The Russian Way of Deterrence: Strategic Culture, Coercion, and War

by Dmitry (Dima) Adamsky

From a globally renowned expert on Russian military strategy and national security, The Russian Way of Deterrence investigates Russia's approach to coercion (both deterrence and compellence), comparing and contrasting it with the Western conceptualization of this strategy. Strategic deterrence, or what Dmitry (Dima) Adamsky calls deterrence à la Russe, is one of the main tools of Russian statecraft. Adamsky deftly describes the genealogy of the Russian approach to coercion and highlights the cultural, ideational, and historical factors that have shaped it in the nuclear, conventional, and informational domains. Drawing on extensive research on Russian strategic culture, Adamsky highlights several empirical and theoretical peculiarities of the Russian coercion strategy, including how this strategy relates to the war in Ukraine. Exploring the evolution of strategic deterrence, along with its sources and prospective avenues of development, Adamsky provides a comprehensive intellectual history that makes it possible to understand the deep mechanics of this Russian stratagem, the current and prospective patterns of the Kremlin's coercive conduct, and the implications for policymakers on both sides of the Atlantic.

Genres: Russia, Military Fiction

225 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 31, 2023

Reviews

[Almantas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Izraelio mokslininko tekstas apie Rusijos supratimą apie atgrasymą. Nelabai nuostabu, kad Rusijos supratime ir tradicijoje atgrasymas yra tiesiogiai susietas su prievarta. Įdomūs Rusijos karių sisteminio brutalumo apraiškų Ukrainos karo kontekste vertinimai. Tai sietina su Rusijos atgrasymo samprata. Žinoma, Rusijos atveju neapsieinama be misticizmo ir Rusijos pravoslavų bažnyčios vaidmens atgrasyme. Autoriaus atradimas: Rusija nėra pakankamai įgudusi skleisti savo žinutes siekdama atgrasymo bei Vakarai jau prarado gebėjimą, jei dar iki ne seno laiko turėjo tokį, tinkamai skaityti ir suprasti Rusijos perduodamas žinutes. Nesusikalbėjimas ir nesupratimas užprogramuoti. Beje, Dmitry Adamsky lankosi ir kalba Baltic Military Conference 2024 m. kovo 21-22 d. Vilniuje.

[Terry Tucker · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is written in an academic format, and some readers may be put-off by its dry writing style.
Never-the-less, this book is an important contribution to understanding Russian methods and strategies. It's a short read, just over 200 pages. The first two chapters are all background and the rest of the book covers the authors thesis of a Russian Way of Deterrence. I would have liked to have seen a checklist like Russell Weigley did in his classic, The American Way of War, and I would have liked to have seen case study examples for the main points. The Notes sections of this book are invaluable and offer a lot of further reading

[Leon Mastik · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interessante studie naar hoe Rusland zijn positie in de wereld bevecht. Over dwang, invloeden uit het verleden en Azië, cultuur, over concepten en het niet altijd kunnen uitvoeren en over misverstanden. Het is geen snel wegleesboek, maar als je er voor gaat zitten en je leest door de theoretische tekst heen, kom je veel te weten over de context van de situatie waar we inzitten. Je leert begrijpen hoe signalen in een conflict worden verstuurd en hoe ze kunnen worden geïnterpreteerd.

[Malik · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book's content is highly engaging and offers valuable insights into Russian defense policy, particularly their perspectives on deterrence, despite it primarily focusing on the theory. However, its academic nature is evident not only in its structure but also in the author's writing style, which is dry and very unpleasant to read. it could have been written in a more accessible way.

[Sebastian · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really good book giving the reader a different perspective of deterrence and use of hybrid (non-kinetic) tools by Russia with the condition of stepping away from Western understanding and segmentation of deterrence as concept, theory and rule.

One of the best books I've picked up in recent years.

[Dale · Rating 4 out of 5]

strategic culture

This very interesting book was well researched and explains the things Russia is doing in their foreign policy and wars of aggression.

[Nikita Nikishin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Minimal contributions to its field, with incredibly dry writing to boot.