How Warfare Evolves

General David Petraeus joins the show to discuss his new book (co-authored by Andrew Roberts, our recent episode with him here), Conflict: The Evolution of Warfare from 1945 to Ukraine.

Primarily through the lenses of Ukraine and Israel’s wars, the General and Cliff examine how warfare has been evolving.

They discuss the status of Ukraine’s defensive war against Russia, including criticism that the U.S. has been providing enough assistance to prevent the Ukrainians from losing – but not enough to let the Ukrainians win.

The General discusses Israel’s defensive war against Hamas, “the day after” in Gaza, what Israelis should do about Hezbollah’s threat from Lebanon, and the jihadi regime in Tehran that backs both Hamas and Hezbollah, along with Islamic Jihad, Shia militias in Iraq and Syria, and the Houthi rebels who have been attacking shipping in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, gateway to the Red Sea and the Suez Canal.

General David Petraeus

Gen. Petraeus served in the U.S. Army for 37 years with six consecutive commands as a general officer — five of which were in combat, including command of the “Surge” in Iraq, U.S. Central Command, and the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan. In addition to later serving as director of the CIA, he has held academic appointments at six universities and is a senior fellow and lecturer at Yale. Also worth noting: he was sanctioned by Russia in 2022.