Author

Mick Ryan

Mick Ryan is a recently retired Australian Army Major General. He is currently an adjunct fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and is the author of War Transformed, a book on future war published February 15, 2022, by U.S. Naval Institute Books.

Articles by Mick Ryan

Sean Connery as Captain Ramius in 'The Hunt for Red October', 1990.
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Fiction for a future war

Forty years after The Hunt for Red October redefined military fiction, the genre continues to explore the impact of technological innovation on warfare, building on a long traditio..

Mick RyanNovember 19, 2024
A group of trainees listens to the military instructor in a training organised by the third separate assault brigade in Kyiv, Ukraine.
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Mobilising for the moment

In an era of rising global tensions, democracies must tackle the intricate task of revitalising military mobilisation by uniting people, industry, and ideas to create a powerful de..

Mick RyanOctober 3, 2024
A Ukrainian soldier walks through the centre of Sudzha in Kursk.
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Ukraine in Kursk: a lesson in strategic audacity

Ukraine's surprise offensive into Kursk has not only caught Russia off guard but also shocked its Western allies, exposing the contrast between Ukrainian boldness and the West's ti..

Mick RyanAugust 26, 2024
A field and road covered with craters and wreckage near Kharkiv in Ukraine.
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The misfortunes of war

Recent military failures in Ukraine and the Middle East shed light on warfare's future while reaffirming the age-old truth that, in conflict, little is ever truly new...

Mick RyanJuly 2, 2024
Valerii Zaluzhnyi listens to Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a ceremony marking the Day of Ukrainian Statehood on Mykhailivska Square, July 28, 2023.
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Why Zelenskyy fired Zaluzhnyi

The Ukrainian president will be hoping that just as his selection of Valerii Zaluzhnyi as commander-in-chief in 2021 helped save Ukraine in 2022, the selection of Oleksandr Syrskyi..

Mick RyanFebruary 9, 2024
Ukrainian drone operator Leonid works to correct artillery fire in the city of Bahkmut.
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The future of war is here

Military institutions – and the broader national security community – in the twenty-first century will need the discipline to explore new ideas, discard old concepts and institutio..

Mick RyanFebruary 16, 2023
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky addresses the Ramstein summit.
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German resistance to sending Leopards will be long remembered

The meeting at Ramstein revealed divisions and disappointed supporters of Ukraine...

Mick RyanJanuary 22, 2023
A worker at the US Army Nebraska Ordnance Plant in Omaha, Nebraska, with 1000 lb bomb cases in May 1943.
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The West needs to boost its industrial capacity fast

The West must re-examine its capacity to produce critical military supplies...

Mick RyanNovember 24, 2022
A Ukrainian flag seen fluttering near Yampil, a settlement and railroad station in Lyman, Donetsk region. The liberation of Lyman was seen as a symbolic victory in the east. Credit: Sipa US / Alamy Stock Photo.
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A tale of three generals — how the Ukrainian military turned the tide

Over the past three months the wider world has watched Ukrainian army offensives with amazement. While impressive, their successes are not miracles and can be explained by superb l..

Mick RyanOctober 14, 2022
Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy visits the de-occupied city of Izyum, Kharkiv region in Ukraine on Wednesday, September 14, 2022. Credit: UPI / Alamy Stock Photo.
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Ukraine’s success in Kharkiv forced Putin’s hand

While the announcement of Russia’s mobilisation has lengthened the dark tunnel of war, the light of Ukrainian victory still glows. Ukraine’s army must exploit its momentum before t..

Mick RyanSeptember 21, 2022
Armed Forces of Ukraine. Credit: Bumble Dee / Alamy Stock Photo.
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How Ukraine is winning in the adaptation battle against Russia

The axiom ‘adapt or die’ is never more true than in war. The Ukrainian army’s willingness to modify its approach has been integral to its survival. The ability of other nations to ..

Mick RyanAugust 24, 2022
US soldiers fire the M142 HIMRAS at Camp Buehring, Kuwait
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HIMARS permit Ukrainians to fight how they know best — a strategy of corrosion

American High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems are wreaking havoc on Russian forces in Ukraine but they are only one part of the battlefield's complicated tableau...

Mick RyanJuly 21, 2022