The article explores hybrid warfare as a strategy that integrates political, economic, military, informational, and cyber tactics, emphasizing Russia’s approach to ambiguous and deniable actions that fall below the threshold of traditional warfare. It discusses how hybrid warfare aims to exploit vulnerabilities in European states, using tools such as misinformation, proxy forces, cyberattacks, and economic pressure in the so-called gray zone—a spectrum of conflict between peace and open war. The piece highlights the challenges hybrid tactics pose to response frameworks, stressing the importance of resilience, recognition of such strategies, and multi-domain approaches to counteract them. Analytical models and diagrams illustrate the overlap between gray zone conflict and hybrid operations, underscoring the complexity for policymakers and security actors to identify and address these threats effectively. The article concludes by suggesting coordinated policy and defense adaptations are necessary for enhancing European security against Russia’s hybrid war strategy.
Category: Military & Paramilitary Operations
Subcategory: Unconventional / Paramilitary
Incident Type: Use of ‘little green men’ (unmarked soldiers)
Country: European Union
Source report: worldnewworld.com/page/cont…
