Errand War: An Observer’s Perspective on Russian-Ukrainian War

Abstract

This study traverses a new conceptual direction in war studies. It attempts to establish a simplex in the lexicon of international studies without de-establishing the signification of an extant phrase – proxy war. Errand war is not in competition with proxy war. Errand war, unlike proxy war, is a derivative construct from a leader's message couched and presented with swaggering egotism to the political leadership of an assumed 'subservient' state. Proxy war then remains proxy war. The paper, therefore, introduces with glitz popular elements in warfare and strategic studies such as propaganda psychology, tactical mobilization, collective strategization, intel politicization and multilateral armament syndication. The paper dramatizes the resonant interfaces of the system's actors, starting with the sender to the messenger and the recipients. These trilateral actors, by their adverse actions, are dragging the system to the precipice of war and/or by their propitious traction, they are moving it away from the fringe of war. For now, the war goes on without a clear picture of the outcome.