Space control and global hegemony
Abstract This article argues that in addition to ideology and an ensuing discourse, one—if not the only—effective grand strategic means for a great power to establish global hegemony is through space control. Today, the sole power with both the will and the capability to achieve the grand strategic end of hegemony is the United States, which spends nearly as much on space and armaments as all other countries combined. However, time is not on the side of the United States. Unless it proves able to secure control of space in the coming few years, the European Union and Russia will hardly consent to U.S. domination of space—and through it world politics. Thus, military space control is not the only way ahead.
Shooting for the Moon
The Apollo programme inspired thousands of people to pursue careers in science. Today, they still support human spacefaring — but baulk at the price. Richard Monastersky reports on the results of a Nature poll.
Military Organizations and Change: The “Professionalization” of the 76th Airborne Division
This article considers the manner in which the Russian civilian authorities, led by Putin, are trying to overcome military resistance to the replacing of a conscript army with a professional one. At the heart of recent attempts to convince reluctant generals that a professional army is needed by Russia in the 21st century has been the “experiment” with the 76th Airborne Division. In this experiment this division has, over a specified period, been converted from a conscript to a contract-based force. This article describes the problems involved with this experiment and concludes that, no matter what the civilian authorities want in terms of military reform, they will, for the foreseeable future, continue to be thwarted by conservative generals.