School of War

John Lee, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute,  joins the show to discuss the Trump administration’s efforts to bring the war in Ukraine to an end, and what it all means facing China in the Pacific. ▪️ Times 01:56 Strategic Implications of the War 03:24 The 28-Point Peace Plan 09:49 Challenges of Negotiating Peace 15:19 The Russia-China Connection 19:48 Nuclear Deterrence and Arms Control 29:30...

Jeremy Armstrong, Professor of Classics & Ancient History at the University of Auckland and author of Children of Mars: The Origins of Rome's Empire,  joins the show to discuss the early history of Rome, the role of family and clan in the structure of its military, the transition from monarchy to republic, and the nature of warfare during this formative period.  ▪️ Times 02:28 The Problems of Earl...

Major General Mick Ryan, Australian Army (retired), Senior Fellow for Military Studies the Lowy Institute and author of the Futura Doctrina substack, joins the show to discuss the current state of the Ukraine war. We cover tactical innovations, the challenges of operations and strategy, the structure of the Ukrainian military, the political landscape under Zelensky, and the industrial capabilities...

Marc Milner, Emeritus Professor of History at the University of New Brunswick and author of Second Front: Anglo-American Rivalry and the Hidden Story of the Normandy Campaign, joins the show to discuss the turbulent passing of the torch of Western hegemony during WWII.  ▪️ Times 02:50 1917 10:52 American Battle Monuments Commission 14:31 FDR and the British Empire 21:36 American views on the Nazis...

Nicholas Wright, neuroscientist and author of Warhead: How the Brain Shapes War and War Shapes the Brain, joins the show to explore the implications of neuroscience for warmaking.  ▪️ Times 01:20 Neurology 02:57 Intelligence Defined 07:06 Mapping the Brain 17:05 How Modeling Happens 27:15 Outthinking and Outlearning the Enemy 30:25 Prioritization and Survival 35:15 Fear and the Fall of France in 1...

Host Aaron MacLean pays tribute to his father, World War Two and Vietnam Veteran Angus MacLean. This memorial originally ran in the publication Engelsberg Ideas.  ▪️ Follow along on Instagram, X @schoolofwarpod, and YouTube @SchoolofWarPodcast Find more content on our School of War Substack Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Edward Luce, U.S. national editor and columnist at the Financial Times and author of Zbig: The Life of Zbigniew Brzezinski, America's Great Power Prophet,joins the show to discuss one of the most interesting characters of the Cold War, Jimmy Carter’s national security advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski. ▪️ Times 00:00 The Life and Legacy of Zbigniew Brzezinski 02:55 Carter's Foreign Policy and Brzezinski...

Oren Cass, founder and chief economist of American Compass and author of the article A Grand Strategy of Reciprocity for Foreign Affairs, joins the show to discuss how the United States should think about the current strategic moment. ▪️ Times 00:01 Introduction to Free Markets and Trade 00:43 Discussion on China and Global Strategy 02:15 Historical Context of American Grand Strategy 04:40 Assumpt...

Alexander Mikaberidze, Professor of History at LSU Shreveport and contributor to An Unavoidable Evil: Siege Warfare in the Age of Napoleon (From Reason to Revolution 1721-1815),  joins the show to discuss the siege of Brăila and the lessons of the Russo-Ottoman War of 1806-1812. ▪️ Times 00:00 The Shifting Balance of Power in the Black Sea 02:00 Siege Warfare in the Age of Napoleon 04:09 Decisive...

Joshua S. Treviño, Chief Transformation Officer at the Texas Public Policy Foundation and senior advisor at the America First Policy Institute, joins the show to discuss the Trump administration’s military strikes on seaborne cartel traffic and its strategy in the Western Hemisphere. ▪️ Times 00:00 Understanding U.S. Military Strategy in Venezuela 02:26 The State-Cartel Synthesis: A New Paradigm 0...

Michael Sobolik, senior fellow at Hudson Institute and author of Countering China’s Great Game: A Strategy for American Dominance, joins the show to discuss the current state of relations between the U.S. and China as Xi Jinping and Donald Trump are scheduled to meet in South Korea next week. ▪️ Times 00:00 The Broader Competition: US-China Relations 02:51 Trump's Trade Strategy: A Historical Pers...

Julian Jackson, Emeritus Professor of Modern French History at Queen Mary University of London and author of France on Trial: The Case of Marshal Pétain, joins the show to discuss the rise and fall of “the Lion of Verdun”; Philippe Pétain. ▪️ Times    01:06 Introduction    01:53 How Pétain became the “Hero of France” in WW1    11:32  France sues for peace with Germany in 1940    18:52 The legality...

Lance R. Blyth, command historian at the North American Aerospace Defense Command and author of Ski, Climb, Fight: The 10th Mountain Division and the Rise of Mountain Warfare, joins the show to discuss the history and tactics of fighting at altitude.        ▪️ Times     •      01:31 Introduction     •      01:41 Marine     •      04:55 L.A. riots              •      07:22 From horses to skis     •...

Charles C. Mann, author of “How the System Works” in The New Atlantis, joins the show to discuss the complexity and vulnerability of the hidden processes that sustain human life on our planet.       ▪️ Times     •      01:49 Introduction     •      02:31 Interconnected      •      05:43 Medical care              •      09:20 Feeding humanity     •      11:56 Three advances             •      20:42...

James Titterton, historian and author of Deception in Medieval Warfare: Trickery and Cunning in the Central Middle Ages, joins the show to discuss strategies and stratagems in the age of castles and knights.       ▪️ Times     •      01:29 Introduction     •      02:18 High Middle Ages     •      09:03 Oathbreakers              •      12:01 Sources     •      16:21 Doctrine             •      22:0...

Toshi Yoshihara, Senior Fellow at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments and author of Mao's Army Goes to Sea: The Island Campaigns and the Founding of China's Navy, joins the show to discuss how the PLA took Beijing in 1949 by subversion, and how they may yet seize Taiwan.       ▪️ Times     •      01:53 Introduction     •      03:24 Peaceful liberation     •      07:19 Planning and p...

Joshua Rovner, Associate Professor in the School of International Service at American University and author of Strategy and Grand Strategy, joins the show to discuss the tension between pursuing military victory and securing a nation.       ▪️ Times     •      01:28 Introduction     •      01:35 MIT      •      05:03 Grand strategy              •      10:45 Peloponnesian War      •      18:05 Spar...

Tyler Grey, Delta Force veteran and author of Forged in Chaos: A Warrior's Origin Story, joins the show to discuss his experiences as a member of the U.S. Army’s most elite combat unit, his journey as a warrior, and the continuing struggle to understand post-traumatic stress. ▪️ Times     •      01:30 Introduction     •      01:48 Bakersfield, CA      •      06:51 Predators and prey              •...

A. Wess Mitchell, former Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, historian, and author of Great Power Diplomacy: The Skill of Statecraft from Attila the Hun to Kissinger, joins the show to discuss just what diplomacy is. ▪️ Times     •      01:37 Introduction     •      02:08 Bad reutation      •      04:37 Misconceptions              •      09:35 A part of grand strategy ...

Major General Mick Ryan, Australian Army (retired), Senior Fellow for Military Studies the Lowy Institute and author of the Futura Doctrina substack, joins the show to discuss his latest piece, Translating Ukraine Lessons for the Pacific Theatre. ▪️ Times     •      01:40 Introduction     •      02:18 Translation      •      04:03 Ground forces             •      08:40 Australian defense      •   ...

Ran Baratz, military historian and former senior Israeli official, and author of What's Wrong with the Postmodern Military?, joins the show to discuss operations in Gaza and problems with how the IDF officer corps thinks about war. ▪️ Times     •      01:37 Introduction     •      02:27 Gaza     •      06:23 Diplomatic obstacles             •      12:27 Worse than you think     •      15:28 Paradi...

Peter Rough, senior fellow and director of the Center on Europe and Eurasia at the Hudson Institute, joins the show to discuss the recent Russian drone incursions in Poland and Romania and what they mean. ▪️ Times     •      01:08 Introduction     •      01:35 What actually happened?     •      05:30 Destructive decoys             •      07:27 European moods     •      11:23 Rightwing response    ...

Prit Buttar, historian and author of Bagration 1944: The Great Soviet Offensive, joins the show to discuss the immense Russian campaign that broke the German Army on the Eastern Front.     ▪️ Times     •      01:48 Introduction     •      02:50 A war unto itself     •      08:02 Flanders             •      15:20 Maskirovka     •      24:35 Soviet intelligence              •      28:27 Bolshevism  ...

Nadège Rolland, Distinguished Fellow, China Studies, at the National Bureau of Asian Research (NBR) and principal investigator for the Mapping China's Borderlands: Dashboard, joins the show to discuss the shifting visions China has of its frontiers.  ▪️ Times     •      01:35 Introduction     •      02:34 What is “China?”     •      10:26 Sovereignty             •      19:30 Double translation    ...

Brad Bowman and Ryan Brobst, senior and deputy directors of the Center on Military and Political Power at FDD, join the show to discuss the military relationships between America’s major antagonists. ▪️ Times     •      01:47 Introduction     •      02:40 Axis cooperation     •      08:02 Interoperability            •      11:19 Fighting all three     •      14:49 Potential            •      20:57...