Recent Publications

Taking a Toll: How Allowing Iran to Charge for Transit in the Strait of Hormuz Could Undermine US Strategy in the Pacific and Beyond
May 11, 2026 — In April, Iran began charging ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz a “toll” for safe passage. By itself, this represents a dangerous new dynamic in the Middle East that may have begun with the Houthis in Yemen as early as 2024, wherein parties extort international commerce by imposing fees in exchange for safe transit as part of their war effort. Although some countries have agreed to pay Iran’s fees, many countries such as the United Kingdom as well as organizations, including one representing the majority of tanker firms, have condemned it... MORE

Sustaining the Vanguard: PRC Subsistence Modernization and the Calculus of PLA Endurance
May 11, 2026 — Ali Ayoub... MORE

China Maritime Report #53: Filling the Ranks: China's Military Recruiting System and the PLA Navy
May 6, 2026 — This report outlines People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) recruiting processes within the overarching context of China’s military personnel accession systems. Within China, most recruitment, mobilization, and service assignment of military personnel is managed through a centralized national military service system, with individual services retaining some recruitment authorities for officers, sergeants, and civilians. It is not possible to effectively discuss Navy recruitment without understanding this overarching system. ... MORE

SSI Live 124 – The Selective Service System
May 4, 2026 — In this episode of SSI Live, Major Brennan Deveraux interviews Dr. Michael Lynch on his involvement with the Selective Service System. The conversation explores the history of the military draft and the contemporary challenges of implementing a modern-day draft to support a large-scale war... MORE

Can AI Pass the US Army War College?
April 29, 2026 — The US Army War College oral comprehensive examination serves as the institution’s capstone, measuring its senior officers’ strategic thinking. In early 2026, three faculty panels applied that standard to four leading commercial artificial intelligence (AI) systems: ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and Grok. Prompted without core curriculum materials, all four models passed. Unlike static benchmarks, the examination’s impromptu dialogue format revealed meaningful performance differences that were invisible in general-purpose evaluations, with one model performing at a statistically significant advantage. These findings challenge how the Department of War assesses commercial AI for strategic applications and point toward domain-specific, dialogue-based benchmarking as a more rigorous standard... MORE

On the Pacific, USARPAC, and China
April 28, 2026 — In this episode, COL Mike Long and LTG Joel B. Vowell discuss the US Army Pacific and the role of USARPAC... MORE

On Islands, Straits, and Strategy: The United States, Iran, and the Islands of the Persian Gulf
April 23, 2026 — Jacob Stoil... MORE

Standing Up the Strategic Competition Center
April 22, 2026 — In this episode, Dr. Antulio J. Echevarria II and Major Brennan Deveraux discuss the Strategic Competition Center, its mission and anticipated activities, and Echevarria's inaugural Strategic Competition Corner article... MORE

2026 Carlisle Conference on the PLA: The PLA’s Capability to React to Crises
April 16, 2026 — The US Army War College (USAWC) Strategic Studies Institute’s (SSI) held its annual Carlisle Conference on the PLA on March 25 and 26, 2026, in the Army Heritage and Education Center at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania. The China Landpower Studies Center (CLSC) successfully hosted the event for the second time, bringing together more than 100 war fighters, policymakers, and China-focused experts to analyze and debate the PRC’s capabilities to react to regional and strategic-level crises. Participants from the US Department of War and Intelligence Community joined professionals from academia, think tanks, private industry, and other US government organizations to listen and respond to a series of expert panels and discuss panelist findings and other topics of interest in impactful breakout discussions... MORE

Book Review: GSG 9: From Munich to Mogadishu: The Birth of Germany's Counterterrorism Force
April 15, 2026 — In the wake of the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre, Germany forged GSG 9—an elite counterterrorism unit that would stun the world with its daring 1977 rescue mission in Mogadishu. Martin Herzog’s gripping account traces the unit’s evolution from humble beginnings to global renown, drawing on exclusive interviews and archival research. This book tells the untold story of how one covert force reshaped modern counterterrorism—and inspired the creation of America’s Delta Force... MORE

Book Review: Training for Victory: U.S. Special Forces Advisory Operations from El Salvador to Afghanistan
April 15, 2026 — What makes some US Special Forces advisory missions succeed while others fail? In Training for Victory, Frank K. Sobchak examines five decades of elite Green Beret operations—from El Salvador to Afghanistan—to uncover the critical factors behind building effective partner forces. Challenging conventional wisdom, this book reveals surprising truths about language, culture, and combat advising in America’s most complex wars... MORE

Book Review: The Raider: The Untold Story of a Renegade Marine and the Birth of U.S. Special Forces in World War II
April 15, 2026 — In this gripping narrative, Stephen R. Platt uncovers the forgotten legacy of a rebellious Marine whose daring vision helped shape the future of US Special Forces. Blending biography with battlefield drama, the book reveals how unconventional tactics and bold leadership redefined America’s approach to warfare. A must-read for anyone interested in the origins of elite military units and the individuals who defied tradition to forge them... MORE