Rowman & Littlefield Publishers / American Foreign Policy Council
Pages: 128
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Trim: 6 1/4 x 9 1/2
978-1-5381-0541-2 • Hardback • November 2017 • $58.00 • (£39.95)
978-1-5381-0542-9 • eBook • November 2017 • $55.00 • (£37.95)
Ilan Berman is Senior Vice President of the American Foreign Policy Council in Washington, DC. An expert on regional security in the Middle East, Central Asia, and the Russian Federation, he has consulted for both the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency and the U.S. Department of Defense, and provided assistance on foreign policy and national security issues to a range of governmental agencies and congressional offices. Mr.Berman is also a member of the Associated Faculty at Missouri State University’s Department of Defense and Strategic Studies. He holds a M.A. in International Politics from the American University in Washington, DC, and a Juris Doctorate from the Washington College of Law.
Introduction: Thinking about Asymmetry, by Ilan Berman
Chapter 1: The Chinese Way of Asymmetric War, by Larry M. Wortzel
Chapter 2: Russia’s Asymmetric Strategy for Contemporary and Future War, by Stephen Blank
Chapter 3: The Strategies and Methods of Iranian Asymmetric War, by Ladan Yazdian
Chapter 4: The Asymmetric Strategies of the DPRK, by Daniel A. Pinkston
Conclusion: Adapting to Asymmetry, by Ilan Berman
List of Contributors
The five well-informed contributors to this slender volume bring varied backgrounds to asymmetric warfare. They have filled a variety of government, academic, and think-tank positions. Berman’s historical introduction underscores the global nature of such wars. Irregular war “is as old as conflict itself.” However, it “came of age” only at the end of the Cold War. Contemporary weaponry has made asymmetric wars far more lethal. The four countries examined in detail adopt differing approaches. China’s strategy involves “adaptation of traditional means of operational confrontation.” Basic strategy dates to Sun Tzu around 500 BCE. Major updates have come in political work, cyber-warfare, and other electronic advances. Russian leaders stress a “persistent siege mentality.” Information warfare, covert and overt military involvement in “near abroad” states, and electronic-pulse magnetism constitute major initiatives. Iran’s strategy revolves around Persian Gulf security, defense needs, and oil revenues. The need for self-sufficiency because of war with Iraq and sanctions have bolstered stress on cyber-warfare and nuclear capability. Finally, North Korea (the DPRK) remains “locked in a zero-sum rivalry” with South Korea. Success in developing missile-based nuclear weapons reflects the DPRK’s subordination of civilian priorities. All in all, a sobering, informative book. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty
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