War's Changed Landscape
A Primer on Conflict's Forms and Norms
Paddy Walker and Peter Roberts
Havant, UK: Howgate Publishing, 2024
Paperback 236pp RRP: $39.95
Reviewer: Mike Annett, November 2024
This book is essentially an academic treatise reflecting on what had transpired in the Ukraine-Russia conflict by late 2022 and what lessons might be drawn on conflict at the strategic, operational and tactical level as a result. Paddy Walker and Peter Roberts are retired Army and Navy officers respectively, RUSI (UK) luminaries and prolific writers and lecturers on modern strategy and warfare.
Consequently their musings are deserving of some respect and the book, while a jargon-rich and quite a heavy-going read is full of insights and reflections on modern conflict. Most importantly the authors have attempted to identify any enduring pointers to the future nature of land warfare that are being revealed in the tragic, costly and attritional fighting in the Ukraine borderlands, noting that another two years of conflict has raged since the authors put fingers to keyboards.
The book has won wide praise from a number of retired senior British military leaders and relevant academic authorities and certainly the scope of the work is impressive within a relatively small compass, particularly given the time frame in which it was produced post the Russian attempt at invasion and regime change.
Most interestingly, the juxtaposition between cutting edge targeting technologies and remote munition delivery by small teams while large scale attritional assaults continue to be dominated by artillery, tanks and exposed infantry is well explored. Also the adaptation of off-the-shelf technology (especially drones) to military purposes, done with considerable utility and success by Ukraine in extremis, is comprehensively analysed and discussed.
The inherent challenges and relative success in mobilising a largely civilian population in short order to both bulk out the standing force and replace heavy combat losses in the early stages of Russia’s thwarted invasion was impressive. This must have significant lessons for us all in terms of how to achieve strategic depth and resilience in part-time or reserve forces but was not covered by the authors - perhaps a second edition when the war is concluded will come out and this would be a valuable inclusion. The importance of national morale and inspiring leadership in an existential fight has been reaffirmed in Ukraine’s resistance, and conversely perhaps it’s lack of importance in an authoritarian state where dissent is ruthlessly suppressed. This is also a theme worthy of being examined in detail when the time is right.
As said at the outset, this is a book that requires some effort on the part of the reader but is worth persevering with.
The RUSI – Vic Library is most grateful to the publisher for making this work available for review.