War on the Rocks6 Apr 2020

A Chat with the Commandant: Gen. David H. Berger on the Marine Corps' New Direction

As listeners of this podcast know, the Marine Corps is taking a new direction. The latest document to lay out this vision is Force Design 2030. The commandant, Gen. David H. Berger, aims to cut the size of the Marine Corps and let go of some legacy systems (most notably tanks) in order to -- in the words of a recent article in the Economist --- turn the Corps into "a commando-like infantry force with nimbler weapons: drone squadrons will double in number and rocket batteries will triple." In Berger's view, the Marine Corps must make these changes in order to work with the other armed services to deter the People's Republic of China, if necessary, or win a war against it.

Ryan spoke with Berger to get the inside story of these reforms, which he describes as being in their earliest phase. "This is not the end of the journey" he said, "but rather the beginning." And he calls upon more voices to chime in with criticism to ensure the Marine Corps is ready for the future of war.

Episoder(342)

The Marine Corps' Plan for the Future of Ground Combat

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Inside Iran's Wartime Regime

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19 Aug 36min

A Life in Army Special Operations, from Desert Storm to the Next War

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17 Aug 18min

How Ukraine Put Russia on the Backfoot

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How a Team of Marines Built the Corps' FPV Drone Training Program from a Cold Start

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1 Jul 49min

Is Time on China's Side? Beijing's Taiwan Calculus and the Balance of Power

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4 Jun 50min

What Would Relations with Post-War Russia Look Like?

Rose Gottemoeller joined Ryan in Washington. They discussed how the West might think about relations with Russia once the war with Ukraine ends, as well as nuclear diplomacy and other critical issues....

28 Mai 27min