The New Rules of War: Victory in the Age of Durable Disorder

Author: Sean McFate

Abstract

In the book The New Rules of War the author Sean McFate a former paratrooper and contractor, who later became a professor, writes that in the changing world order, war remains a constant—but warfare is evolving incessantly. States that used to be the sole legitimate entities in warfighting tend to hire new actors to fight on their behalf based on ideologies or other interests. Similarly, defeating an enemy does not remain confined only to conquering territories and killing their troops but to influencing others quickly by using tools, mediums and cunning strategies. It seems modern war is one-step ahead of the traditional way of war-fighting, as it is ‘more than warfare and more to warfare than killing’.