Ukrainian Resistance to Russian Disinformation: Lessons for Future Conflict
Speaker: Todd Helmus and Khrystyna Holynska (RAND) Date: 19 September 2024 Speaker Session Summary A key element of Ukrainian resistance to the Russian invasion has been its ability to counter Russian disinformation. In their recent report for RAND, Dr. Helmus and Dr. Holynska discuss Ukraine’s approach to combating disinformation and the lessons that the United […]
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The Defender’s Dilemma: Why countering grayzone aggression is so difficult (and what options Western governments do have)
Speaker: Elisabeth Braw (Atlantic Council) Date: 5 September 2024 Speaker Session Summary: Western governments, including the United States, face significant challenges in identifying gray zone aggression. This form of aggression is often difficult to detect before the attack is fully underway, as it can originate from any source at any time. A key characteristic of […]
Continue ReadingIrregular Warfare in Strategic Competition and Gray Zones: Prosecuting Authoritarian Subversion and Exploitative Use of Corruption and Criminality to Weaken Democracy
Speakers: David Luna (Luna Global Networks & Convergence Strategies, LLC) Date: 22 August 2024 (Time TBD) Speaker Session Summary US adversaries, including China, Russia, and Iran, aim to diminish Western influence while expanding their own in many countries. They employ various strategies, such as leveraging proxies, transnational organized crime and kleptocrats, which can undermine democracies […]
Continue ReadingRussia’s Cyber Power Base: From Cybercriminals to Private Contractors
Speaker: Justin Sherman (Global Cyber Strategies) Date: 7 August 2024 Speaker Session Summary Justin Sherman spoke to the SMA audience about Russia’s cyber power base—not just the state and intelligence actors, but also the private contractors and private sector companies that play an important role in Russia’s cyber power. To begin, Mr. Sherman emphasized that […]
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The Promise & Perils of AI: What We’ve Learned from Some of the Largest Real World Deployments of Generative & Classical AI to Understand Global News
Speaker: Dr. Kalev Hannes Leetaru (GDELT Project) Date: 11 July 2024 Speaker Session Summary SMA hosted a speaker session with Dr. Kalev Hannes Leetaru (GDELT Project) as part of its SMA General Speaker Series. One of the GDELT Project’s goals is to use artificial intelligence (AI) to better understand our world. To accomplish this monumental task, […]
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Building U.S. Responses to Russia’s Threats to Use Nonstrategic Nuclear Weapons: A Game Theoretic Analysis of Brinksmanship
Speaker: Krista S. Langeland (Deputy Lead, RAND Space Enterprise Initiative; Senior Physical Scientist) and Clinton Reach (RAND) Date: 16 January 2024 Speaker Session Summary SMA hosted a speaker session with Ms. Krista S. Langeland (Deputy Lead, RAND Space Enterprise Initiative; Senior Physical Scientist) and Mr. Clinton Reach (RAND) as part of its SMA “Strategic Deterrence Frameworks” […]
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Constructing Killwebs for Effects Based Targeting in Multi-Domain Operations
Speaker: COL Brian Davis (Northeast Asia Regional Fusion Cell, US Forces Korea) Date: 9 January 2024 Speaker Session Summary SMA hosted a speaker session with COL Brian Davis (Northeast Asia Regional Fusion Cell, US Forces Korea) as part of its SMA “Strategic Deterrence Frameworks” (SDF) Speaker Series. A kill web is defined as a network map of […]
Continue ReadingBeijing Rules: How China Weaponized Its Economy to Confront the World
Speaker: Ms. Bethany Allen (Axios) Date: 18 October 2023 Speaker Session Summary During the last 25 years, China has strengthened its ability to economically coerce governments, companies, multilateral institutions, and individuals, bringing them in line with the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) desires. She summarized China’s statecraft as a “clearly communicated set of rewards and punishments […]
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Influence and Perception Management Office
Speaker: Mr. James Holly (OUSD (I&S)) Date: 3 October 2023 Speaker Session Summary The Influence and Perception Management Office (IPMO) is a young office within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security (OUSD I&S). However, the need for an organization managing the US Armed Forces’ messaging has been debated for […]
Continue ReadingEscalation Management in International Conflict: The United States and its Adversaries
Speakers: Egle Murauskaite (ICONS Project, University of Maryland), and Devin H. Ellis (Applied Research Laboratory for Intelligence and Security (ARLIS), University of Maryland) Date: 25 April 2023 Speaker Session Summary SMA hosted a speaker session with Ms. Egle Murauskaite (ICONS Project, University of Maryland) and Mr. Devin H. Ellis (Applied Research Laboratory for Intelligence and Security (ARLIS), University of Maryland) as […]
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