Urban warfare has been described as the toughest environment you could ask a military to fight in.

An environment where defenders have the advantage and attackers bear the brunt of the ambushes, the roadblocks, and the snipers,

all of which go hand in hand when forces collide on urban terrain.

But what is the history of urban warfare and what can it tell us about the current situation in Ukraine as Russia launches major attacks on cities like

Kiev. I'm your host James Rogers and here on the warfare podcast we're joined by John Spencer.

John is professor in Urban Warfare at West Point, and a 25-year

veteran of the US Army. He is the expert on both the history and practice of urban warfare, and he provides us with a unique insight into the

character of the war in Ukraine and what we can expect next. I'm going to Hi John, thanks so much for coming on the warfare podcast at this busy.

You could even say chaotic time.

Hey, thanks a lot. I would definitely say chaotic time. Hey, thanks a lot.

I would definitely say chaotic.

Chaotic to say the least.

But it is great to have you here to provide just a little context and some explanation,

potentially some history about this term

that we're hearing almost every day

since the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

And this is Urban Warfare.

Now, you are the chair of Urban Warfare. Now you are the chair of Urban Warfare Studies at the Modern War

Institute at West Point in the United States and so I think you are the ideal person, the

expert to take us through this.

Perhaps you could take us back a little bit in history.

Help us to define, explain what urban warfare actually is.

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