Military, War, and Peace Commons^™

Characterizing Caldera’S Cyber Attack Emulation Capabilities, Caleb Chang, Matthew Cao, Kenyou Teoh, Ekzhin Ear, Shouhuai Xu

Military Cyber Affairs

Autonomous cyber attack emulation can aid cyber defenders to identify and remediate cyber risks. MITRE’s Caldera software is the state-of-the-practice for automated attack emulation. Yet, it has not been systematically analyzed, putting its performance and effectiveness into question. This paper systematically characterizes Caldera’s architecture, abilities and use cases, and assesses its strengths and weaknesses. It draws useful insights, such as: Caldera excels in stealthy access and execution tactics to pilfer data against Windows operating systems. It also discusses two directions for Caldera improvement: module-level automation and end-to-end attack emulation.

The Digital Battlefield: Safeguarding Military Drones Against Cyberattacks, Jason Ashong, Arun Venkitanarayanan, Benjamin Yankson

Military Cyber Affairs

The Internet of Battlefield Things (IoBT) is an advanced network of interconnected devices that significantly enhance military operations through real-time data exchange and situational awareness. While IoBT offers tactical advantages like improved surveillance, reconnaissance, and operational effectiveness, it also introduces substantial cybersecurity risks. Adversaries can exploit vulnerabilities within these networks, potentially compromising mission integrity and national security. This research examines the cybersecurity measures of commercial drone controllers and their correlation with military devices. It aims to enhance future vulnerability assessments with advanced tools and approaches to better secure critical military operations. The study highlights the need for robust security architectures …

Using Blockchain Technology To Help Secure America's Defense Critical Infrastructure, Vimal Buck, Aerin Krebs, Brynn Hillard, Jakob Gerha, Joseph Lutma, Srikar Maduposu, Ted Allen

Military Cyber Affairs

Critical water infrastructure in the United States faces increasing cybersecurity threats from state-sponsored actors, with potentially devastating consequences for national security, economic stability, and public health. (Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, 2025). This infrastructure supports defense critical assets and is actively being targeted by various state-sponsored hacking groups, which poses a major concern for civilians and military alike. K. Herath (personal communication, February 24, 2025) reported being aware of two attacks on Ohio water systems during his tenure as Cybersecurity Strategic Advisor to Ohio Governor Mike DeWine.

Water is essential to everyday life and defense and presents as a high-value …

Network And Multipath Traceroute Visualization, Cameron Makowski

Military Cyber Affairs

TraceCam introduces a new paradigm in network path analysis, leveraging GPU-accelerated WebGL visualization, advanced traceroute integrations, and AI-driven insights to transform complex routing data into actionable intelligence. Early prototypes have demonstrated significant improvements in performance, clarity, and multi-path discovery, overcoming traditional limitations in traceroute analysis. By incorporating retrieval-augmented language models and enriched metadata sources like IPinfo.io, TraceCam enables automated anomaly detection, contextual explanations, and rapid root-cause analysis, enhancing operational efficiency. The platform’s architecture ensures scalability and adaptability, supporting deeper investigations and real-time situational awareness. Future development will focus on clustering-based anomaly detection, expanded geographic visualizations, and enhanced AI-generated analysis to …

Quantifying Adversary Military Forces’ Susceptibility To Cognitive Attacks, Bonnie Rushing, Cole Nelson, Shouhuai Xu, Christofer “Raven” O’Keefe, Olga Karpoyan

Military Cyber Affairs

This paper introduces a method to quantify international populations’ susceptibility to cyber cognitive attacks using press freedom and media trust metrics. We present the Cognitive Influence Calculator, a tool that estimates susceptibility (𝑆) based on Press Freedom Scores (PFS) and media trust levels. Findings show that while authoritarian regimes are harder to reach, successful cognitive attacks have greater impacts due to higher trust in state-controlled narratives. Using U.S. wargaming data and international trust metrics, we compute susceptibility scores for the U.S., Russia, China, Iran, and North Korea. Results show an inverse relationship between PFS and media susceptibility, with local/allied …

Forward, Amy Hamilton

Military Cyber Affairs

No abstract provided.

Understanding Russia’S Cyber Policies, Strategies, And Doctrines, Bryan Hancock, Hanh Nguyen, Olga Karpoyan, Ekzhin Ear, Shouhuai Xu

Military Cyber Affairs

This study analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of Russia’s cyber policies, strategies, and doctrines through a systematic set of attributes, leading to key insights: (i) Russia has proactively adapted its cyber policies, strategies, and doctrines to its evolving environment; (ii) Russia actively conducts cognitive warfare, but remains equally vulnerable to it; and (iii) Russia’s cyber posture faces significant challenges, including a limited technological base, shortage of skilled personnel, and restrictive approach to information control, all of which undermine the effectiveness of its strategies. These insights offer valuable implications for US Cyber Command and the Department of Defense.

Characterizing Cyberattacks Against Operational Technology Infrastructures Through The Lens Of Attack Flows, Sherman Kettner, Caleb Chang, Ekzhin Ear, Shouhuai Xu

Military Cyber Affairs

Operational Technology (OT) infrastructures play a critical role in modern society and economy. However, their increasing connectivity with public networks such as the Internet has made them vulnerable to cyberattacks, much like traditional Information Technology (IT) systems. In particular, cyberattacks against OT infrastructures remain relatively underexplored and little understood. In this paper, we aim to deepen our understanding of cyberattacks against OT infrastructures. For this purpose, we propose a methodology, including novel cybersecurity metrics to analyze the attack flows of these attacks in an end-to-end fashion, which allows us to draw useful insights. We demonstrate the utility of the methodology …

A More Perfect Peace: Can The Russia-Ukraine War End Justly?, Nathaniel B. Davis, Marlon A. Thomas

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

This article argues that thinking creatively about war termination, both philosophically and politically, utilizing jus post bellum principles and counterintuitive political trade-offs, reveals an opportunity to achieve a sustainable peace that approximates justice. The article surveys how war aims among belligerents have changed, indicating that further change is possible, particularly at the point of war termination. Next, the article examines jus post bellum principles and their application to the Russia-Ukraine War. Finally, the article contends that Ukraine relinquishing Crimea and the Donbas in exchange for NATO membership might be the key to achieving a durable peace that addresses long-term security.

China’S Role In A Future Korean War, Jake Rinaldi

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

This article argues that China’s intervention in a Korean conflict will hinge more on North Korea’s ability to hold territory than on bilateral ties. Rather than treat Chinese intervention as a yes-or-no proposition, this study models three scenarios—full intervention, sustained support, and limited support—based on North Korean resilience. Using Chinese-language sources and scenario-based analysis, it assesses how each model would shape key functional areas such as ISR, cyber, materiel, and force posture. The findings offer US defense planners a framework for anticipating variable People’s Liberation Army involvement in a future Korea contingency.

The Next National Defense Strategy: Mission-Based Force Planning, Frank G. Hoffman

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

The Pentagon needs to embrace a new methodology called mission-based planning to size and shape the defense enterprise properly. This article critiques several proposals for reestablishing the long-standing two major theater war construct in the face of ongoing shifts in the strategic environment, including the nation’s $36 trillion debt and prospects of annual interest payments beyond $1 trillion. It presents a mission priority alternative focused on strategic prioritization based on the authors’ four decades of experience in strategy/force planning at the service, the department, and the Office of the Secretary of Defense levels. Strategic-level service planners and students of Joint …

From The Editor In Chief, Antulio J. Echevarria Ii

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

Welcome to the Summer 2025 issue of Parameters. This issue consists of an In Focus special commentary, three forums (Indo-Pacific Challenges, Russia-Ukraine Issues, and Historical Studies).

Strategic Narratives To Counter Global Threats, Jerry E. Landrum, Chase Metcalf, Michael M. Posey

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

This article argues that the current National Security Strategy lacks the necessary coherence and fidelity to mobilize collective action against the emerging Russia-China axis. It merges multiple theoretical concepts to assert that the “rules-based order” theme is insufficient for mobilizing public support. Using textual analysis of the strategy compared with publicly available polling to determine levels of popular resonance, the authors find that the “rules-based order emphasis” does not resonate. This study’s conclusions will assist practitioners as they develop an updated National Security Strategy in the new presidential administration.

Parameters Summer 2025, Usawc Press

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

Welcome to the Summer 2025 issue of Parameters. This issue consists of an In Focus special commentary, three forums (Indo-Pacific Challenges, Russia-Ukraine Issues, and Historical Studies).

Book Reviews, Usawc Press

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

No abstract provided.

The Instrumentalization Of The Unprivileged Combatants By Western Countries Aimed To Oppress National Liberation Wars, Fares Mahmoud Def-Allah Abdelhamid

Theses and Dissertations

The goal of International Humanitarian Law (IHL) is purported to be the humanization of wars. Nonetheless, the atrocities committed in wars and the war criminals’ impunity suggest the failure of IHL. Notwithstanding, some voices call for reforming and developing IHL. In contrast, this thesis argues that IHL should be rejected entirely since the distinction between privileged and unprivileged combatants indicates that IHL is biased against anti-colonizers. It is biased in three senses. Firstly, IHL, particularly the distinction between privileged and unprivileged combatants, is dominated by Western rationality, which can be noticed in the domination of the civilization concept with its …

Cosmic Force: A Framework For Applying The Prohibition Of The Use Of Force In Outer Space, Erin Pobjie

International Law Studies

Outer space is becoming increasingly contested and existing approaches to identifying prohibited force in outer space lack a systematic foundation, hindering their application to novel challenges such as temporary interference with critical satellites or threats involving commercial space actors. This article addresses this gap by developing the first comprehensive, multifactorial legal framework for identifying a prohibited use of force in outer space. This framework provides a structured method for analyzing non-kinetic actions, temporary effects, and persistent hazards like space debris. It fundamentally advances existing legal approaches in three ways. First, it establishes when States can be implicated in a violation …

What Are “Wartime Authorities” And When Can The President Use Them? An Expert Q&A, Tess Bridgeman, Rebecca Ingber, Scott Roehm

Online Publications

The first several months of President Donald Trump’s second administration have been marred by the chaotic and often unlawful use, or threatened use, of wartime and terrorism-related authorities for what are essentially domestic immigration or criminal law enforcement purposes. This is not the first time a president has sought to push the boundaries of his wartime powers, or outright claimed those he did not have, but it may well be the most extreme. Indeed, Trump’s reliance on wartime authorities in contexts entirely divorced from armed conflict, or even the threat of force against the United States, puts the country on …

The Special International Peace Zone: From History, Through Practice, Toward An End To Armed Conflict In Ukraine, Tom W. Bell

Notre Dame Journal of International & Comparative Law

This paper presents the special international peace zone as both an observed and ideal institution. Such a zone quells military conflict in an area over which sovereigns make conflicting territorial claims. It operates through an interim administration, governed by its own rules, independent of any single sovereign. Past examples include the Free City of Danzig (1920-39), the Free Territory of Trieste (1947-54), and United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (1999-2008). Despite proven successes, these zones have suffered from an undue reliance on multi-national organizations—first the League of Nations and now the United Nations. Warring sovereigns seldom agree about the …

Discord And The Pentagon's Watchdog: Countering Extremism In The U.S. Military, Amy Gaudion

Indiana Law Journal

In his 2022 book, Ward Farnsworth crafts a metaphor from the lead-pipe theory for the fall of Rome to consider how rage and misinformation traveling through today’s technology-enabled pipes are poisoning our civic engagement and threatening our governmental structures: “We have built networks for the delivery of information––the internet, and especially social media. These networks too, are a marvel. But they also carry a kind of poison with them. The mind fed from those sources learns to subsist happily on quick reactions, easy certainties, one-liners, and rage.”1 This Article carries the metaphor into a new context and considers what should …

Nato Self-Defense – Is Article 5 The Right Framework For Responding To Sub-Kinetic Cyber Aggression?, Shreyas Kumar, Gary D. Brown, Srividhya Ragavan, Maddalena Cerrato, Gourav Nagar

Faculty Scholarship

Cyber aggression presents a significant challenge to traditional frameworks of collective defense, particularly under Article 5 of the NATO Washington Treaty, which obligates member states to respond collectively to an "armed attack." While NATO has acknowledged that cyber incidents may trigger Article 5, ambiguity persists over what constitutes a cyber "armed attack," especially in the absence of kinetic effects. This uncertainty complicates NATO’s ability to address increasingly prevalent sub-kinetic cyber threats, such as economic disruption, data manipulation, and interference in democratic processes. Unlike conventional military threats, cyber operations often fall below the traditional threshold of armed conflict while still exerting …

The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act Should Be Updated To Recognize Remote Courtroom Appearances, Hon. William G. Montgomery, Hon. Gerald A. Williams

Texas A&M Law Review

Allowing military members to continue pending civil litigation so that they can focus their attention on warfighting is sound public policy. Most agree we should protect those “who dropped their affairs to answer their country’s call,” and various federal laws have codified that protection for over a century. But what if the civil matter is com- paratively minor or could otherwise be easily resolved? While the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (“SCRA”) provides essential protections against harassing civil litigation, it should still pro- vide for the ability of deployed personnel to remotely resolve matters. Virtually every military member can easily be …

Selected Artificial Intelligence Provisions In U.S. Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act, Bert Chapman

Libraries Faculty and Staff Presentations

The 2025 Fiscal Year National Defense Authorization Act contains multiple provisions relating to artificial intelligence (AI). These congressionally mandated provisions direct various sections of the Department of Defense (DOD) and individual U.S. armed service branches to execute congressional intent for AI policymaking. Examples of such intent include identifying and planning DOD's AI workforce, demonstrating AI biotechnology applications for national security, improving the human usability of AI systems, and establishing an AI security center. This presentation will note that reports on these initiatives must be prepared for relevant congressional oversight committees, and, in many cases, are in many cases, publicly released …

Judicial Deference And Presidential Power Under The Alien Enemies Act, Rebecca Ingber

Online Publications

On March 15, 2025, President Donald Trump issued a proclamation titled, “Invocation of the Alien Enemies Act Regarding the Invasion of The United States by Tren De Aragua.” In purporting to invoke the Alien Enemies Act, Trump resurrected a 1798 statute that grants the President extraordinary removal powers in times of “declared war” or “invasion or predatory incursion … against the territory of the United States by any foreign nation or government.” Specifically, this wartime power permits the President to apprehend and remove as “alien enemies” the non-U.S. citizen nationals of the foreign state, as long as they are fourteen …

The New 92? Lawful Orders, The Obedience Paradigm, And The Military As A Forum For Experimental Change In The Aftermath Of Trump V. United States, Kyra Ziesk-Socolov

Pace Law Review

Article 92 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice criminalizes defiance of lawful orders issued by superior military and civilian officials in a service member’s chain of command, while Rule for Court-Martial (R.C.M.) 916(d) provides procedural guidance for the assertion that a service member was acting pursuant to lawful orders as a criminal defense. These provisions are integral to maintaining good order and discipline within the military ranks and ensuring consistent and reliable implementation of operational and policy initiatives across the Department of Defense. The duty to obey lawful orders is closely circumscribed in the context of the military chain …

A Rendezvous In Outer Space Law: The Challenge Of Establishing Binding Regulations For Dual-Use Capabilities, Chelsea Merrill

St. John's Law Review

(Excerpt)

When the Soviet Union launched Sputnik in 1957, it was not only a significant leap forward in the Space Race with the United States, but also the catalyst for a series of international treaties that would serve as the foundations of outer space law. In the last decade, the world has seen similar technological leaps in the commercial sector. Elon Musk’s SpaceX has launched spacecraft with all civilian crews while Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson aim to expand the market for commercial space flights. Lockheed Martin is one of many companies looking to offer commercial services for maintaining satellites …

The Administrative Discharge: Changes Needed?, Norman B. Lynch

Maine Law Review

At its annual convention in 1968 the American Bar Association adopted a resolution authorizing its Special Committee on Military Justice to urge congressional action with respect to the military administrative discharge and military due process of law. In response to this urging two bills were introduced in the 91st Congress dealing with the administrative discharge of members of the Armed Forces. One was sponsored by Congressman Charles E. Bennett, (D. Fla.). Another was introduced by Senator Sam J. Ervin, (D. N.C.). The Bennett bill proposes amendments to title 10 of the United States Code to limit the separation of members …

Procedural Rights Of The Military Accused: Advantages Over A Civilian Defendant, Homer E. Moyer Jr.

Maine Law Review

The Supreme Court recently decided in O'Callahan v. Parker that the military lacks jurisdiction to try servicemen for crimes that are not "service-connected." Justice Douglas, in rendering the majority opinion, was highly critical of military justice and criminal procedures in the court-martial system, which he characterized as "a system of specialized military courts, proceeding by practices different from those obtaining in the regular courts and in general less favorable to defendants . . . . .” The opinion further added that "courts-martial as an institution are singularly inept in dealing with the nice subtleties of constitutional law . . . …

The Civilianization Of Military Law, Edward F. Sherman

Maine Law Review

Military law in the United States has always functioned as a system of jurisprudence independent of the civilian judiciary. It has its own body of substantive laws and procedures which has a different historical derivation than the civilian criminal law. The federal courts have always been reluctant to interfere with the court-martial system, as explained by the Supreme Court in 1953 in Burns v. Wilson: "Military law, like state law, is a jurisprudence which exists separate and apart from the law which governs in our federal judicial establishment. This Court has played no role in its development; we have exerted …

Argersinger And The Right To Counsel In The Military, Maine Law Review

Maine Law Review

The dramatic advances made since 1965 in recognizing the right to counsel for accused indigents have steadily, albeit unevenly, extended to military courts-martial. Despite this progress, many questions remain unresolved regarding right to counsel both generally and in the military. While the right to counsel is solidified in general courts-martial, it remains precarious in special and summary courts-martial, for the right to lawyer counsel is defeasible where a military exigency is shown in the former and lawyer counsel is not yet required service-wide in the latter. The military exigency exception to full sixth amendment rights to easily degenerates into a …