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March 27, 2024

Conflict: The Evolution of Warfare from 1945 to Ukraine

Strategy | 

Book Review: Conflict: The Evolution of Warfare from 1945 to UkraineBook Review: Conflict: The Evolution of Warfare from 1945 to Ukraine

Authors: David Petraeus and Andrew Roberts 

| Reviewed by Dr. John A. Nagl, professor of warfighting studies, US Army War College | 

Dr. John A. Nagl provides readers a roadmap to navigate—and a lens with which to interpret—General David Petraeus and Andrew Roberts's best-selling book, Conflict, which Nagl considers "'[t]he closest thing to a memoir" of Petraeus and "likely . . . the best first-person account in history of [Petraeus's] efforts and results in Iraq and Afghanistan that made him the most important Army officer of his generation." Nagl focuses on what he believes are Petraeus's main contributions to the book (the chapters on Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan) and calls the chapter on Iraq the "heart of the book." He also highlights the book's value to "[f]uture commanders and staff officers" and to "ll Army officers and national security officials," who will benefit from learning how Petraeus engaged with the "four major tasks" regarding "big ideas" that all leaders "must master."

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Keywords: Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, Ukraine, leadership