Intelligence Squared Is the Russia–Ukraine War a Failure of Strategy? With Lawrence Freedman
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Mar 15, 2026 
Lawrence Freedman, Emeritus Professor of War Studies and noted historian of strategy, offers a concise walk through strategic thinking. He discusses how tactics and implementation often decide outcomes. He reflects on four years of the Russia–Ukraine conflict, authoritarian decision-making, nuclear signaling and the challenge of unpredictable leaders in global affairs.
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Strategy Should Start From Where You Are
- Strategy should move forward from current conditions rather than backward from fixed end-states.
- Lawrence Freedman argues strategists progress stage-by-stage like a soap opera, adjusting objectives as circumstances and resources change.
Tactics Make Or Break Strategy
- Tactical execution determines whether a strategy succeeds; poor tactics can sink even brilliant plans.
- Freedman notes 19th-century military thought prioritized tactical innovation, and modern organizations often neglect implementation.
Manage Your Own Bureaucracy As Part Of Strategy
- Successful strategy must manage internal bureaucracy as much as external adversaries.
- Freedman recounts Tony Blair pushing policy through pre-invasion then lacking domestic bureaucratic buy-in for post-invasion governance in Iraq.
