Nearly every day, the U.S. and its allies face cyber-attacks originating from some combination of China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea, along with other hostile actors. Russian and Chinese spies operate within Western societies as well as in key allied nations in Asia, such as Taiwan and Japan, much like during the Cold War era. And in more kinetic terms, the Houthis, an Iran-backed proxy, continue to routinely launch attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, damaging the supply line security of the wider global economy, and the Ukraine war rages in eastern Europe. In the financial realm, billions are being siphoned out of public coffers or laundered via crypto or financial crimes. And inter-state conflict is now reaching into outer space, where China and Russia are actively developing weapons able to target Western satellites critical for navigation, communication, and targeting systems.

Few could deny the veracity of the above trends; taken together, they are reflective of a new era, one where the boundaries of warfare have broadened, and conflicts extend far beyond traditional military engagements. This is a shift back toward ‘total war,’ where entire societies and economies are mobilized and in turn become targets. Once again technology is playing a leading role; for example, advances in drone warfare, cyber attacks, and space-based operations enabling novel ways to strike at military, economic, and civilian targets. Yet unlike the recent past, notably the 9/11 era where perceived threats were primarily land-based, today’s major geopolitical revolve around the sea, particularly in regions like the Indo-Pacific, where tensions between the United States and China play out, as well as in the Black and Red seas.