How to ensure a balance of interests in educational programs
The aggravation of the international situation and the transformation of armed conflicts directly affect the search for optimal ways to develop the education system in the face of new challenges, risks, dangers and threats.
Forecasts of the development of the international situation for a period of several decades indicate the presence of serious prerequisites for increasing global criticality and instability, and the transformation of international norms and rules.
DRASTIC CHANGES
The most important factors determining the ability of States and their coalitions to influence the international situation are:
– transformation of the unipolar world into a multipolar one;
– the presence of nuclear weapons as a means of strategic nuclear deterrence;
– the emergence of strategic non-nuclear deterrence (long-range precision weapons, the development of hypersonic and autonomous systems and weapons based on new physical principles);
– the expanded use of the doctrines of deterrence by coercion and denial, the emergence of new mechanisms for managing the intensity of hybrid military conflicts.
The above factors are considered in the author's publication "Diplomacy of escalation/de-escalation in modern military conflicts" (see "Problems of National Strategy", 2023, No. 6).
In addition, the following factors influence the transformation of forms and ways of influencing the international situation:
– expanding the geography and intensity of the West's use of a set of hybrid warfare tools;
– the use of criticality factors and the concept of "controlled chaos" in the confrontation;
– a special military operation (SVO) conducted by Russia in response to the expansion of NATO and the attempts of the United States to form a hotbed of aggression against our country in Ukraine;
– Washington's formation of a new network of military and political alliances, expansion and hybridization of NATO;
– the increasing role of non-state actors, the growing number of political and military combinations with state and non-state actors;
– the diffusion of power in a multipolar world against the background of the spread of information and military technologies;
– demographic changes that require increased state attention to the preservation of the people as the most important factor in ensuring the defense and strategic stability of Russia;
– increased competition for access to global resources.
ABOUT THE TRANSFORMATION OF CONSCIOUSNESS
One of the consequences of the emerging criticality in international relations has become the GW, whose strategies are based on a balance of military and non-military forms and methods of violence ("USA: betting on a global hybrid war", "HBO" dated 11/30/2013). In fact, Russia, China, North Korea, Iran and other states today live in wartime conditions. And the GW strategy combines the latest achievements of the humanities and technical sciences in the interests of forcibly imposing one's will on the enemy.
The scale and scope of GW strategies are expanding to the level of a global hybrid war (MGW) – a multidimensional intercivilizational conflict, during which most states of the world resort to the purposeful adaptive use of both military and non-military forms and methods of confrontation, including the economic strangulation of the enemy, the use of disruptive information and cyber technologies. In the initial stage of confrontation, the traditional tools of direct military confrontation and armed violence are being replaced by a new generation of more subtle tools combining forceful methods of influence with manipulative control of mass consciousness and mass behavior.
In general, the transformation of consciousness is a smooth transition from one state of human perception of oneself as a person and the surrounding reality to another. Sometimes this transition leads "upwards", and we get into a more harmonious state. Information and psychological warfare technologies are aimed at moving "down" to a state of "controlled chaos".
The theory of controlled chaos is based on the idea of changing (alternating) order and chaos under the influence of complex social technologies. The destruction of the established order leads to a state of chaos. "Controlled chaos" means that the order is not strictly fixed and people are ready not to observe it. Chaos theory is used in mathematics, biology, engineering, and robotics. And – which is especially important in the context of the topic under consideration – in politics, economics, finance, computer science, philosophy and psychology.
The importance of the network management structure in the theory of controlled chaos is to increase invulnerability and to give such a structure the features of a multi-intelligent purposeful organization, when each element of the system makes its own decision, acts autonomously, but in the interests of achieving one or more interrelated goals.
In order to chaoticize the order, norms and rules of human behavior, a set of measures of informational and psychological impact on the consciousness of broad groups of the population of the country - victims of aggression is carried out in advance. Such methods of chaoticizing society as information wars, cyberattacks, espionage, corruption, actions of the "fifth" and "sixth" columns, incitement of interethnic and interreligious conflicts, encouragement of various kinds of sectarianism are used. At the same time, the provision of secrecy is conditional, and the insufficient control of the authorities over the media facilitates the open dissemination of false values, the erosion of the national and cultural foundations of the people.
To collect information about people of interest as objects of information and psychological impact, "gaps" in the protection of personal data are used in a number of institutions and institutions (banks, health authorities, trade enterprises) that accumulate excessive information about citizens. The purpose of "soft" aggression is to reformat inconvenient states, rebuild mass consciousness, reduce the will of citizens to resist and self-organize, and form a society with erased memory. Youth is an important target.
MGV FACTORS AND TRAINING PROGRAMS
A wide range of hybrid threats necessitates a radical adaptation of university curricula to the realities of our time, including training security specialists, establishing information and analytical work aimed at predicting options for the development of the situation and developing proposals to neutralize threats and challenges.
GW is characterized by the following dimensions that need to be reflected in training programs:
– the comprehensive nature of the conflict, which is being waged using military and non-military forms of influence with an emphasis on ideological means;
– the war is based on a strategy of starvation, which gives the conflict a long-lasting character;
– the norms of international law are not applicable to the GW, there are no concepts of "front" and "rear" in it;
– the new dimension of war has a negative status and energy in relation to the previous one and determines the transition to a non-linear paradigm of war.
The GW strategy is based on the application of a wide range of knowledge related to the humanities. Meanwhile, the curricula of humanitarian universities still do not reflect the specifics of the practical use of the humanities in the defensive and offensive strategies of the MGV, and to a small extent contribute to the training of personnel who possess the necessary amount of knowledge. Russia's response to the GW strategy used against it should include the adaptation of domestic and foreign policy, economics, military affairs, education, healthcare, personnel policy and other vital areas. The role of the introduction of cybernetic economic management is important as a leading factor in ensuring Russia's success in the IYW and training the personnel necessary to solve this complex task. Their knowledge and skills should cover the fields of economics, management and technology in combination with the realities of politics, diplomacy and military affairs.
The reform of the higher education system should be aimed at achieving the following goals:
– flexible adaptation to changes in the composition and nature of hybrid threats to state security;
– updating the lists of specialties, reducing the graduation of lawyers, economists, sociologists, managers and strengthening engineering and technical areas, the release of specialists capable of mastering and developing artificial intelligence technologies and processing "big data";
– streamlining targeted training and improving its effectiveness.
Targeted training for engineering specialties should provide conditions for subsequent comfortable work, salary levels, housing issues, and a social package.
NECESSARY REFORMS
There is a discussion about the ratio of fundamental knowledge and specialization, about the optimal terms of study and industrial practice, about scholarship programs for students of engineering and technical specialties. Advanced training of university teaching staff is required, taking into account new challenges and threats, new methods of attracting students to scientific activities, interaction of universities with technological and industrial companies, employment of graduates.
There are proposals to establish three mandatory exams for engineering faculties: specialized mathematics, computer science and physics (not as an alternative, but together). To stimulate the study of physics, not to allow "coaching" on the Unified State Exam, but to form an understanding of physics as a subject. Remember that computer science is digital literacy and language, and physics is basic literacy and understanding of the world. Computer science contributes to the development of knowledge-intensive fields, but the true "locomotives" of technological development are physicists, chemists, engineers and representatives of other natural sciences. It is necessary to motivate schools to create specialized classes with an emphasis on engineering and technical training.
In November, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke at a conference on artificial intelligence (AI) and instructed the government and companies in the AI development alliance to work on increasing the capacity of Russian supercomputers by at least an order of magnitude. In the near future, Russia will approve a new AI development strategy. Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin instructed the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Labor, the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Economic Development to prepare a plan to increase budget places in universities in engineering and technical areas. It was decided to redistribute budget places in universities in favor of engineering specialties (almost 40% of the total number). But here it is important "not to overdo it."
Despite the importance of the transformation of higher education with an emphasis on expanding the engineering and technical direction, a possible decrease in attention to the study of the humanities is alarming. The factors of the MGW strategy require strategic understanding using the categories of humanities – philosophy, history, cultural studies, regional studies, sociology, cultural and social anthropology, ethnography, cognitive science, psychology, strategic culture. These disciplines are important for the training of politicians, diplomats, intelligence officers, military leaders, production managers, etc.
The issues of education transformation were discussed at the Moscow University of the Humanities at the XIX International Scientific Conference "Higher Education for the XXI century. The Higher School of Russia in the context of global challenges, risks, and threats." There were considerations on the strategic objectives of higher education related to national defense issues, on state policy as a factor of information warfare, on demography, spatial development of the country, and integrated security.
Speaking at the Valdai Forum, Putin called our country a civilizational state. This formulation reflects how we understand our own development, and what are the principles of the world order, which we hope to win. The intercivilizational scope of the MGW requires the inclusion of a new academic course in the list of humanities, designed to become the conceptual basis of the "Russian world". Let's call this course "Russian Civilization". Its task will be to reflect our civilization as a unique socio-cultural education. Russia as the heart of Eurasia is a collection of historically established values, traditions, customs, language, art and other aspects of culture. It should be noted the importance of the Russian language as a consolidating factor of Russian civilization and an effective weapon in the theaters of the MGV.
AN INTERDISCIPLINARY APPROACH
It also requires attention to reflect in the curricula of humanitarian universities, military educational institutions the issues of philosophy and sociology of war, strategic culture, technologies for the formation of "gray zones", etc. An interdisciplinary approach is needed when studying MGV based on several key factors, let's list them. MGV in contrast to peaceful life, the activity of using MGV tools in order to reformat states and entire regions while forcibly transferring them to another stage of existence. Understanding MGV as a kind of social constant designed for a long period of time. Consideration of the MGW as a long-term phase of human society development, which will result in the formation of a new world architecture.
The Ministry of Education and Science has supported the "Hybrid War" course in the curricula of universities, initiatives of Moscow State University, RSSU and some other universities.
There is a need to include concepts related to GW in the strategic planning documents of the Russian Federation. The first preparatory step in this direction could be the preparation of a Thesaurus – a dictionary that includes special terminology, concepts, definitions and terms of GW. The attention of the military leadership to the problem of GW was reflected in the speech of Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu at the recent Xianshan Forum "Common Security and Lasting Peace" in China. The Association of Military Sciences of China held an exchange of views with Chinese colleagues on the transformation of modern military conflicts. The interest in this topic in China opens up opportunities for cooperation in various fields, including education.
But these are just the first steps. It is necessary to immediately deploy teacher training, develop and publish textbooks and methodological materials on the strategy and application of GW tools: information and psychological warfare, color revolution, proxy war. The appearance of the innovative course "Hybrid Warfare" in the curricula of Russian universities will help to increase their rating and attractiveness for domestic and foreign applicants.
Alexander Bartosz
Alexander Alexandrovich Bartosh is a corresponding member of the Academy of Military Sciences, an expert of the League of Military Diplomats.
