Statecraft

The New Rules of Power in a Divided World

By: Jack Watling

Narrated by: Matthew Spencer

'Indispensable – brilliantly grounded in first-hand experience and telling detail. Compelling' – Rory Stewart, bestselling author of Politics on the Edge

From top defence analyst Jack Watling, Statecraft reveals how states collaborate, compete and fight in this era of global turmoil.

How can Iran control the fate of global energy prices, despite US military superiority?
Why did Russia struggle in the early months of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine?
Why does Israel ignore international pressure on Gaza?
Why does the UK spend billions on aircraft carriers that it struggles to support at sea?
How do smaller states shape world events when dwarfed by superpowers?

The world today is gripped by conflict. Whether in Ukraine, the Middle East or Taiwan, we are in a period of intense power competition. In Statecraft, Dr Jack Watling takes you behind the scenes to meet the world’s powerbrokers in their wood-panelled offices, and the bunkers from which battles are coordinated.

With a career spent on the ground in conflict zones, and advising generals and political leaders, Watling examines the dilemmas that states face to get ahead, no matter their size. From economic alliances and global trade to sea power and military technology, Statecraft provides a powerful new lens to understand geopolitics in a divided world.

‘Anyone interested in geopolitics should read it’ – Anne Applebaum, bestselling author of Autocracy, Inc

Critic reviews

An indispensable book on strategy – brilliantly grounded in first-hand experience and telling detail. [Statecraft is] blunt about the failures and structural defects in policy [and] thoughtful, serious and compelling (Rory Stewart, bestselling author of Politics on the Edge)

Jack Watling has rewritten Clausewitz for the modern world, using stories and taking lessons from Ukraine to Mali to Taiwan. Anyone interested in geopolitics should read it (Anne Applebaum, bestselling author of Autocracy, Inc)

Through narrative and analysis, Statecraft explores the key factors that decide success or failure in resolving conflict or chaos. Jack Watling draws on his own stories to weave a narrative that gets underneath events – from Afghanistan to Ukraine – with which we might be familiar, but through this book, can better understand.

Statecraft is an astonishing book, full of stories and details, drawn from Jack Watling’s unique experience from the front line in conflict zones all over the world. Through it, we are able to evaluate what determines success and failure, and how we might better prepare for an uncertain future.

(Rt Hon Baroness Catherine Ashton LG GCMG)