Russia’s ‘Hybrid War’: What Does it Really Mean, And How Should the West Respond?

The challenge of Russia’s ‘hybrid war’ remains one of the main concerns of Western policy-makers, yet quite what does this mean, and how can it best be resisted? Dr Mark Galeotti, a senior researcher at the Institute of International Relations Prague and one of the world’s leading experts on Russian security has recently completed two major analyses of the issue, his comprehensive report Hybrid War or Gibridnaya Voina? Getting Russia’s non-linear military challenge right (Mayak) and Heavy Metal Diplomacy: Russia’s political use of its military in Europe since 2014 (European Council on Foreign Relations).

In this round table, he will discuss his findings – and in particular his view that Western perspectives fail to appreciate quite how Russians look at this kind of operation and the two different kinds of ‘hybrid war’ in play – as well as options as to how Europe can most effectively counter the challenge.