Russian Political Reshuffle and the Profound Idiocy of War

The Fallacy of "National" Interest or Strategy

Hello All,

Just a short piece as I’ve been watching with some horror, not unexpected mind you, about what the political changes at the top of Russian politics mean. Once again, they show how so much of a state’s decisions to both go to and continue fighting wars are not based on the “national” interest or even a coherent vision of strategy—but are selfish, personal and destructive.

I’ve been thinking about this very issue for years now, as its been the overriding theme for my book coming out this summer: The Strategists: Churchill Stalin, Roosevelt, Mussolini and Hitler—How War Made Them and They Made War. One of, probably the greatest, motivation behind the book was to try and disentangle World War II grand strategy from much of the frippery and window-dressing that surrounds it. In almost all cases the grand strategy of the large powers (Japan is an interesting exception—not having a dominant figure throughout) was based on the very personal experiences and outlooks of these 5. Even though there was talk of US or UK strategy, really it was the personal strategic prejudices and choices of Churchill and Roosevelt (sometimes but hardly always) influenced by a small group of advisers, that determined strategy. Stalin, Hitler and Mussolini if anything exercised more personal control over their countries (though the difference between democracies and dictatorships was less than you think

As I finished the writing process, Vladimir Putin decided to embark on what I can only say is the most depressing confirmation of this view.