As I compose this letter and reflect on the last twelve months, I marvel at how quickly the year has passed and how much we have accomplished. While combining Military Review and the Combat Studies Institute into one organization, we managed to reorganize personnel, develop new approaches to familiar processes, and welcome many more professionals into the fold. We transformed a thirteen-person staff into a robust team of forty-one writers, researchers, historians, instructors, editors, and web administrators. I am immensely proud to be the director of one of the Army’s newest organizations—the Army Press.
So, why the Army Press? Writing is one of the most important things we can do across the force to document and share best practices, develop new ideas, and debate issues important to the Army. The Press serves as the point of entry and the Army’s hub for identifying, encouraging, and coaching prospective authors to write and publish articles or book-length works.
The Army Press allows for the publication of more products due to the partnerships we share with many Army center-of-excellence and Department of Defense publications, as well as our ability to publish manuscripts and articles in print and online under the Army Press imprint. This means more publication opportunities for authors and increased information sharing across the force.
Although the Army Press officially became a reality in August, it continues to evolve. For example, the recent activation of our website has greatly enhanced our functionality. And, the Press will continue to grow over the next several years. The NCO Journal will soon join the Army Press; it is scheduled to transition its team from Fort Bliss, Texas, to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, later this year. We are looking forward to adding the NCO Journal’s very talented staff of noncommissioned officers and civilians to the Army Press family.
Due to recent global events, we approached this edition of Military Review a bit differently by republishing an article by the chief of the General Staff of the Russian Federation Armed Forces, Gen. Valery Gerasimov. He offers his perspective—and the prevalent view in Russian security circles—of the recent past, present, and expected future of warfare.
You will also find comments made by Russian President Vladimir Putin during a speech given to the UN General Assembly 28 September 2015 addressing his view of the future, including the future of war.
We juxtaposed these articles with a discussion by Charles K. Bartles. He puts Gerasimov’s article, written for a Russian audience, in context for U.S. readers by explaining references that could be missed or easily misunderstood.
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