Warfare and Military Operations

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RAND researchers examine military and national security issues across a broad spectrum—from political dissent and military training to tactical operations and reconstruction efforts—and take a long-term, global perspective. Terrorism, types of warfare, and international intervention are among the many topics RAND explores.

  • Wagner fighters wave flags of Russia and Wagner group on top of a building in an unidentified location in Ukraine in this still image obtained from a video released on May 20, 2023, photo by press service of Concord/Handout via Reuters

    Commentary

    Ukraine Is a Breeding Ground for Russian PMCs

    Moscow's desire for additional fighters in Ukraine has created a breeding ground for Russian private military company (PMC) development. This explosion of what are essentially private armies is not only shaping the battlefield in Ukraine; it could have devastating impacts long after this conflict ends.

    Jun 14, 2023

  • A digital brain made up of lines, triangles, binary digits and dots, photo by Natalia Darmoroz/iStock/Getty Images Plus

    Report

    Chinese Next-Generation Psychological Warfare

    China is interested in both advanced computing and brain science to expand and improve its psychological warfare capabilities. How might this affect U.S.-China dynamics in peacetime competition, crisis, and conflict?

    Jun 1, 2023

Explore Warfare and Military Operations

  • Green face peering out of machine code on cell phone, photo by Devrimb/Getty Images

    Commentary

    The AI Conspiracy Theories Are Coming

    Artificial intelligence is a technology ready-made for conspiratorial thinking. The time to counter conspiracy theories about AI is now—before they take hold in the minds of the public.

    Jun 22, 2023

  • A Navy Research Laboratory unmanned surface vehicle near Panama Beach, Florida, November 9, 2020, photo by U.S. Naval Research Laboratory

    Commentary

    Revive the Ram

    In the face of aggressive maneuvers by Chinese vessels, the U.S. Navy can brandish ramming USVs as a capability to inhibit threats while limiting the risk of escalation. These relatively simple, inexpensive vehicles could be used alongside a variety of nonlethal weapons to manage confrontations, giving commanders more options as they attempt to prevent China from dominating the seas.

    Jun 22, 2023

  • Volunteers work to reconstruct a school damaged by at least three bombs near Kyiv, Ukraine, May 17, 2023, photo by Dominika Zarzycka/Reuters

    Commentary

    How to Reform and Reconstruct Ukraine After the War

    Hostilities in Ukraine are ongoing, but it is not too early to consider post-war reconstruction. Indeed, the United States and Europe have already begun planning what will probably be the most ambitious post-war rebuilding effort in modern history.

    Jun 21, 2023

  • Journal Article

    Journal Article

    Terrorism, Dynamic Commitment Problems, and Military Conflict

    Why do states initiate costly wars when the risk posed by terrorism appears marginal? We present two explanations and empirical evidence.

    Jun 21, 2023

  • Report

    Report

    Great-Power Competition and Conflict in Latin America

    This report explores the potential for competition and conflict among the United States, China, and Russia in Latin America; where competition might turn into conflict; what form that conflict might take; and the implications for the United States.

    Jun 20, 2023

  • Report

    Report

    Language, Labels, and the DHS Lexicon: Analysis to Support a More-Inclusive Lexicon for Securing the Homeland

    The authors analyze U.S. Department of Homeland Security documentation, processes, and procedures and then identify ways to improve them and to create an organizational culture that supports the lasting implementation of more-inclusive terminology.

    Jun 19, 2023

  • Members of the Ukrainian Armed Forces participate in a military operation in Donetsk, Ukraine, June 9, 2023, photo by Latin America News Agency via Reuters Connect

    Commentary

    How Not to Help Ukraine

    Good strategy involves clearly defining your objectives (ends), developing practical methods to accomplish them (ways), and then allocating sufficient resources (means) to turn these objectives and methods into reality. The debate over congressional support for Ukraine aid largely revolves around means. But what of the other two legs of the strategic triad?

    Jun 17, 2023

  • Members of the Ukrainian Armed Forces deployed near Zaporizhia, Ukraine, June 14, 2023, photo by Latin America News Agency via Reuters Connect

    Commentary

    How Might Ukraine's Counteroffensive End, and What Comes After?

    Ukraine may soon launch a counteroffensive against Russian forces entrenched in eastern and southern Ukraine. We consider three ways this counteroffensive might end and their implications for the future.

    Jun 14, 2023

  • Instructors and soldiers from Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, and Niger during U.S.-sponsored exercises at the international counterterrorism academy in Jacqueville, Ivory Coast, March 14, 2023, photo by Luc Gnago/Reuters

    Commentary

    The Case for a Governance-First U.S. Security Policy in the Sahel

    Both terrorism and coups are on the rise in the Sahel. To reverse this troubling trend, the United States could ramp up support aimed at improving security governance, professionalizing militaries, and strongly sanctioning all forms of military takeovers in the region. This would require a real shift from the current U.S. security approach in the region.

    Jun 8, 2023

  • Journal Article

    Journal Article

    Competitive Alliances and Civil War Recurrence

    Why do internal wars start anew after they apparently end? This essay examines competition between allied rebel groups in civil wars as a contributor to civil war renewal.

    Jun 8, 2023

  • Journal Article

    Journal Article

    Invisible Blockades and Strategic Coercion

    The use of naval mines goes back more than two centuries, but the use of these weapons by both Russia and Ukraine has renewed discussion about the value of this technology for modern warfare.

    Jun 7, 2023

  • An F-16 Fighting Falcon flies during a mission at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, February 14, 2019, photo by Staff Sgt. John Raven/U.S. Air Force

    Commentary

    What Is the Long-Term Strategy for Ukraine's Air Force?

    It is encouraging that Ukraine might receive F-16s to improve its combat capabilities. Western policymakers might begin thinking now about what the Ukrainian Air Force may require in the future, especially if the Russian threat remains acute.

    Jun 6, 2023

  • RAND Weekly Recap

    Blog

    Arming Teachers, F-16s in Ukraine, Commercial Spaceflight: RAND Weekly Recap

    This weekly recap focuses on how teachers feel about arming teachers, what F-16s will (and won't) do for Ukraine, the need to regulate commercial spaceflight, and more.

    Jun 2, 2023

  • Russian conscripts take part in a ceremony marking their departure for garrisons, at the Trinity Cathedral in Saint Petersburg, Russia, May 23, 2023, photo by Anton Vaganov/Reuters

    Commentary

    The Russian Military's Looming Personnel Crises of Retention and Veteran Mental Heath

    Russia's looming troop-retention and veteran-treatment problems are already visible on the horizon, even though they have been delayed by policy. By invading Ukraine, Russia has created a wave of severe trauma that will soon crash over its own country.

    Jun 1, 2023

  • Report

    Report

    Great-Power Competition and Conflict in the Middle East

    This report explores the potential for competition among the United States, China, and Russia in the Middle East; where and why competition might turn into conflict; what form that conflict might take; and the implications for the United States.

    Jun 1, 2023

  • Ecuador's President Guillermo Lasso addresses the nation next to members of government, after he dissolved the National Assembly by decree, in Quito, Ecuador May 17, 2023, photo by Bolivar Parra/Ecuador Presidency/Handout via Reuters

    Commentary

    Is Ecuador in the Middle of a Self-Coup?

    On May 17, the president of Ecuador, Guillermo Lasso, dissolved the country's legislature in the midst of impeachment proceedings against him. Did Ecuador just have a self-coup? The answer matters greatly for the country's democratic trajectory and for the international community's response.

    May 31, 2023

  • Three U.S. Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcons fly over the Pacific Ocean, February 10, 2022, photo by Tech. Sgt. Matthew Lotz/U.S. Air Force

    Commentary

    What F-16s Will (and Won't) Do for Ukraine

    After months of publicly lobbying to acquire U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets, it appears that Ukraine may receive them later this year. However, there remains a long road ahead before the F-16s would see service in Ukraine—and it is an open question how much they would affect the outcome of the war.

    May 31, 2023

  • Icons and lights coming out of a cell phone on a flat surface, photo by David Peperkamp/Getty Images

    Commentary

    How Can Platforms Deal with Toxic Content? Look to Wall Street

    Social media has a content problem. It's not the content itself, although the list of toxic material is long. The problem is the sheer volume of content. Instead of trusting in self-regulation, the United States could use its regulation of Wall Street after 2008 as a roadmap for regulating tech.

    May 26, 2023

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