Twenty-First Century Warfare Will be Hybrid

Abstract : Hybrid warfare will be the dominant form of warfare in the 21st century due to the prevalence of hybrid threats that currently exist throughout the world. A combination of conventional and irregular warfighting capabilities, hybrid warfare is the 21st century kind of warfare with its own limiting conditions and its own peculiar preconceptions. It is critical for the Department of Defense to determine the strategic implications of hybrid warfare on the National Military Strategy and the way that the United States military will fight this type of warfare. The Department of Defense must develop a comprehensive military strategy that will guide the services in their development of doctrine for conducting hybrid warfare. This strategy research project will define hybrid threats, examine the emergence of hybrid warfare, postulate on the reasons why hybrid warfare will be the dominant form of warfare that most sovereigns will apply in the 21st century, examine the National Military Strategy for defining hybrid warfare, and analyze Joint and Service hybrid warfare doctrine. Finally, the paper will recommend changes in strategy and doctrine to ensure that the U.S. military is prepared to counter this dangerous, growing threat over the next 25 years.