An Army Like No Other: How the Israeli Defence Forces Made a Nation by Haim Bresheeth Žabner provides a thought-provoking and comprehensive exploration of the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and its profound impact on Israeli society and the nation’s history. As the child of Holocaust survivors who settled in Palestine in 1948, Žabner offers a unique perspective.

Initially embracing the Zionist agenda, Žabner became disillusioned during his conscription into the IDF in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. Serving in the Golan Heights, he witnessed disturbing war crimes committed by the IDF.

The book delves into Israel’s formation, the establishment of the IDF, and the role of Zionist settler-colonialism and violence in asserting and expanding Israeli power. Žabner’s historical analysis highlights the foundation of Zionism on anti-Semitism and explores how Israeli society accepts the Zionist narrative through crucial roles played by schools, communities, and the IDF.

The book traces the origins of the IDF, connecting it with Zionist paramilitaries like the Palmach and Haganah, and emphasizes how impunity for actions like the Nakba became ingrained in Israeli settler-colonial society. Žabner underscores the integral role of military violence in any settler-colonial project, arguing that it is the linchpin without which such endeavors would be impossible.

However, it’s important to note that the book is not a military history but rather a social history of Israel through the IDF. The author identifies the IDF as the most constant institution in Israel’s 75-year history, receiving 96 percent of Jewish support.

Expanding on this premise, Žabner argues that the IDF is not only a formidable fighting force but also the core ideological, political, and financial institution of Israeli society. The IDF’s influence permeates every facet of Israeli life, emerging as one of the nation’s most profitable and influential industries. It is the institutionalized legacy envisioned by Ben-Gurion to create the Israeli nation and society, as he believed ‘the whole nation is the army.’

The book also emphasizes the racialized experiences of Palestinian citizens of Israel, who have historically faced inequalities and disenfranchisement, including living under a military government for the first two decades of Israel’s existence.

Challenging Israeli claims of being “Jewish and democratic,” Žabner argues that Israel has become a fully-fledged apartheid state, both in practice and de jure, drawing parallels with South Africa. The book examines how racist legislation has institutionalized legal apartheid, reinforcing the antidemocratic nature of the settler-colonial regime.

Adding a left-wing perspective, Žabner critiques liberal Zionists who argue for a “humane” or “liberal” Zionism, contending that such positions deny the inherent inequalities within the Zionist project. He challenges the narrative of equality propagated by liberal Zionism, asserting that it serves as a cover for actions violating human rights and international law.

In conclusion, An Army Like No Other provides an eye-opening examination of the IDF and its role in shaping Israel. Žabner’s work challenges conventional assumptions about true peace in the region, calling for a reevaluation of these notions from an informed historical perspective.

Haim Bresheeth Žabner, An Army Like No Other: How the Israeli Defence Forces Made a Nation (Verso, 2020) ISBN: 9781788737845, 448 pages

Rather than a “New Cold War,” we are now witnessing the culmination of an economic war with Russia, where the financial, energy, and capital markets are the battlegrounds. In his timely book, Economic War: Ukraine and the Global Conflict between Russia and the West, political risk analyst and consultant Maximilian Hess takes the reader through the period in which the seeds of economic warfare are sprouting into full bloom: from the initial invasion of Ukraine in 2014 to Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022 and beyond.  

The book skillfully delves into various economic fronts around the world, demonstrating the weaponization of economic tools such as pipelines, mining, credit, and cryptocurrencies. Each chapter unfolds like a chess game between Russia and the West, allowing the reader to map the moves of the contestants both chronologically and regionally, including Russia’s response to Western sanctions and what is at stake for each party.

There were a number of disputes in the early and mid-2000s between Russia and Ukraine over gas supplies and the terms thereof that led Russia to cut off deliveries and precipitated gas supply crunches in the wider European market. What I think people forget is that Nordstream 2 and Nordstream 1 were never intended to increase the total amount of Russian gas that could be pumped to Central Europe.

Instead, they were designed to ensure that Russia didn’t have to do it through Eastern Europe, in particular through Ukraine, so that Russia could then increase the leverage of its gas policy over Ukraine. We should have understood this risk at the time of Nordstream 2, because it was essentially designed to give Russia the same kind of leverage over other Eastern European states that it had gained over Ukraine.

Q. Why do you think Putin choose to invade Ukraine specifically in February 2022?

I think he thought it was an important time economically, when the West was weak and divided. He hoped that the sanctions response and the economic response would be less intense than it might have been at another time. Thinking in terms of change in 2020 and 2021, the end of the Trump administration and then the Biden administration that follows made it clear that there would be a concerted sanctions strategy.

He hoped that European unity would be weak and insufficient to resist him. Inflationary pressures from COVID-19 had already increased, and Russia had already begun to cut off its gas supplies to Europe. At the same time, he was preparing his troops to invade Ukraine and saw it as a moment when the West would be relatively weak economically and relatively vulnerable. Therefore, less likely to act against him and less likely to act in support of Ukraine. Which, of course, turned out to be a very big strategic miscalculation on his part.

Q. Has Russia’s strategy of crippling Europe with gas cuts failed?

Largely, I think it has failed. Not because of any failure within the strategy itself but because of collaborative actions on the part of the West. Intelligence was shared by the United States, by officials who had spoken on the record and had reached the assessment that there was a small chance that Russia wouldn’t invade Ukraine in October 2021, simply the brutal nature of Russia’s onslaught in February, and the fact that the Europeans saw an army of the largest form that had taken this action in Europe since World War II, made it clear to many European leaders that they had no other choice.

Putin was preparing, and did prepare, for a scenario in which Europe was fully on board with the sanctions regime through Russia’s fortress balance sheet strategy, the Kremlin’s process of building up large reserves of ‘hard currencies’ and gold. But now that the initial pain of that gas strategy is being felt, and inflation has been at such high levels for a year and a half. There are obviously still many politicians, particularly in Europe, such as former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who are calling for a softer approach to Russia on these issues. That’s why Putin’s strategy is not one that is over; by threatening more economic pain, he can also undermine support for Ukraine in the long term. Global gas markets are much more fragile, and we could still see a new spike in gas prices this winter as a result of the Kremlin’s actions.

Q. Did Putin pull out of the Black Sea grain deal in an attempt to revive the inflation weapon?

I believe very strongly that this is what he is trying to do. It also gives him the tool of offering grain to African countries to gain more support there. I think we should be prepared for more actions by the Kremlin to deliberately try to stir up inflationary pressures, possibly trying to find a way to drive up prices, as well. The Kremlin really has only one major option, which is to threaten an export embargo and actually take action to make it look credible. That option is difficult because Russia’s budget is now so skewed toward the military.

Since the beginning of the Russia-Ukraine war, the scope of support for Ukraine has been diverse and constantly expanding. Supporting Ukraine has now become a trend with weapons and platforms of strategic value being provided to the country. The support has been effective, especially in Ukraine’s newly launched operation. Yet, this effect is only visible in certain areas and the military support is not enough to ensure Russia’s withdrawal from all regions it occupied. The main reason for this is that such support could deepen the war or escalate the conflict by provoking unpredictable responses from Russia.

Military support in the absence of air superiority—as is currently the case of Ukraine against Russia—prevents Ukraine from achieving the capability to drive Russia completely out of the region and regain some of its territory. There may be different and more rapid developments once the F-16s are delivered and deployed to the battlefield after the training period. But for now, military support is not enough to ensure Russia’s defeat or to force Moscow to negotiate peace.

Can Ukraine become a NATO member? It seems unlikely that NATO will support this. Yes, at least 21 NATO members support Ukraine’s membership, but the continued occupation is one of the biggest obstacles to membership. NATO is unlikely to take such a risk.

Security guarantees could be considered in this context, but they are not very possible without agreement and foresight on how the future of the war will develop. Even now, security guarantees are unlikely within NATO. Even with the support of countries at the level of bilateral relations, it seems that member countries will not be able to provide Ukraine with a security guarantee that could end the conflict with Russia.

In the meantime, NATO’s strategy document, the new Strategic Concept, published last year, does not address the China issue in detail. However, this is the first time that China has been identified as a strategic challenge, given NATO’s post-Cold War history and transformation. At this stage, China poses more of a political and economic challenge than a military threat to NATO, the Alliance’s member countries, and the region they shape. It appears that NATO is not yet ready to portray China as a threat.

The U.S. perspective in the Sino-American rivalry is to transform NATO into a global organization, but not all NATO members share this view. For the time being, it does not seem possible for NATO as a whole to act against China. However, depending on how the dimensions of the Washington-Beijing rivalry evolve in the coming period, NATO may renew its position internally. That said, in the short term, it is not possible to define China as a threat.

Military assistance to Ukraine and its NATO membership are two separate matters. In fact, there is almost complete consensus among Alliance members to provide military assistance to Ukraine. Although some NATO members, such as Germany, were initially reluctant, they have come around to Washington’s line under pressure from their domestic public opinion, Europe, and the United States.

In the early stages of the Russia-Ukraine war, Berlin was only prepared to provide Ukraine with troops, but it has now supplied the country with Leopard 2 tanks and advanced air defence missiles. From this point of view, NATO, which has organized itself very quickly and decisively to support Ukraine militarily, will continue this support until it achieves its goals with regard to Russia.

There are already problems with the production of ammunition for certain weapons due to their intensive use on the Ukrainian front, yet, one of the most important factors determining the course of the struggle between NATO and Russia will be the production of weapons and ammunition, given that Russia is experiencing similar problems to a much greater extent.

The issue of Ukraine’s NATO membership, which is expected to be one of the main items on the agenda at the Vilnius summit, has caused serious disagreement between member states. Some, particularly the Baltic and several Eastern European countries, argue that Ukraine should become a member of NATO quickly, while others, such as the United States and Germany, where there is intense internal debate on the issue, oppose such a quick decision.

Those in favor of a more cautious approach suggest to wait until the end of the war to decide on the issue, fearing that Ukraine’s possible NATO membership during the war would draw them into direct armed conflict with Russia and would also complicate peace negotiations with Russia. They are considering postponing a decision in the hope that, at the end of the war, there will be a weakened Russia unable to oppose Ukraine’s NATO membership. Therefore, it seems unlikely that a decision on Ukraine’s NATO membership will be taken at the Vilnius summit.

However, given the establishment of a NATO-Ukraine Council and the strong likelihood that Ukraine will not be required to meet the preconditions of the Membership Action Plan for the accession of new members, such as the fight against corruption, which was previously included in the Membership Action Plan adopted at the Bucharest Summit, the door will be left open for Ukraine’s membership in the medium term. This issue will be closely linked to the development of NATO’s Russia policy and the outcome of the war. Moreover, Russia’s policy towards the West will be crucial to Ukraine’s NATO membership.

For NATO members, such as Italy and Spain, which have not yet resolved their economic problems caused by the Euro debt crisis, increasing their military spending from 1.5% to more than 2% would mean additional problems for their budget balances. In addition, the military spending of NATO members such as Canada, Belgium, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, and Ireland remains well below the Alliance’s target. It should be recalled that NATO has set the 2% limit as a minimum target, and Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has persistently called for more than 2% military spending in the member states he has visited.

While Russia’s aggression in Ukraine has created a strong motivation for NATO to increase military spending, the disruptions it has caused to energy and food supplies, and prices, and the resulting economic challenges have left many members struggling to find the financial resources to increase their military spending. It is worth noting that NATO members, especially those with growing economic problems, will find it difficult to meet the Alliance’s targets for increasing military spending.

Meanwhile, the U.S. administration wants to see its NATO allies on its side in the fight against China, just as it has done with Russia. Yet, it is no secret that there are members who have reservations about this; Germany, France, and Turkey are among such countries, albeit for different reasons.

In the aftermath of the Trump era, European NATO members are struggling to trust the United States, making it difficult for them to follow Washington’s lead, especially when it comes to a policy towards China. The same reluctance was also present about a policy towards Russia; however, the Russia-Ukraine war helped to remove this reluctance and align countries behind the U.S. Now Washington wants to capitalize on this shock momentum and rally its European allies behind its line against China.

In addition to the shock effect of Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, the U.S. has another advantage in rallying the Europeans behind it: “American friends” in Europe. These “American friends,” commonly known as Atlanticists, are everywhere in Europe. They are in power in countries like Lithuania, Estonia, and Poland, and are partners in coalition governments in countries like Germany.

Given that China has not made a mistake similar to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, but instead is trying to create a sphere of influence for itself through economic cooperation, and given its close economic ties with some European countries, it will not be as easy for Washington to rally NATO members behind its fight against Beijing as it has been to rally them against Moscow.

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he Taiwan Strait has emerged as a geopolitical hotspot, garnering significant attention due to the escalating tensions between the United States and China. This narrow body of water, separating the island of Taiwan from mainland China, has become a focal point of power struggles and competing interests in the Asia-Pacific region.

China’s rise as a global power, both economically and militarily, has fueled concerns over its pursuit of reunification with Taiwan, which currently enjoys de facto independence from China. President Xi Jinping has made reunification a cornerstone of his administration, employing a combination of diplomatic pressure, military posturing, and economic incentives to isolate Taiwan diplomatically and erode its international standing. China’s military modernization, including the development of advanced weaponry and naval capabilities, has increased its capacity to forcefully assert its territorial claims. Meanwhile, the U.S. engages with Taiwan in a way China views as provocative. Should we be concerned?

In War and Peace in the Taiwan Strait, Scott L. Kastner delves into the increasingly tense relationship between China and Taiwan. As fears of a potential military conflict loom large, Kastner offers readers a comprehensive and nuanced analysis of the factors that could lead to hostilities while emphasizing that the situation should not be exaggerated. This book not only sheds new light on the prospects for cross-strait military conflict but also explores the pathways that could either lead to or help prevent such a crisis.

Kastner begins by examining the complex implications of deepening economic integration between China and Taiwan. While economic ties have historically been seen as a stabilizing force, the author delves into the potential risks that arise as a result of this interdependence. He further explores the shifting balance of military power in the region, considering the implications of China’s military modernization efforts and the potential impact on Taiwan’s defense capabilities. These dynamics, coupled with uncertainty surrounding the future of U.S. commitment to Taiwan’s security, contribute to the complex landscape of the Taiwan Strait. A crucial question Kastner considers in his book is whether the United States would come to Taiwan’s defense.

The author also highlights the significance of domestic political changes in both China and Taiwan. By analyzing the internal dynamics within these two entities, Kastner provides readers with a deeper understanding of how domestic factors can shape cross-strait relations and potentially impact the likelihood of military conflict. Kastner delves into an in-depth examination of the intricately intertwined economies of Taiwan and China, as well as their historical background and the significance of freedom in the Taiwanese context.

While the risks of conflict are indeed real, Kastner’s analysis offers a more tempered perspective, emphasizing that war in the Taiwan Strait is far from inevitable. He argues that there are multiple distinct pathways that could lead to hostilities, and the mechanisms that may mitigate one type of conflict might not necessarily be applicable to others. However, the book underlines the presence of powerful mitigating factors, combined with plausible steps to reduce the likelihood of military conflict, providing a glimmer of hope for avoiding a catastrophic outcome.

Combining international relations theory with meticulous empirical analysis of regional trends, Kastner presents readers with valuable insights into the potential occurrence of war in the Taiwan Strait and, more importantly, how such a conflict can be averted. The book equips policymakers, scholars, and interested readers with the knowledge necessary to navigate this complex geopolitical landscape.

War and Peace in the Taiwan Strait is a timely work that provides a comprehensive examination of the risks and possibilities surrounding military conflict in the region. Kastner’s expertise and meticulous research contribute to a vital perspective that not only deepens our understanding of the Taiwan Strait issue but also provides valuable insights into maintaining peace and stability in the region.

Scott L. Kastner, War and Peace in the Taiwan Strait (Columbia University Press, 2022) ISBN: 9780231198653, 272 pages

Written by Dilara Özer

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here come times throughout history where military innovations or shifts in the character of warfare take great revolutionary leaps, allowing those able to reap their benefits first to position themselves at a substantive competitive advantage. Militaries that identify and exploit these periods of disruptive changes make major shifts in the balance of power, security, and prosperity for their nations. Those who fail to do so, or fail to adapt to change, risk exposing their country to danger. What will the next big thing in warfare be? And how can militaries successfully adapt to meet the challenge? The Origins of Victory: How Disruptive Military Innovation Determines the Fates of Great Powers provides an authoritative take and the necessary foundation for healthy speculation.

Military strategist Andrew F. Krepinevich Jr. discusses military revolutions—or shifts in the character of warfare—and specifically the most recent precision warfare revolution which is currently reaching its maturity.

According to Krepinevich, an even newer revolution is emerging. This is fueled by the advances of commercial and military-driven technology, such as AI 3D manufacturing, synthetic biology and quantum computing, and directed energy and hypersonic weapons, and is accelerated by the competition between the U.S., Russia, and China.

The precision warfare revolution was introduced by the U.S. military in the First Gulf War. It gave the U.S. a monopoly over this form of warfare for several decades, but now other powers such as China have these capabilities.

In this era of increased competition amongst great powers, The Origins of Victory, first gives a preliminary assessment of the disruptive changes occurring in general war to identify the existing characteristics of the precision warfare regime, and goes on to offer speculation of the overlapping successor revolution.

Second, The Origins of Victory examines the crucial factor of how military organizations have successfully anticipated and exploited disruptive changes in warfare faster than their rivals.

The book consists of two parts. In Part I, Krepinevich considers the characteristics of the emerging competitive environment through trends over the years and identifies the ones that may show yield in the future. He discusses the maturing precision warfare and the overlapping new revolution, as well as their implication for deterrence.

The world is in an era of permanent low-level conflict. Traditional conflict has largely left its place to grey-zone warfare and hybrid war. States have always used unconventional and non-military ways to acquire leverage or attain victory; however, the increasingly complex and interconnected current nature of the world has made interdependence the battleground.

From sanctions to competing for and buying influence abroad, warfare has taken a more subtle, sly, undeclared, unending, and, most importantly, unrestricted, form. Nowadays, this has blurred the line between war and peace.

While traditional war is very expensive, unpopular, and often too difficult to manage, this new way of war is groundbreaking and does not shy away from any tool available. War is all around us, in everyday life, culture, economics, law, and information. Even something as innocuous as cute cat pictures online can become a ploy.

Mark Galeotti takes us through the weaponization of everything, from disinformation, cyberattacks, and espionage to subversion and crime, in order to understand the changing landscape of war and what it might bring.

Gone are the days of “stable” warfare! The subtle components of martial and everyday civilian life are blending, leading to instability within countries and a legitimacy crisis across the globe. However, this development does not need to be a solely negative one. As Galeotti points out, conflict is democratized, meaning the people are not just bystanders and can take positive action to avoid zero-sum situations. The Weaponisation of Everything: A Field Guide to the New Way of War equips the reader with ways of surviving, adapting, and taking advantage of the opportunities presented by this new reality.

When everything is weaponizable, why would the distinction hold any meaning? Where do we begin to look? How can civilians be mindful of this development? Many of the weapons used are often abstract but their effects are very much tangible and jolting. As it turns out, some things are more weaponizable than others.

Luckily, The Weaponisation of Everything lays bare how this warfare takes form all around the world with examples and a future trajectory. While this form of conflict may be vague and confusing, Galeotti makes the topic apprehensible for all readers.

Even though technology advances in leaps and problems seem to be constantly evolving, Galeotti’s approach invites the reader not only to face the emerging reality, but also to learn to adapt to the new permanent, bloodless war. The Weaponisation of Everything, first released in February 15, 2022, is now available in paperback as of February 14, 2023.

Mark Galeotti, The Weaponisation of Everything: A Field Guide to the New Way of War (Yale University Press, 2022) ISBN 9780300253443, 256 Pages

A year ago today, Russia launched its “military operation” in Ukraine which has not only caused ongoing suffering to the Ukrainian people but has also turned global politics upside-down. Since then, many books have been written about Russia’s war on Ukraine. From the personal accounts of a young Ukrainian girl, journalists on the ground, and soldiers to insightful analyses compiled by experts, this month’s book bundle provides diverse and outstanding sources of information to understand and summarize the important milestones and dynamics leading to and occurring during the war as well as its devastating effects on the world.

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ussia’s 2022 attack on Ukraine saw confrontation between Moscow and the West spill over into open conflict once again. Hostile acts abroad, from poisoning dissidents to shooting down airliners, interfering in elections, spying, hacking, and murdering, have long seemed to be the Kremlin’s dealings. But what is it all for?

Keir Giles, who works as a senior research fellow at the Russia and Eurasia program at Chatham House, explains how and why Russia pushes for more power and influence wherever it can reach, beyond Ukraine; what this means not just for governments, but for ordinary people across the globe; and how its effects may be more damaging than we realize.

Keir Giles, Russia’s War on Everybody and What It Means for You (Bloomsbury Academic 2023) ISBN: 9781350255081, 264 pages

R ussia’s brutal February 2022 invasion of Ukraine has attracted widespread condemnation across the world. Government and media circles present the conflict as a simple dichotomy of good and evil. War in Ukraine: Making Sense of a Senseless Conflict brings together a balanced look at the events leading up to the conflict and surveys the different parties involved.

Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J.S. Davies show how the picture is more complicated. While recognizing that Russia’s aggression is ultimately indefensible, the authors argue that the West’s eastward expansion of NATO, the U.S. involvement in the 2014 Ukraine coup, and Ukraine’s failure to implement the Minsk peace agreements prompted Putin to act.

Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J.S. Davies, War in Ukraine: Making Sense of a Senseless Conflict (OR Books 2022) ISBN 9781682193716, 198 pages

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nvasion: The Inside Story of Russia’s Bloody War and Ukraine’s Fight for Survival is the firsthand reporting on the Russian invasion of Ukraine from Luke Harding, New York Times bestselling author and Guardian correspondent. Harding writes about the astounding resilience in Ukraine and devastating atrocities in Bucha and elsewhere. With a focus on human stories and portraits of the leaders on both sides of war, Invasion captures a crucial moment in history that was the biggest news event of 2022 and an inflection point in international politics.

Luke Harding, Invasion: The Inside Story of Russia’s Bloody War and Ukraine’s Fight for Survival (Vintage, 2022) ISBN: 9780593685174, 336 pages

Yeva Skalietska, a young survivor of the war in Ukraine, shares her memories of the war in Ukraine through her diary entries. She began writing the diary when her grandmother and her found shelter in a bunker when the city where she lived came under Russian attack on February 24, 2022.

Skalietska describes the bombings she endured and her desperate escape journey from the conflict. From endless train rides and an overcrowded refugee center to settling in Ireland to put together a new life, You Don’t Know What War Is: The Diary of a Young Girl from Ukraine is an inspiring and intimate story of a survivor hoping to be able to return home one day.

Yeva Skalietska, You Don’t Know What War Is: The Diary of a Young Girl from Ukraine (Union Square & Co., 2022) ISBN: 9781454949695, 128 pages

No one has been more surprised by Volodymyr Zelensky’s power to inspire and mobilize his compatriots and the world than Vladimir Putin. Outfoxed and isolated, Putin is not the first person to have underestimated the former comedian.

Who is Volodymyr Zelensky? How did he become the international hero of our time? Zelensky: The Unlikely Ukrainian Hero Who Defied Putin and United the World tells you everything you need to know about this inspiring leader, covering his childhood, family history, and his career as a TV celebrity to the president of Ukraine.

Andrew L. Urban and Chris McLeod, Zelensky: The Unlikely Ukrainian Hero Who Defied Putin and United the World (Regnery Publishing, 2022) ISBN: 9781684513789, 192 pages

Putin’s Wars: From Chechnya to Ukraine is an overview of the conflicts in which Russia has been involved since Vladimir Putin became prime minister and then president of Russia starting from the First Chechen War to the two military incursions into Georgia, the annexation of Crimea, and the eventual invasion of Ukraine itself. Mark Galeotti delves into Putin’s recreation of Russian military power and its expansion to include a range of new capabilities from mercenaries to operatives in a relentless information war against Western powers. Putin’s Wars provides an engrossing strategic overview of the Russian military and its successes and failures on the battlefield.

Mark Galeotti, Putin’s Wars: From Chechnya to Ukraine (Osprey Publishing, 2022) ISBN: 9781472847546, 384 pages

T his collective work analyzes the ongoing conflict in Ukraine beyond simplistic media interpretations that limit the analysis solely to Vladimir Putin. The War in Ukraine’s Donbas: Origins, Contexts, and the Future gives voice to different social groups, scholarly communities, and agencies relevant to Ukraine’s recent history.

The authors reveal the deeper roots linked to the autonomy and history of the Donbas as a region, exploring local society and traditions, and the alienation from Ukraine caused by the events of Euromaidan. The book also takes a close look at the Minsk Accords in 2014 and the impact of the new president Volodymyr Zelensky with his efforts to bring the war to an end by negotiations.

David R. Marples, The War in Ukraine’s Donbas: Origins, Contexts, and the Future (CEU Press, 2022) ISBN: 9789633865972, 244 pages

Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine: Economic Challenges, Embargo Issues, and a New Global Economic Order presents a cutting-edge analysis of the economic effects and challenges of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, touching on the EU sanctions on Russian energy, the global effects of an EU energy import boycott on Russia, and Ukraine’s political relationship with the EU in a global context. The book also explores the challenges to relations between the EU, China, and Russia caused by the invasion, the effects of the unfolding refugee crisis, military and humanitarian aid pledges to Ukraine, and the risks of reduced multilateralism within the world economy as a direct result of the war.

Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine provides a broader picture of the international effects of the conflict and its potential implications for policy design as we enter a new global order marked by the Russo-Ukrainian war.

Paul J.J. Welfens, Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine: Economic Challenges, Embargo Issues, and a New Global Economic Order (Springer International Publishing, 2022) ISBN: 9783031191374, 387 pages

In Ukraine’s Unnamed War: Before the Russian Invasion of 2022, the authors argue that Russia packaged the conflict in Crimea and Eastern Donbas as a “civil war” to claim non-involvement and lay out social science literature on civil wars to help understand why no political solution was found between 2015 and 2022.

Drawing on Ukrainian documentary sources, the book explains how Russia, after seizing Crimea, was reacting to events it could not control and sent troops only to areas of Ukraine where it knew it would face little resistance. Kremlin decision-makers misunderstood the attachment of the Russian-speaking population to the Ukrainian state and failed to anticipate that their intervention would transform Ukraine into a more cohesively “Ukrainian” polity.

Dominique Arel and Jesse Driscoll, Ukraine’s Unnamed War: Before the Russian Invasion of 2022 (Cambridge University Press, 2023) ISBN: 101316511499, 320 pages

Diary of an Invasion is a collection of Andrey Kurkov’s writings and broadcasts from Kyiv documenting the shocking impacts of the Russia-Ukraine war. Kurkov has been a consistent satirical commentator in Ukraine and became an important voice for his people throughout the Russian invasion. He spends the sleepless nights of continuous bombardment of his city delivering the truth about this invasion to the world, and has also been able to fly to European capitals where he has been working to raise money for charities.

Diary of an Invasion is a remarkable record of a brilliant writer at the forefront of the war. It provides political and historical commentary and accounts from Kurkov’s personal journal, exploring Russian and Ukrainian history and their complicated coexistence, and describing how Ukraine defies its occupation.

Andrey Kurkov, Diary of an Invasion (Mountain Leopard Press, 2022) ISBN: 9781914495847, 304 pages

The award-winning Russian journalist Mikhail Zygar provides a history of Ukraine, scoping from its emergence as a post-Soviet state to a country with increasing economic, cultural, and political ties to Europe and the United States, leading to Putin’s invasion.

As soon as the Russian invasion of Ukraine began, Zygar circulated a Facebook petition that led to a new law in Russia criminalizing criticism of the war forcing him to flee Russia. In his time as a journalist, Zygar has interviewed President Zelensky and has had access to many prominent politicians and oligarchs. As an expert on Putin’s moods and behavior, he has spent years studying the Kremlin’s plan regarding Ukraine, and in clear, chronological order explains how we got here.

Mikhail Zygar, War and Punishment: Putin, Zelensky, and the Path to Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine (Scribner, 2023) ISBN13: 9781668013724, 320 pages

ZOV: Inside Putin’s Corrupt War in Ukraine – A Dissident Soldier’s Story is a detailed, voluntary account by a Russian soldier participating in the invasion of Ukraine. Pavel Filatyev was a paratrooper in the invasion force that shelled the city of Kherson in February 2022. He grew sickened and angry with his part and posted a shocking exposé on social media of what he had witnessed. After his injury, he evacuated from the conflict and gave a day-by-day description of how the Russian army crossed into Ukraine and captured the city of Kherson.

Now in hiding, Filatyev bears witness to Ukraine’s battlefields, shelled cities, and the Russian conscripts’ inescapable choice of fighting in a senseless war or facing imprisonment back home. His story provides a chilling insight into life behind enemy lines and a powerful account of the people caught in Putin’s war. ZOV: Inside Putin’s Corrupt War in Ukraine will be published on July 6, 2023 and is a forthcoming title to keep an eye on.

Pavel Filatyev, ZOV: Inside Putin’s Corrupt War in Ukraine – A Dissident Soldier’s Story, Random House, 2023) ISBN: 9780593597385, 208 pages

Robert H. Latiff’s Future Peace, a sequel to Future War, specifically brings to attention a subtle, yet potentially destructive effect of technologies such as autonomous systems, advanced weapons, and AI: the provocation to violence. Against the backdrop of the brewing power rivalry between the U.S. and its adversaries, technology aggregates tension and catalyzes violence.

Future Peace touches upon the ethical, security-related, behavioral, and technical aspects of technology and warfare. It consists of four chapters: “A Giant Armed Nervous System” (referring to the military), “Urge to Violence,” “Stumbling into War,” and “Avoiding War.”

Latiff’s book comes as a warning to practice caution when adopting new weapons technology, and aids in understanding human and technical behaviors to attenuate its harms and decrease the chances of war. Not only does technology make war easier and speedier, hence enabling the rush to war, but hinders human reasoning. Such technical changes make the process of sound judgement difficult; for example, thinking and acting in a diplomatic manner. Furthermore, these changes enhance the potential for human error to get out of hand.

Latiff argues that it is vitally important to avoid entering conflict in the first place. He highlights the importance of the cooperative efforts of many segments of society, from the public and technologists to militarists and decision-makers. He implies that it is criminal negligence to leave everything to automation processes or politicians. Therefore, Future Peace also lays out long to short term recommendations to maintain peace and reverse the rush to war.

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utonomous features are not a matter of the future; they have been used in warfare for years. However, it is quite evident that with the advancement of technology and the weaponization of artificial intelligence, autonomous weapons systems are swiftly adapting and becoming accepted.

As these changes emerge, the question that is often raised by international organizations such as the UN, which set the norms of conduct in an effort to control and regulate the use of autonomous weapons, is “How will human beings maintain control of the use of autonomous weapons?” In their study, Ingvild Bode and Hendrik Huelss flip the script to reveal another perspective of this dynamic.

Bode and Huelss aim to explain how testing, developing, and using weapons systems with autonomous features shapes ethical and legal norms, and how standards manifest and change in practice. The authors also examine the consequences of autonomous weapons for international relations.

Bode and Huelss acknowledge the fear and risks that these developments bring but adopt the approach that autonomous weapon systems may push people away from taking immediate decisions on the use of force as norms adapt to the appropriate use of force.

In short, Autonomous Weapons Systems and International Norms analyses the normative repercussions of weaponizing artificial intelligence by examining them not as tools used by the military but as shaping forces. Chapters include “Autonomous Weapons Systems and International Relations,” “New Technologies of Warfare: Emergence and Regulation,” “International Law, Norms, and Order,” “Norms in International Relations,” and “How Autonomous Weapons Systems Make Norms,” and contain assisting tables and figures.

As the trend and debate of autonomizing weapons systems continues, Autonomous Weapon Systems and International Norms equips the reader with an understanding of the relation of human-machine interaction and the process of integrating new technologies into war.

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n War Virtually, Roberto J. González takes the reader behind the scenes to expose how scientists, programmers, and engineers developed technologies that automate war, predict conflict, and regulate human thought and behavior. Does this sound utopian? Not so when you factor in the persistent drive to arm for virtual warfare. In this quest, data comes a valuable commodity.

González evaluates autonomous weapons, robotic systems, predictive modeling software, advanced surveillance programs, and psyops techniques. He examines the foundation of the latest version of warfare in order to explain how it has taken its current form through contemporary military operations and their high-tech and cultural underpinnings.

However, War Virtually transcends the design, innovative, and transformative aspects of technology and warfare, and touches upon human engineering. González reveals the relations between U.S. intelligence agencies and Big Tech, and its implications. It is no secret that algorithms construct behavioral models for anticipating or even predicting human behavior, and, therefore, all of us risk having our digital lives become part of the military-industrial economy.

Adopting a critical approach, González examines how the U.S. military is weaponizing technology and data for new kinds of warfare, and questions the notion that technological advancements will lead to more efficient and less destructive warfare. In fact, he implies that such an aspiration comes at a great cost, and argues that in this world, there is little room for hubris.

War Virtually covers a large array of topics including automated battlefield robotics, social scientists’ involvement in experimental defense research, the blurred line between political consulting and propaganda in the internet era, and the military’s use of big data to craft new counterinsurgency methods based on predicting conflict.

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n Proto-Algorithmic War, Stefka Hristova offers a unique perspective on the Iraq War and the history of algorithmic and digital logic that came to be a crucial element of today’s warfare. She examines the military policy of the United States going into the Iraq War: the U.S. approached the war with the logic of digital and emerging algorithmic technology alongside the preceding numerical logics of the British Mandate in Iraq. In a sense, the Iraq War became an experiment in the early stages of development and utilization of such technology in warfare, and moreover war culture.

Hristova provides a case study of a comparative historical framework reaching back to the quantification techniques harnessed during the era of Mandatory Iraq (1918-1932) and analyzes the parallels and diversions between the numerical logics in both cases.

The author further evaluates the logic that moved beyond the British mandate for Iraq and reduced culture, society, and the physical body and environment into visual data-driven, sterilized, reproducible warfare, highlighting that it lacked cultural and historical context. Indeed, the actual experience of the Iraq War resulted in massive-scale death and destruction.

Proto-Algorithmic War offers an insight into the digitization and automation of war. Hristova aptly scrutinizes the ways in which the Iraq War attempted and often failed to see and incorporate population and territory as digital and further proto-algorithmic entities.

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en Buchanan and Andrew Imbrie use fire as an analogy to showcase how AI has a dual nature: destructive and constructive. Just like our distant ancestors learning to operate their newly discovered, full of potential tool, our responsibility is to understand and use AI potential wisely. With AI revolutionizing the world, democracies have a responsibility to harness that power constructively and come out on top. Transformation is on its way—can humanity use AI to light the way? Or will the fire burn wildly and ignite a new type of war?

In The New Fire, Buchanan and Imbrie help us understand AI better by breaking it down into its “sparks,” which are data, algorithms, and computing power. They further explain the tangible and potentially destructive consequences of these sparks such as disinformation campaigns, new hacking tools, and military weapons.

On a larger scale, The New Fire shows the urgency of democracies to adapt to the powerful tool that is AI, as autocrats may use it for domestic centralized control and asymmetric advantages in combat. In that sense, they argue that harnessing the power of AI is crucial for holding democracy in balance in the world. The New Fire also acknowledges that democracies have a harder time adapting to the age of AI given ethical and civil concerns, but that new ways could be forged based on the advantages of democracy.

Drawing on examples from geopolitical competition and its analysis, Buchanan and Imbrie show how AI can work for democracy while respecting civil rights. In the age of AI, this crucial topic may determine the choice of course between war and peace.

Written by Dilara Özer

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n The Trillion Dollar Silencer, Joan Roelofs asks the intriguing, yet mind-baffling question of “Why is there so little anti-war protest in the United States?”, especially when the repercussions of war’s damages reach people, nations, and the environment—whilst being incredibly draining on the society at large.

How has militarism been so accepted, not only by public opinion but also by groups that have traditionally spoken up? Why is taxpayer money repetitively poured into the military industrial complex? How has the outrage against the destruction of war been muzzled? Are civil society sectors complicit? How has the arms sector consolidated and kept its place in the American political system? The answer lies in propaganda, money, and the political economy of war-making.

Roelofs opens with Eisenhower’s Farewell Address to the Nation in 1961 where he mentions the integration of the arms industry and the military establishment into the American experience with a total influence on all aspects of the latter. His speech warned of the implications of this development and the price there is to pay if such power by the military-industrial complex is unchecked.

The Trillion Dollar Silencer connects the complicated web of organizations, industries, partnerships, and agencies that silently evolved to become a system of governance in which the military-industrial complex plays an immensely powerful role. Roelofs highlights, in a nod to Eisenhower’s speech, that the democratic systems of the nation are caught up in these networks and overpowered. By shining a light on the extent of the patronage relations and networks between such organizations and the military-industrial complex, Roelofs intends to spread recognition on the issue in order to confront it more effectively.

The use of force is considered immoral by the public and illegal by international law. Yet, the public, the press, and politicians are undisturbed by the aggressive interventions of the United States. Why so? Roelofs first brings three factors to attention: propaganda, fear of reprisal, and distraction.

Propaganda plays a large role in manufacturing the setting of silence. Many differing areas, such as education, politics, civil society organizations, and the media, which are expected to uphold and inform the views of the public, become a tool of deflection and indoctrination. The fear of reprisal arises from the embeddedness of military and weapons manufacturing via money, engagement, and prestige. Those who may want to take a stand have to sacrifice much for too little. Meanwhile distractions work in parallel with the silence and deflections; distractions are everywhere, yet they may be carefully fueled by the aforementioned organizations to foster tranquility.

Roelofs also mentions hidden and visible interests in the formation of this web. Some interests may be well intended; however, they do not ultimately take away from the bigger damage which the system inflicts.

The loudest silencer of all is money. Roelofs explains how the military-industrial complex keeps the economy afloat, although, in practice, the distribution is unjust. The military sector is a growing, highly incentivized, recession-proof sector with few drawbacks to costs from the economic perspective. Furthermore, the military economy yields a high return on investments.

Whatever happened to the pacifists? The Trillion Dollar Silencer brings to attention how militarized the U.S. really is. It is highly devoted and shaped by war. But more importantly, the boundaries between military and civilian are blurred in the many ways Roelofs has mentioned. Which in turn, further fuels militarization without public notice as the outlines of what militarization is remains uncertain. On a global scale, U.S. dominance has amplified militarization as a worldwide phenomenon. International networks, just like domestic ones, have been able to overpower activists and peace advocates. This far-reaching network is solidified by military sales and aid, training, joint operations, and bases.

Starting with the subject at the very fore, namely the military establishment, Roelofs takes the reader thoroughly, chapter by chapter, through the different organizations and components of the intricate web. Those included are bases and installations, contractors, universities and research institutes, philanthropy and non-profit organizations, state and local governments. What can we do about it? In the final chapter of the book, Roelofs suggests ways to break the silence such as a Green New Deal, creating a peace culture, and conversion to a civilian economy, and also provides some remarks about international relations.

Thorough and ample in modes and scope of information, The Trillion Dollar Silencer contains explanatory images, graphs, charts, and maps to aid and augment understanding for all types and levels of readers. The book joggles the mind in many aspects and brings an awareness to the gravity of the military-industrial hegemony.

Joan Roelofs, The Trillion Dollar Silencer: Why There Is So Little Anti-War Protest in the United States (Clarity Press, 2022) ISBN-10: 1949762580, 302 pages.

On February 24, 2022, the Russian Federation started a wide-scale attack on Ukraine, referred to by Moscow as a “special military operation.” Russia demanded that Ukraine halts its military activity, enshrine neutrality in its constitution, acknowledge Crimea as a Russian territory, and recognize the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics. Ukraine’s deepening ties with the West and its ambitions to join NATO were harshly criticized by Moscow.

Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 was a traumatic experience for Ukraine and for its armed forces. Many high-ranking commanders and high-level bureaucrats fled to Russia during and right after the annexation. Simultaneously, armed conflict erupted in the Donbas region in the eastern part of the country in March 2014 when the Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts declared independence from Ukraine.

Supported by Russia, separatists in Donbas inflicted significant losses to the Ukrainian army, which was suffering from widespread defections and loss of chain of command. By early 2015, Ukraine’s anti-terrorist operation (ATO) against Donbas separatists had achieved limited success in regaining control of a sizeable portion of the Donbas region, while as a result of a more active involvement by Russia, the Ukrainian army lost many personnel and equipment.

Ukraine started a massive reorganization and modernization process of its armed forces in late 2014. The Donbas experience and the threat assessment with regards to Russia dominated this transformation process. In order to increase its warfighting capability, structural reforms in command and control, training, education, and infrastructure were initiated. This organizational and capability transformation offers many clues about the impact of defense policies on foreign relations and even geopolitics.

Transformation framework

As the first step towards transformation, Ukraine issued the Strategic Defense Bulletin in 2016, which laid the framework for the necessary reforms for the Ukraine armed forces to achieve NATO standards. The subsequent “State Program for the Development of the Armed Forces” for the period of 2017-2020 outlined the implementation steps towards this transformation. To develop the defense planning mechanism, the “Law on National Security” was passed in 2018. This law established a framework to coordinate and simplify Ukraine’s defense planning and to establish civilian control over the military.

The “Ukrainian National Security Strategy” and the “Military Security Strategy” documents were updated in 2020 and 2021 respectively. The “National Security Strategy” defines the main principles of Ukraine’s national security, which include identifying Russia as a long-term threat to its national security and developing closer relations with the European Union, NATO, and the United States. Ukraine’s March 2021 “Military Security Strategy” replaced its 2015 military doctrine.

At the outset, the main aim of the reforms was determined as to bring the armed forces and the defense industry in alignment with Western standards, as well as making the armed forces interoperable with NATO and EU forces, especially in international deployments. By 2020, this plan had been revised and interoperability with NATO became a top priority.

Equipment and capabilities

The army had the biggest share in Ukraine’s defense procurement plans. Special emphasis was given to improve the capabilities of artillery and missile forces through new development, acquisition programs, and modernizing Soviet-era artillery systems.

One of the most important and well-publicized programs was the Javelin acquisition from the United States. Ukraine took delivery of hundreds of Javelin anti-tank missile systems from the U.S. as part of a security assistance program. Under this program, the United States transferred weapons and equipment worth $2.7 billion to Ukraine between 2014 and early 2022.

In addition to the Javelin, Ukraine also ran local development and upgrade programs to improve its anti-tank capabilities. The Ukrainian defense industry produced Stugna-P and Korsar missile systems, while vehicle-based anti-tank systems were upgraded with new missiles and systems.

Another pillar of the army procurement was artillery modernization. Ukraine started several multiple rocket launcher system (MRLS) projects, the most important being the Vilkha precision MRLS development. Artillery locating radars, battery command, and control systems were also acquired. To improve the efficiency of the artillery units, drones were incorporated as forward observation and fire coordination elements. Ukraine put special emphasis on the training of artillery units until 2022.

The Ukrainian Air Force gave priority to upgrading air defense systems, instead of new combat aircraft procurement. Ukraine had an inventory of Soviet-era air defense systems such as S-300V (SA-12A Gladiator), 9K330 Tor (SA-15 Gauntlet), 2K12 Kub (SA-6 Gainful), and S-125 Neva (SA-3 Goa).

The country focused its efforts on increasing the serviceability, and the command, control, communications and intelligence (C3I) infrastructure of its air defense network. For the combat aircraft fleet, it started avionics and structural upgrades for the Su-27, MiG-29, and Su-25 aircraft in order to increase their service lives until the 2030s.

The Ukrainian Navy adopted a new doctrine, commonly known as the “Mosquito Doctrine” in 2018. This doctrine called for acquisition of several small-sized, fast and agile attack class patrol boats, equipped with guided missiles. These boats would conduct hit-and-run attacks against the Russian Navy, especially in the Sea of Azov.

For the upgrade of its major combatant fleet, Ukraine signed a contract with Turkey in December 2020 for the acquisition of MILGEM class corvettes. Under the contract, Ukraine was to get four corvettes, which were to be equipped with Ukrainian-made gas turbines and several other local subsystems. As of February 2022, the first ship was under construction in Turkey and the rest were planned to be constructed in Ukraine under license.

Turkey-Ukraine defense cooperation

The cooperation between Ukraine’s defense industry and Turkey has been in the spotlight, with the Bayraktar TB2 armed drone arguably standing out as the most important topic.

After Qatar, Ukraine became the second export customer of Turkey’s Bayraktar TB2 armed drone, with a first batch of six drones delivered in 2020. This contract was followed by a second one for the Ukraine Navy for surveillance missions over the Sea of Azov against Russia.

During President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s visit to Kyiv on February 3, 2022, Erdoğan and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky signed an agreement for the establishment of a facility for the manufacture and maintenance of Bayraktar TB2 drones near Kyiv. According to Ukrainian officials, the Ukraine version of the TB2 would be powered by a locally produced engine.

Turkey’s sale of armed drones to Ukraine had frequently been the target of harsh criticism by Russia. The TB2, however, is not the only item of the rapidly enhancing defense industry cooperation between Kyiv and Ankara. Ukraine had become a preferred supplier for Turkey, especially for engines. Ukraine’s two major firms in aviation engine design and manufacture, namely Motor Sich and Ivchenko-Progress, were actively cooperating with Turkish defense contractors.

Political assassinations are not new to world politics. In fact, political assassinations have existed for thousands of years. Looking at the roots of the English word “assassinate” one can better understand the context in which it emerged and has since then been used in the English-speaking world.

“To assassinate” originated from a group known as Hashashiyyin, or assassins, in the Muslim world, in modern-day Iran. Founded by Hassan-i Sabbah, the group was known for carrying out political assassinations from the eight to the fourteenth centuries, targeting religious and political figures, including the Abbasid, Fatimid, Seljuk, and Christian Crusaders.

The claims that Hashashiyyin derived their name from hashish as they were under the influence of hashish when carrying out their assassinations or while being indoctrinated into the group, is still a matter of debate.

Today, most political assassinations have taken place in countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Albania, and Brazil, with Afghanistan and Iraq topping the list. This comes as no surprise given the lack of security in both countries following the U.S. invasions, which brought with them renewed fighting between different militant groups.

Afghanistan and Iraq still witness political assassinations, and especially Iraq, where the phenomenon has returned to the streets following the protests that broke out in October 2019 calling for political, social, and economic reforms.

Over the last century, political assassinations have significantly shaped the course of international politics and international relations. The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, the heir of the throne of Austria-Hungary, at the hand of a Serbian activist in Sarajevo was the spark that caused the outbreak of World War I, which eventually claimed the lives of 20 million people.

What made the assassination of Ferdinand exceptional was the spillover affect it created, extending beyond the boundaries of the Balkans and impacting all of Europe. It was not merely the assassination of one person, be it the heir of the throne of Austria-Hungary, but triggered a domino effect across a large part of the world.

The legacy of Gandhi has lived on after his assassination, and he has become a model and leading example for many struggles across the world by his non-violent approach to ending colonialism.

Following a long non-violent struggle against the British colonial authorities in India, and a year after India won its independence from Britain (1947), Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated by a Hindu extremist named Nathuram Godse. Godse objected to Gandhi’s calls for religious and racial tolerance, and to his approach of including India’s Muslim minority in the state-building process.

The legacy of Gandhi has lived on after his assassination, and he has become a model and leading example for many struggles across the world by his non-violent approach to ending colonialism. The peak of his approach was staging the Salt March in 1930 to protest the British control of the salt industry and its imposition of taxes under the caste system, which classified people into different social classes. As Gandhi arrived at the Arabian Sea on April 24, 1931, he picked up some salt and declared, “With this, I am shaking the foundations of the British Empire.”

The establishment of Israel in the Middle East saw with it a number of assassinations that had a considerable impact on Middle East politics. The assassination of Lord Moyne, the British minister of state in the Middle East, in front of his home in Cairo in 1944 was only the start of a series of political assassinations that followed.

In 1948, the Lehi gang assassinated Swedish diplomat and UN Peace Mediator Folke Bernadotte in Jerusalem to protest his efforts to modify the UN Partition Plan of 1947 in favor of the Palestinians.

Palestinian factions, too, have carried out political assassinations against Israelis, although at a much lower scale. The most prominent was the assassination of Rehavam Ze’evi, Israel’s tourism minister, by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), in retaliation for Israel’s assassination of Abu Ali Mustapha, the secretary general of the PFLP.

Following its establishment, Israel has assassinated key Palestinian political leaders, by planting bombs in their cars (writer Ghassan Kanafani); by poisoning them (Wadi Haddad, who is believed to have been assassinated by Israel by a poisoned chocolate bar); by direct shooting (fatal shooting of Islamic Jihad leader, Fathi Shaghaghi, who was gunned down in Cyprus, and Ahmed Yassin, Hamas’s supreme leader, who was killed by a missile fired by an Israeli helicopter as he left a mosque on a wheelchair in 2004).

In the same year, Yasser Arafat, the head of the PLO was rushed to a hospital in Paris where he passed away after falling sick. The common knowledge among Palestinians today is that Arafat may also have been assassinated by Israel using poison.

Palestinian factions, too, have carried out political assassinations against Israelis, although at a much lower scale. The most prominent was the assassination of Rehavam Ze’evi, Israel’s tourism minister, by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), in retaliation for Israel’s assassination of Abu Ali Mustapha, the secretary general of the PFLP.

Most recently, political assassinations have started to focus on more influential figures including presidents, prime ministers, scientists, and military commanders. The most prominent examples of political assassinations of top state officials include the assassination of Egyptian President Anwar Alsadat in 1981, the assassination of Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin in 1995, and the assassination of Lebanese Prime Minster Rafic Al-Hariri in 2005.

The U.S. assassinations of Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda leader, and Qasem Soleimani, the head of Iran’s Al-Quds Force, provide a clearer understanding of how states perceive threats now on the international stage.

The assassination of Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, Iran’s top nuclear scientist in late November 2020 near Tehran, and the way he was assassinated by placing a remote-controlled gun on a truck is telling of how assassinations in the future might look like.

Since 2010, four more Iranian nuclear scientists have been assassinated on Iranian soil, with Iran accusing Israel of standing behind the assassinations.

Political assassinations have always been part of global politics and they will continue to be used as an effective tool to protect national interests of state and non-state actors alike.

But what is most worrisome about political assassinations today is that just like the assassination of Ferdinand in 1914 was the spark that ignited World War I, assassinations could lead to further conflicts and confrontations, that might, in turn, lead to an all-out war.

At the time, no one anticipated that the assassination of Ferdinand could lead to a world war. Could political assassinations today be the trigger for an all-out war, especially as today’s politics are becoming ever more intense?

Just like the term Hashashiyyin originated in Iran in the eighth century, another assassination in Iran could cause a full-blown war, the implications of which are yet to be known. The cost of such a conflict might exceed those of World War I and II.