swarms: The Potential AI Future of Drone Warfare appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

Access SOF News HERE. Monthly Drone Report – March 2026 March 31, 2026 SOF News Drones 0 News updates on unmanned aerial systems (UAS) including latest drone technology and use in conflicts around the world. Our featured topic is U.S. C-UAS in the Iran War. Executive Summary Drone warfare continues to evolve rapidly in March 2026, shaping battlefield dynamics across the Middle East, Eastern …
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The post SOF News – Monthly Drone Report – March 2026 appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

Introduction Germany’s military modernization represents one of the most significant strategic turning points in Europe since the Cold War’s end. For decades, Germany maintained a restrained defense posture shaped by historical experience, domestic political culture, and embedded reliance on NATO. German force structure, operational culture and procurement strategies reflected a belief that Europe’s security environment had entered a stable, post-conflict …
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The post Germany’s Military Reawakening and the Future of European Security appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

The Last Signature? Revisiting the Historical Pattern of Bilateral Fractures & Creating a Bridge to Arms Stability The departure of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or New START, from the Cold War arms-control nostalgia signals a total absence of stockpile-reduction frameworks and an intensified presence of the security dilemma in the 21st century. The Bush-Gorbachev treaty had its variants …
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The post Rethinking Deterrence and Integrated Defense: Between Strategic Restraint and ‘Arms Control’ in Tripolar Strategic Competition appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

Strategic Goals of Iran Campaign The ongoing military campaign, jointly initiated by Israel and the United States to weaken and dismantle Iran’s offensive capabilities, has revived discussions about Iran’s future. Codenamed Roaring Lion by the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) and Epic Fury by the U.S., these operations in their initial phase posed significant political and military challenges and setbacks to …
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The post Iran’s Future Remains Uncertain With (or Without) Regime Change appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

Abstract Contemporary U.S.–Iran diplomacy remains centered on uranium enrichment levels, stockpile thresholds, centrifuge cascades, and inspection protocols. These technical variables are measurable and verifiable, and therefore negotiable. Yet the persistent instability surrounding nuclear negotiations suggests that the central issue may not be technical compliance alone, but strategic intent. The nuclear file addresses capability. Iran’s ideological statecraft address’s purpose.  Introduction The …
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The post The Architecture of Resistance: Why Iran’s Ideological Statecraft Outlasts Nuclear Diplomacy appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

From Political Deadlock to Global Threat Afghanistan is no longer a distant crisis or a chapter closed in Western policy. It has become a strategic pressure point, where political paralysis, ideological rigidity, and years of international disengagement collide, creating risks that reverberate far beyond its borders. Left unchecked, Afghanistan is poised to become a persistent source of regional instability, shaping …
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The post Afghanistan’s Political Stalemate: Risks to Regional and Global Security appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

Many Democrats, and even some MAGA Republicans, have stated that President Trump should end the war with Iran; however, that would be a catastrophic mistake. If the U.S. withdraws from the conflict, the U.S. will lose credibility and strength. The U.S. will afterwards be operating from a position of weakness that only another war with an adversary that is perceived …
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The post War with Iran: Trump’s Zero-Sum Game appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

Access National Security News HERE. Access Korean News HERE. National Security News: 1. A brave Marine colonel took on the Pentagon — and paid the price for it 2. Ukrainian Air Defense Expertise: A Global Commodity 3. Opinion | An air power expert explains why Iran is more powerful now than before the war 4. ADAPTIVE INDOMITABLE UKRAINE: First Army …
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The post 3/22/26 National Security and Korean News and Commentary appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

Access National Security News HERE. Access Korean News HERE. National Security News: 1. WARDEN’S FIVE RINGS AND REGIME CHANGE IN IRAN 2. What Boots On The Ground In Iran Could Entail According To Former CENTCOM Commander 3. Iran: Relearning the Importance of Waging a War, Not Just Fighting One 4. Judge Rules Pentagon Restrictions on Press Are Unconstitutional 5. Starlink Has Privatized Geopolitics 6. Mossad chief …
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The post 3/21/26National Security and Korean News and Commentary appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

Kyiv’s deployment of air defense teams to Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and a U.S. base in Jordan reflects a shift in the global security marketplace, where operational experience is as valuable as hardware, reports Reuters’ Yuliia Dysa and Max Hunder.  Rostyslav Khotin, Senior Editor of the Ukrainian Service at Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, digs deeper into this …
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The post Ukrainian Air Defense Expertise: A Global Commodity appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

Access National Security News HERE. Access Korean News HERE National Security News: 1. China This Week: Strategic Moves and Messaging 2. Taiwan’s All-Hands-on-Deck Plan to Fend Off China 3. U.S. War Planes and Helicopters Kick Off Battle to Reopen Hormuz 4. What U.S. Marines Can Do to Help Reopen the Strait of Hormuz 5. Ukraine Wants to Cash in on Iran’s Drone Threat 6. How the …
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The post 3/20/26 National Security and Korean News and Commentary appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

On March 18, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) released the 2026 Annual Threat Assessment. The threat picture outlined in the assessment depicts a security environment defined by simultaneous pressure from major powers, transnational threats, and rapid technological change. China remains the primary strategic competitor, while Russia, Iran, and North Korea continue to challenge U.S. interests through …
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The post 2026 Annual Threat Assessment (ODNI) – What has Changed Since 2024? appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

The article “A Primer on Ukrainian Special Forces” by Stringer and Vivdych at Joint Force Quarterly provides a corrective to a persistent Western misunderstanding: Ukrainian special operations forces (SOF) are not a unified, centrally controlled enterprise akin to USSOCOM, but rather a dispersed, interministerial ecosystem rooted in Soviet institutional legacy. This structural reality has direct implications for how Ukraine fights, …
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The post A Primer on Ukrainian Special Forces | Joint Force Quarterly appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

Michael Dubik argues in his latest CSIS article, “Iran: Relearning the Importance of Waging a War, Not Just Fighting One,” that US military success in tactical combat does not translate into strategic victory because American leaders fail to wage war effectively. Dubik explains that while the US military excels at synchronizing battlefield functions, the United States consistently neglects the political, …
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The post Iran: Relearning the Importance of Waging a War, Not Just Fighting One appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

Abstract This article examines the growing practice of invoking self-defense to justify the use of force in another state’s territory without its consent, particularly in operations against non-state armed groups. It argues that contemporary interpretations of Article 51 of the UN Charter, especially through the “unwilling or unable” doctrine, reveal a pattern of selective sovereignty in which territorial integrity is …
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The post Self-Defense Without Consent: Selective Sovereignty in the Law of War appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

Introduction The 2026 war involving the United States, Israel, and Iran exemplifies one of the most technologically intricate wars in contemporary Middle Eastern history. The capability of Iran to execute accurate missile and drone strikes on Israeli urban centers and American military installations in the Gulf region astonished numerous military analysts. The accuracy unveiled in these missions indicates the existence …
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The post Chinese Eyes, Iranian Missiles: Intelligence Cooperation in the US/Israel–Iran War 2026 appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

ABSTRACT The United States is at an inflection point; a rising China and a shifting political landscape in the Western Hemisphere have created great strategic tension in Washington. China remains the pacing threat, but senior leaders’ focus is shifting to affairs in the Western Hemisphere. Defending the Homeland will include improving US posture in the Indo-Pacific as expanding Chinese power …
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The post A Contest of Wills: China and the Quad appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.

Access National Security News HERE. Access Korean News HERE. National Security News: 1. Senior Special Warfare Leaders Highlight Community’s Capabilities, Define Its Challenges 2. Beyond Cognitive Warfare: Differentiating Cognitive Battles for Cognitive Security 3. Drones over base where Rubio, Hegseth live raise security concerns 4. US Air Force special operations seeks kamikaze drones 5. The Land-Based Missiles That Are Crucial to America’s Air War …
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The post 3/19/26 National Security and Korean News and Commentary appeared first on Small Wars Journal by Arizona State University.