Deterrence Through Whole-of-Society Resilience – Meeting the Challenge of Hybrid Threats in the Grey Zone
Issue 2 | Published July 2025 | Michael A. Rostek
Developments in the international system underline the fact that the world remains unpredictable, dangerous and complex. Adding to such complexity is the conduct of hybrid activities in the grey zone. Existing just below the threshold of armed conflict, hybrid activities involve coordinated application of diplomatic, informational, cyber, military and economic instruments to achieve strategic or operational objectives. They pose significant challenges confounding binary conceptions of peace and war, the use of military and non-military means, and conventional and irregular approaches to conflict. Whole-of society approaches to resilience are advanced for strengthening deterrence as well as societal defence against hybrid threats.
The Populist Disruption: Trump and Contemporary American Civil-Military Relations
Issue 1 | Published April 2025 | Philip T. Gebert
President Donald J. Trump’s first term in office from 2017 to 2021 disrupted the United States’ (U.S.) civil-military relations (CMR) which developed following the Second World War. The Trump administration increasingly applied and abused subjective control of the military, undermining its traditionally non-partisan role and attempted to transform it into a praetorian guard loyal to the President rather than the Constitution or the state. Despite this violation of traditional CMR, the President’s supporters – particularly those within the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement, who profess a deep reverence of the American military – endorsed his manipulation of the institution for personal and political gain. This effort culminated in the President’s botched self-coup following his defeat in the 2020 U.S. presidential election, during which the military refused to assist in his unlawful attempt to maintain power. The election of President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. ended this disruption and restored CMR to the pre-Trump status quo, albeit temporarily.