Table Of ContentHybrid Conflicts
and
Information Warfare
Hybrid Conflicts
and
Information Warfare
New Labels, Old Politics
edited by
Ofer Fridman
Vitaly Kabernik
James C. Pearce
boulder
london
Published in the United States of America in 2019 by
Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc.
1800 30th Street, Boulder, Colorado 80301
www.rienner.com
and in the United Kingdom by
Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc.
Gray’s Inn House, 127 Clerkenwell Road, London EC1 5DB
© 2019 by Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Fridman, Ofer, 1979–editor. | Kabernik, Vitaly, 1975–editor. |
Pearce, James C., 1991–editor.
Title: Hybrid conflicts and information warfare : new labels, old politics /
edited by Ofer Fridman, Vitaly Kabernik, James C. Pearce.
Description: Boulder, Colorado : Lynne Rienner Publishers, Inc., [2018] |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2018025762 | ISBN 9781626377516 (hardcover : alk. paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Hybrid warfare. | Information warfare. | IS (Organization) |
Propaganda—Middle East—History—21st century.
Classification: LCC U167.5.I8 H928 2018 | DDC 355.4—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018025762
British Cataloguing in Publication Data
A Cataloguing in Publication record for this book
is available from the British Library.
Printed and bound in the United States of America
The paper used in this publication meets the requirements
of the American National Standard for Permanence of
Paper for Printed Library Materials Z39.48-1992.
5 4 3 2 1
Contents
Foreword, Neville Bolt vii
1
Hybrid Conflicts and Information Warfare
Ofer Fridman, Vitaly Kabernik, and James C. Pearce 1
Part 1 The Concept of Hybridity in Conflicts
2
The Idea of Hybridity
David Betz 9
3
The Color Revolutions in the Context of Hybrid Wars
Georgy Filimonov 25
4
The Russian Military Perspective
Vitaly Kabernik 43
5
A War of Definitions: Hybridity in Russia and the West
Ofer Fridman 67
Part 2 The Information Dimension of Warfare
in the Twenty-First Century
6
International Ethics and Information Warfare
Mervyn Frost and Nicholas Michelsen 87
7
The Politics of Information Warfare in the United States
Matthew Armstrong 107
v
vi Contents
8
The Politics of Information Warfare in Russia
Radomir Bolgov 129
9
Using Information: Methods and Cases from Russia
Oxana Timofeyeva 149
Part 3 Information Warfare:
The Case of the Islamic State
10
The Battle for Mosul: An Analysis of
Islamic State Propaganda
Charlie Winter 171
11
Islamic State Propaganda as a Strategic Challenge
Vladimir Sotnikov 191
12
Islamic State Propaganda in the North Caucasus
Akhmet Yarlykapov 213
13
A New Paradigm of Hybrid Warfare
Craig Whiteside 225
Part 4 Conclusion
14
“Hybrid” and “Information”: New Labels, Old Politics
James C. Pearce 249
Selected Bibliography 257
The Contributors 265
Index 267
About the Book 271
Foreword
Free exchange of ideas has always resided at the heart of the
community of scholars. This book was born of the ambition to create an
open space for dialogue and research at a time when a fresh chill was
entering international relations between Russia and Western states. In
January 2017 academics from Europe, the United States, and Russia met
in London to offer diverse perspectives on the information warfare of
hybrid conflicts. For two days, experts in strategic communications,
strategic theory, and international relations reflected on how dramatic
changes in information technologies had affected the way we see global
politics, including fueling talk of a new Cold War.
Whether the latter thoughts might prove to be unfounded, a group
of scholars nevertheless sought to mine a richer understanding of trans-
formations in the political use of misinformation and disinformation.
Significantly, they went on to explore broader fields of analysis,
embracing complexities surrounding the concept of hybridity when
applied to the changing nature of interstate conflict. They questioned
what it means to speak of information warfare, particularly in the con-
text of East-West relations, and how such thinking could be extended to
the challenge of the Islamic State, an insurgent movement that at the
time held sway over stretches of sovereign territory in Syria and Iraq.
The recurring backdrop to these discussions was the dynamic character
of a global media landscape that had come about in little more than a
generation. Those years had seen two-thirds of the world’s population
acquire the means to communicate their ideas and opinions as and when
they choose through the use of personal mobile phones and the World
Wide Web. Few if any states have remained immured to their reach:
vii
viii Foreword
few have failed to recognize their potential in projecting foreign policy
or stirring up trouble in rival states.
The King’s Centre for Strategic Communications (KCSC) at King’s
College London was created to innovate and develop such engaging
approaches. KCSC has rapidly established itself as a focal point for the
study of strategic communications. It now acts as a global hub where
networks of scholars and practitioners can freely exchange research and
experience. And it is from this same center that a hundred postgraduate
students graduate each year, specializing in strategic communications
before going on to enrich the worlds of government, diplomacy, military,
aid and development, and journalism.
So it was with great pleasure that, for this international conference,
KCSC was able to draw on generous funding from the Gerda Henkel
Foundation in Germany, research and funding support from the Interna-
tional Centre for Counter-Terrorism in The Hague, and the participation
of six scholars from Moscow and Saint Petersburg facilitated through
the Centre for Military-Political Research at Moscow State Institute of
International Relations. KCSC is also grateful for the observations of
those audiences who participated across the two days. Their expert
knowledge greatly benefited the final chapters in this collection, which
we trust will stimulate further thought.
If strategic communications is in part about seeking desired change
in audience behavior, then this book offers a modest contribution to
building creative and diplomatic bridges in the spirit of better mutual
understanding.
—Neville Bolt
Director, King’s Centre for Strategic Communications
