Russia’s Hybrid War and its implications for Defence and Security in the United Kingdom

What is it about?

This article uses the example of Russia’s aggressive action against Ukraine as an example of a new form of contemporary war fighting, namely hybrid war, and discusses how Russia has been successful in exploiting vulnerabilities of its opponents. The article reports on the United Kingdom as a case study to discuss potential threats and how these can be countered. While using the United Kingdom as an example, the ramifications of such a hybrid approach also apply to South Africa as a state which is vulnerable in respect to economic warfare, cyberattacks and its energy sector. The suggested counteractions could also be seen as lessons learned for a future South African scenario. It is a further development of a short submission to the Defence Select Committee of the UK House of Commons.

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Why is it important?

Current developments in Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Asia have seen the application of new warfighting modes and methods. Some of the non kinetic options of Hybrid Warfare target in particular country specific vulnerabilities and this article highlights the UK as a case study.