Photo By Karlheinz Wedhorn | Security professionals from around the world convene for the Marshall Center's Seminar...... read more read more
Security experts convened at the Marshall Center’s Seminar on Irregular Warfare/Hybrid Threats to discuss how state actors like Russia and China are redefining conflict through coordinated campaigns of disinformation, cyber aggression, and legal manipulation.
“It’s not coincidental. It follows a well-coordinated campaign,” said Ambassador Arndt Freytag von Loringhoven, former NATO assistant secretary general for Intelligence and Security and German ambassador to Poland. “These efforts are timed, resourced, and tested. They’re meant to trigger divisions and amplify mistrust, and they often succeed before we even notice.”
His gray zone examples included Russian misinformation campaigns exploiting migration fears in Germany, fake videos aimed at sowing public anger, and AI-enabled cyber-attacks on German officials.
But the digital and psychological front is only part of the story. These hybrid operations are often conducted parallel to more traditional threats, amplifying their impact and limiting response options.
“What worries me the most is the military build-up alongside the hybrid campaign,” said von Loringhoven. “Hybrid threats confuse us, they distract us, but it’s the tanks and missiles that still do the damage. And the two reinforce each other.”
May-Britt Stumbaum, Ph.D., professor at the Marshall Center’s College of International Security Studies, reinforced that hybrid methods are not fringe tactics, they are the preferred tools of adversarial regimes, precisely because of their effectiveness.
“Hybrid is the way to go, and it’s been extremely successful,” Stumbaum said. “Why send troops when you can manipulate a population, win elections, and gain influence from within?”
Stumbaum, who also holds a Habilitation, a post-doctoral qualification in Germany, further described how Beijing uses a whole-of-society approach to advance the Communist Party’s strategic goals — leveraging the tech sector to imbed technology in the People's Liberation Army and exploiting algorithmic manipulation across social media.
Despite China’s head start in hybrid warfare, Stumbaum offered a measured outlook.
“We have the counters, but we’re just getting started. They are ahead, but it doesn’t mean they will win. It means we need to move faster, think smarter, and cooperate better.”
Following lectures by von Loringhoven and Stumbaum, the pair joined a panel discussion moderated by Bernard Finel, Ph.D., dean of the Marshall Center’s College of International and Security Studies.
Through candid exchanges and pointed questions, panelists underscored that hybrid threats are not only evolving, they’re converging. From intellectual property theft and cyber-enabled coercion to the strategic use of social media outrage, the conversation highlighted how authoritarian states exploit legal, commercial, and cultural openness in democracies.
While there was broad agreement on the need for stronger frameworks and coordination, the panel’s real value lay in its clarity: the West is behind, and catching up will require sustained cooperation, hardened institutions, and the political will to rebalance openness with resilience.
| Date Taken: | 06.10.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 06.12.2025 03:29 |
| Story ID: | 500301 |
| Location: | DE |
| Hometown: | GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, BAYERN, DE |
| Web Views: | 62 |
| Downloads: | 2 |
This work, Coordinated, Deliberate, Effective: Why Authoritarians Are Winning the Hybrid War, by Patrick Loch, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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