U.S. Potential for Defeat: Examining the Causes behind America's Predicament

In the latest episode of the Irregular Warfare Podcast, hosts Andy Milburn and Shawna Sinnott delve into a pressing topic: the fundamental change in the nature of war and its implications for the United States and its allies.

This episode, which is the 46th installment of the podcast, is a product of the Irregular Warfare Initiative – a collaboration between the West Point website and Princeton University's Empirical Studies of Conflict Project. The Irregular Warfare Initiative is dedicated to bridging the gap between scholars and practitioners to support the community of irregular warfare professionals.

The guest on this episode is General David Berger, the thirty-eighth commandant of the Marine Corps. He is joined by Christian Brose, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the author of The Kill Chain.

The discussion centres around the challenge posed by the change in the nature of war, with a particular focus on the United States' current platform-centric method of war that is deemed dangerously outdated. General Berger, more optimistic in his outlook, believes that the joint force and the Marine Corps can find solutions to maintain US military dominance.

However, if the United States does not adopt a radically different approach to warfighting, it may find itself completely outmatched by China militarily. China, as the most capable potential adversary, has enhanced its kill chain using technology, a change that renders the American way of war obsolete and challenges US military dominance.

The podcast explores what needs to be done to maintain parity with China, with General Berger aiming to transform the Marine Corps into a more agile, technologically advanced, and expeditionary force capable of effectively responding to future conflicts in complex and contested environments.

The full episode can be listened to below, and it can also be found and subscribed on popular platforms such as Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, TuneIn, or your favourite podcast app. The podcast can be shared on social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, sent via email, or printed for further discussion.

For updates and announcements regarding future episodes, follow the Irregular Warfare Podcast on Twitter. Image credit for this article goes to Sgt. Aaron S. Patterson, US Marine Corps.