Landslides are one of the biggest natural hazards in Georgia, a mountainous country in the Caucasus. So far, no systematic monitoring and analysis of the dynamics of landslides in Georgia has been made. Especially as landslides are triggered by extrinsic processes, the analysis of landslides together with precipitation and earthquakes is challenging. In this thesis I describe the advantages and limits of remote sensing to detect and better understand the nature of landslide in Georgia. The thesis is written in a cumulative form, composing a general introduction, three manuscripts and a summary and outlook chapter. In the present work, I measure the surface displacement due to active landslides with different interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) methods. The slow landslides (several cm per year) are well detectable with two-pass interferometry. In same time, the extremely slow landslides (several mm per year) could be detected only with time series InSAR techniques. I exemplify the success of InSAR techniques by showing hitherto unknown landslides, located in the central part of Georgia. Both, the landslide extent and displacement rate is quantified. Further, to determine a possible depth and position of potential sliding planes, inverse models were developed. Inverse modeling searches for parameters of source which can create observed displacement distribution. I also empirically estimate the volume of the investigated landslide using displacement distributions as derived from InSAR combined with morphology from an aerial photography. I adapted a volume formula for our case, and also combined available seismicity and precipitation data to analyze potential triggering factors. A governing question was: What causes landslide acceleration as observed in the InSAR data? The investigated area (central Georgia) is seismically highly active. As an additional product of the InSAR data analysis, a deformation area associated with the 7th September Mw=6.0 earthquake was found. Evidences of surface ruptures directly associated with the earthquake could not be found in the field, however, during and after the earthquake new landslides were observed. The thesis highlights that deformation from InSAR may help to map area prone landslides triggering by earthquake, potentially providing a technique that is of relevance for country wide landslide monitoring, especially as new satellite sensors will emerge in the coming years. / Erdrutsche zählen zu den größten Naturgefahren in Georgien, ein gebirgiges Land im Kaukasus. Eine systematische Überwachung und Analyse der Dynamik von Erdrutschen in Georgien ist bisher nicht vorhanden. Da Erdrutsche durch extrinsische Prozesse ausgelöst werden, wird ihre Analyse zusammen mit Niederschlag und Erdbeben zu einer besonderen Herausforderung. In dieser Dissertation beschreibe ich die Potenziale und Limitierungen der Fernerkundung für die Detektion und das Verständnis von Erdrutschen in Georgien. Die Arbeit ist in einer kumulativen Form geschrieben, und besteht aus einer allgemeinen Einführung, drei Manuskripten sowie einer Zusammenfassung und einem Ausblick. In der vorliegenden Arbeit, Gestimme ich die Oberflächenverschiebung von aktiven Erdrutschen mit Methoden der Radarinterferometrie (InSAR). Die langsamen Erdrutsche (cm pro Jahr) konnten im einfachen Vergleich zeitlich unterschiedlicher Radaraufnahmen (two-pass InSAR), gut nachgewiesen werden. Die extrem langsamen Erdrutsche (mm pro Jahr) konnten hingegen nur mit InSAR Zeitreihentechniken nachgewiesen werden. Der Erfolg der angewandten InSAR Techniken wird durch die erfolgreiche Identifikation von bisher unbekannten Erdrutschen in Zentral Georgien veranschaulicht. Sowohl das Ausmaß als auch die Verschiebungsrate der Erdrutsche wurden quantifiziert. Ferner, um die mögliche Tiefe und Lage von potentiellen Gleitflächen zu bestimmen, wurden inverse Modelle entwickelt. Inverse Modellierung sucht nach Parametern der Quelle, welche die beobachtete Verschiebungsverteilung reproduzieren können. Ferner habe ich anhand der ermittelten Verschiebungsverteilung aus InSAR in Verbindung mit der Morphologie aus Luftaufnahmen das Volumen der untersuchten Erdrutsche empirisch abgeleitet. Ich habe eine Volumenformel für unseren Fall angepasst, und die verfügbaren Datensätze bezüglich Seismizität und Niederschlag kombiniert, um potenzielle auslösende Faktoren zu analysieren. Eine leitende Frage hierbei war: Was sind die Ursachen für die Beschleunigung von Erdrutschen, wie sie in den InSAR Daten beobachtet werden konnte? Das Untersuchungsgebiet in Zentral Georgien ist seismisch sehr aktiv. Als zusätzlichen Produkt der InSAR Datenanalyse wurde ein Deformationsgebiet gefunden, welches im Zusammenhang mit dem Mw=6.0 Erdbeben vom 7. September 2009 zusammenhängt. Beweise für Oberflächenbrüche, die direkt mit dem Erdbeben zusammenhängen, konnten in dem Gebiet nicht gefunden werden, jedoch konnten während und nach dem Erdbeben neue Erdrutsche beobachtet werden. Die Dissertation unterstreicht, dass Verformungsinformationen aus InSAR Analysen helfen können ein Gebiet, welches von Erdbebeninduzierten Erdrutschen gefährdet ist, zu kartieren. Potenziell stellt InSAR eine Technik dar, die von Bedeutung für die landesweite Überwachung von Erdrutschen sein kann, insbesondere im Hinblick auf die neuen Satellitensensoren, die in den kommenden Jahren verfügbar sein werden.

Zugl.: München, Univ., Diss., 2007

The absence of previous research regarding Russia´s use of information warfare has not been able to show if there has been a new way of adapting information warfare alongside the development in the warfare in general. The previous research has established a development in warfare by the means of information technology. This is important to understand as it constitutes an equalizer between small states and great powers in the global arena. At the same time, it is even more important to understand that the development of Russian behavior has implications on warfare in a global perspective. The purpose of this thesis is to contribute to the conclusions of previous research which predicted a transformation in the warfare and give a new view of the transformation by inspecting Russia´s use of information warfare in modern warfare and probe if there has been a change. Additional purpose of this study is to understand Russia´s way of conduct in modern conflicts and have a better ability of control in forthcoming conflicts. The method used reflects the qualitative case and is constructed as a one-case study with variation in time, using three different conflicts. The analysis is conducted by the means of operational indicators extracted from Libickis theory. The result of the study shows that Russia have changed their way of using information warfare in between all of the three conflicts, and it is not that easy to say that the use of information warfare has changed. It might depend on the situation or the opposite side and how the individual conflict occur. There is no clear answer on that question, but this essay gives a deeper view in the use of information warfare by Russia in modern conflicts.

The Russian way of conducting war has been a topic of discussion during a long time. Several theories have tried to conceptualize the Russians means and methods during conduct of war. Some claim one can describe it as hybrid warfare, some claim it is nothing new and others claim they have brought a theory which can describe it better than the hybrid concept. One of the new theories is the Full- Spectrum Conflict which tries to explain Russian actions during the conflict in 2014. Analysis using this theory could help to understand whether the actions by Russia against Georgia 2008 can be explained by this new theory. This would support the understanding of if the Russian way of conducting war is something new or if it is something they have been doing before the conflict in 2014. The aim of the study was to test the theory Full-Spectrum Conflict to investigate if Russia’s means and methods in Georgia can be understood by using this theory This was a conflict taking place earlier than 2014 but still in the modern era. The study design is a qualitative case-study examining the Russian actions during the conflict in Georgia. The result of this study shows that the theory Full-Spectrum Conflict can be applied to and explain the Russian actions in Georgia 2008. The result also shows that the Russian way of conducting war may not be anything new. Thus, the theory can be used to explain Russia’s action during conflicts. This may be of interest to the western nations in order to gain a better understanding of Russian actions in the future.

No description available.

No description available.

Ever since the Russian annexation of the Crimean Peninsula there has been an intense scientific debate about how the Russian way of war should be defined and explained. Some argue that the way Russia is acting is something new and maybe could be defined for example as hybrid warfare. Others are not so convinced and argue that it is something old that the Russians have been doing before. After the annexation, a new concept emerged called full-spectrum conflict whose purpose was to define the Russian way of war in Ukraine.  The purpose of the thesis is to investigate Russia’s actions during the Georgian conflict 2008, to see if it is possible to trace the use of full-spectrum conflict there. This is to create a clearer picture of whether the Russian way of war is of innovative nature or if the actions in Ukraine were already used during the previous conflict. The method used in this investigation is a qualitative text analysis to either reject or support the theory. The results of the survey show that the Russian way of conducting warfare is presumably evolution of prior ways to conduct warfare and is nothing new. However, more research must be conducted to enhance this statement since a single survey cannot capture everything and needs to be strengthened for the result to be more representative.

One of the military’s main purposes is to act as a deterrent force. There is a lot of research on deterrence that mainly deals with how great powers should use deterrence, but not as much research on how small states can deter great powers. How can a small state with less resources deter a great power?  The purpose of the essay is to understand how a small state successfully can deter a great power and the research question is “what leads to successful deterrence for small states?”. To answer the question, a theory-testing comparative case study with a most similar design has been conducted. The theory that has been tested is Freedman’s (2004) theory of deterrence.  The results show that there is a certain connection between successful deterrence and the factor broad deterrence, but no connection between successful deterrence and extended deterrence or deterrence through denial.

In recent years, Russia has significantly altered the global landscape through its aggressive conduct in various conflicts. Employing hybrid warfare tactics, Russia has merged conventional military operations with psychological warfare strategies, recognizing the potent influence of psychological manipulation. This study delves into Russia's utilization of psychological warfare tactics preceding conflict, focusing specifically on the cases of Georgia in 2008 and Crimea in 2014. The objective is to enrich the broader academic discourse by enhancing comprehension of Russia's behavioral patterns and facilitating the early detection of Russian psychological operations. The findings reveal that Russia extensively employed psychological warfare strategies before the conflict, primarily targeting the adversary's populace to instill doubt and foster division between the people and their leadership. Furthermore, Russia directs substantial efforts toward neutral parties to legitimize its actions and dissuade them from supporting the opposing side.

The Russian term maskirovka can be translated as deception. Maskirovka has been part of Russian military doctrine since at least WWII and is considered to be a central part of their warfare. Maskirovka has been broadly researched since WWII, although not specifically in two of Russia’s most recent wars in Georgia and Ukraine from 2022. The Russo-Georgian war and the Russo-Ukrainian war share common ground considering the conventional sphere; the use of regular units and the methods used. This study has aimed to research how Russia applied deception in these wars, and finally compared its application between 2008 and 2022, all through the theoretical framework for this study that was drawn from Barton Whaley’s theory of deception. The study identified many similarities in utilization of strategic maskirovka; the most vital one perhaps a military exercise north of the border to both Georgia and Ukraine, disguised as an exercise but functioning to mobilize troops. The study also showed similarities in Russian attempts to control the narrative and portray the enemy as bandits, both leading up to the invasion and ongoing throughout the war. Notable is that the attempts in Georgia had effects that caused confusion and made important factors of their success. In Ukraine and the attack against Kiev, the attempts of strategic maskirovka were predicted and seen through by both west and Ukraine. Russia used maskirovka on a tactical level in Georgia and Ukraine as well, which may had effect on individual battles rather than the warfare in general.