Episode 23: Utility vs Utilisation
Given the discussion of 'sunset' capabilities and the growing feeling in Brussels that the UK has a credibility problem inside NATO, Peter talks to Mungo Melvin (military historian and former soldier), about the dangers of thin-slicing history to draw conclusions about military capability requirements for the future.
Mungo characterises the Western Way of Warfare as a dichotomy between what we want wars to looks like, and those we actually have to fight. A fascinating and illuminating conversation.
Western Way of War Podcast Series
A collection of discussions with those in the Profession of Arms that tries to understand the issues around how to fight, and succeed, against adversaries in the 2020s.  We pose the questions as whether a single Western Way of Warfare (how Western militaries fight) has been successful, whether it remains fit for task today, and how it might need to adapt in the future? It is complemented by the ‘Adversarial Studies’ project that looks at how adversaries fight.
Sponsored by
Raytheon UK
The podcast is kindly sponsored and enabled by Raytheon UK, a subsidiary of Raytheon technology, a British company that creates jobs in England, Wales and Scotland, contributing over 700 million pounds to the UK economy.
PODCAST HOST
Professor Peter Roberts
Senior Associate Fellow
Major General Mungo Melvin CB OBE MA
Senior Associate Fellow
