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The Art of War and Peace: Understanding Our Choices in a World at War
How have the character and technology of war changed in recent times?
Why does battlefield victory often fail to result in a sustainable peace?
What is the best way to prevent, fight and resolve future conflict?
The world is becoming a more dangerous place. Since the fall of Kabul and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the US-led liberal international order is giving way to a more chaotic, contested and multipolar world system. Western credibility and deterrence are diminishing in the face of wars in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, tensions across the Taiwan Strait, and rising populism and terrorism around the world. Can peace, mutual respect and democracy survive, or are we destined to a new permanent chaos in which authoritarians and populists thrive?
Based on their decades of experience as policy advisors in conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq, Colombia and across Africa, and on recent fieldwork in Israel, Ukraine, Ethiopia, and Taiwan, the authors analyse the nature of modern war, considering both large-scale, high-intensity state-on-state conflicts as well as limited-objective, irregular, low-intensity conflicts that often include both inter- and intra-state dimensions.
The book investigates how technology can be a leveller for small powers against larger aggressors; how one can shape and sustain a viable narrative to ensure public and international support; the balance between self-reliance and alliance commitment; and the role of leadership, intelligence, diplomacy, economic assistance.
Weighing up past lessons, present observations and predictions about the future, The Art of War and Peace explores how wars can be won on the battlefield and how that success can be translated into a stable and enduring peace.
Why does battlefield victory often fail to result in a sustainable peace?
What is the best way to prevent, fight and resolve future conflict?
The world is becoming a more dangerous place. Since the fall of Kabul and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the US-led liberal international order is giving way to a more chaotic, contested and multipolar world system. Western credibility and deterrence are diminishing in the face of wars in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, tensions across the Taiwan Strait, and rising populism and terrorism around the world. Can peace, mutual respect and democracy survive, or are we destined to a new permanent chaos in which authoritarians and populists thrive?
Based on their decades of experience as policy advisors in conflicts in Afghanistan, Iraq, Colombia and across Africa, and on recent fieldwork in Israel, Ukraine, Ethiopia, and Taiwan, the authors analyse the nature of modern war, considering both large-scale, high-intensity state-on-state conflicts as well as limited-objective, irregular, low-intensity conflicts that often include both inter- and intra-state dimensions.
The book investigates how technology can be a leveller for small powers against larger aggressors; how one can shape and sustain a viable narrative to ensure public and international support; the balance between self-reliance and alliance commitment; and the role of leadership, intelligence, diplomacy, economic assistance.
Weighing up past lessons, present observations and predictions about the future, The Art of War and Peace explores how wars can be won on the battlefield and how that success can be translated into a stable and enduring peace.
485 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 1, 2024
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92 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
October 15, 2025
In The Art of War and Peace, David Kilcullen and Greg Mills deliver a timely, nuanced examination of modern warfare and the fragile pursuit of peace in a shifting world order. Drawing from decades of firsthand experience in conflict zones from Afghanistan and Iraq to Ukraine and Ethiopia the authors bridge theory and lived reality, revealing how the nature of conflict has evolved in an age defined by technology, populism, and strategic realignment.
What sets this book apart is its balance between strategic insight and human understanding. Kilcullen and Mills dissect the machinery of war intelligence, technology, alliances, and diplomacy while emphasizing the moral and political complexities that shape both victory and its aftermath. Their analysis of how battlefield success can fail to yield peace feels particularly resonant amid today’s ongoing global tensions.
Ultimately, The Art of War and Peace stands as both a warning and a guide: an invitation to rethink how nations and leaders can navigate the perilous space between conflict and coexistence in the twenty-first century.
What sets this book apart is its balance between strategic insight and human understanding. Kilcullen and Mills dissect the machinery of war intelligence, technology, alliances, and diplomacy while emphasizing the moral and political complexities that shape both victory and its aftermath. Their analysis of how battlefield success can fail to yield peace feels particularly resonant amid today’s ongoing global tensions.
Ultimately, The Art of War and Peace stands as both a warning and a guide: an invitation to rethink how nations and leaders can navigate the perilous space between conflict and coexistence in the twenty-first century.
September 16, 2025
La obra es especialmente pertinente en el contexto de un mundo cada vez más peligroso, marcado por eventos como la caída de Kabul y la invasión de Rusia a Ucrania. Los autores analizan cómo el orden internacional liberal liderado por Estados Unidos está dando paso a un sistema mundial más caótico y multipolar, donde las tensiones en lugares como el estrecho de Taiwán y el aumento del populismo y el terrorismo son cada vez más evidentes
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews