Institute for the Study of War
@TheStudyofWar · Washington D.C. · joined 03 Sep 2009
ISW is a policy research organization focused on U.S. national security. Email: press@understandingwar.org. https://t.co/FO1PVyOnYB
1 434 561Followers
3 296Following
56 485Posts total
9.2MViews on collected posts
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MAP NOTICE: ISW is aware of intermittent issues affecting the loading, rendering, and performance of some of our ESRI StoryMaps and web maps. Some users may experience delays when accessing our public features.
ISW will publish a notice once the geometry issues resolve. Users
4.3K views · 17 likes
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We are now accepting Internship applications for Spring 2027! ISW is looking for motivated and critical thinkers to join our team of national security and intelligence experts. Our Internship program offers a challenging and immersive experience, whether conducting open-source ht
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SPECIAL REPORT: The Kremlin used the staged and manufactured 2026 State Duma elections in occupied Ukraine as a de facto referendum on Russian occupation, portraying participation in the election and support for United Russia as evidence of widespread acceptance of Russia’s https
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NEW: North Korean nuclear rhetoric is increasingly threatening escalation and retaliatory strikes if the United States crosses one of its “red lines.” North Korea is likely seeking to deter United States intervention during a conflict on the Korean Peninsula by threatening https:
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Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, September 22, 2026: The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) falsely claimed that Russian forces have encircled Dobropillya — an intensification of the Kremlin’s cognitive warfare campaign alleging encirclements across various sectors of the ht
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NEW: Japan may be considering transitioning from diesel-electric submarines to nuclear submarines, which would significantly enhance their operating range, speed, and stealth. Japanese nuclear submarines could enhance Japan's ability to counter the People's Liberation Army Navy h
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NEW: US President Donald Trump reportedly decided to refrain from striking Houthi targets in Yemen “for the time being” on September 20. (1/2)
Other Key Takeaways:
The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) is reportedly supporting Houthi efforts to develop infrastructure in
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NEW: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky emphasized Ukraine’s eagerness to establish an energy ceasefire with Russia and announced that he will meet US President Donald Trump on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session. (1/2)
Other Key Takeaways:
The predictable http
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MORE: This special report considers a notional scenario in which Russian agents already in Narva seize the Narva Museum and Town Hall and declare the Narva People's Republic. The Kremlin says Russian drone and air defense units will defend them from bases in Russia.
This is not
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NEW | Special Report: What a Limited Russian Incursion Into Estonia Might Look Like: A Narva Scenario
A full-scale Russian invasion of a NATO state is extremely unlikely while Russia remains fully committed to war against Ukraine. But full-scale invasion is not Putin's only http
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ISW is seeking a full-time Russia Team Program Coordinator to provide administrative and operational support to our Russia Team. Key responsibilities include supporting team scheduling and staffing, coordinating hiring and onboarding processes, maintaining workflow and knowledge
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MORE: The Kremlin is presenting the initial and pre-determined September 18 to 20 State Duma election results as confirmation of Russian society’s broad support for the war effort in Ukraine despite the ruling United Russia Party’s exit numbers being granted a comparatively https
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Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, September 20, 2026: Ukrainian forces conducted their largest combined missile and drone strike package against strategic targets in Moscow Oblast on the night of September 19 to 20, ahead of the final day of voting in the Russian State Duma
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NEW | There are multiple indications that fighting between the US and Iran & its partners may expand imminently.
A CNN analyst reported that Trump deliberated and reviewed strike options against the Houthis in a meeting at Camp David yesterday. Trump notably returned to https://
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ISW is hiring an Education Program Manager to plan and execute our growing educational and talent development programs in the Petraeus Center for Emerging Leaders.
The ideal candidate will have a bachelor's degree and 3-5 years of experience in educational programming or https
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MORE: The Russian MoD also tried to deny Ukrainian successes in the Lyman direction by presenting an inaccurate picture of the battlefield that denies the ample evidence provided by Russian milbloggers, Ukrainian sources, and geolocated footage.
The Russian MoD’s claims were a h
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MORE: The Russian MoD claimed on September 19 that Russian forces have seized over 5,300 square kilometers and more than 220 settlements in Ukraine since the start of 2026, including over 670 square kilometers and 27 settlements so far in September 2026. ISW has observed evidence
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NEW: The Russian Ministry of Defense (MoD) continues to greatly exaggerate the extent of Russian advances across the frontline to construct a false narrative of Russian battlefield progress for domestic and international audiences. The unusual MoD statement comes in the midst of
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NEW | The Houthis struck Aramco fuel depots near Riyadh International Airport, marking the first Houthi attack on the Saudi capital during the current Houthi-Saudi conflict. The attack is part of the Houthis' campaign to maximize economic and political costs on Saudi Arabia to
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ISW is seeking a full-time Russia Researcher to join the Russia Team, which produces daily open-source analysis of the war in Ukraine, the geostrategic dynamics of Russian domestic and foreign policy, and how those dynamics affect U.S. national security interests. The role https:
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MORE: Russian denials of mobilization do not indicate that Russia will not conduct mobilization, as Putin has shown no inclination to accept a ceasefire or lower the objectives he has given the Russian military to accomplish. These denials instead signal Putin’s concerns about ht
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MORE | Russian Air, Missile, & Drone Campaign (1/2)⬇️
- Russian forces conducted a series of drone strikes against Ukraine on the night of September 17 to 18.
- Ukraine will likely be able to deploy interceptors against Russia’s new jet-powered drones before Russia builds out h
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NEW: The Kremlin continues to deny that Russia will conduct mobilization after its September 18-20 State Duma elections, likely in an effort to dissuade Russian citizens from fleeing abroad. (1/2)
Other Key Takeaways:
The Kremlin will have to change its recruitment practices ht
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NEW: Ukraine’s Operation Vivaldi in the Lyman direction demonstrates Ukraine’s recent progress in restoring elements of tactical maneuver on the battlefield, enabled in part by Ukraine’s shaping operations and intermediate-range strike campaign that degrades Russian electronic ht
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MORE: The Houthis’ recent military activity in the Red Sea coastal plain indicates that the group is trying to reinforce its de facto control over the Red Sea coast in tandem with its efforts to assert illegal authority over maritime traffic. ⬇️
The Houthis currently possess htt
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NEW: Allowing the Houthis to consolidate control over the Red Sea coastal plain would enable the Houthis to assert illegal authority over international maritime traffic in the Bab al Mandeb Strait, which would be extremely detrimental to US interests. The Houthis' recent military
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MORE: Arguments that NATO runs the risk of “war enthusiasm” and inducing a Russian attack by preparing for its own defense mistakenly accept the Kremlin’s framing that Russia was or will be provoked into illegally invading its neighbors.
Pragmatic responses to Russian threats —
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@TheStudyofWar If they do, take out the rest of their refineries and Wildberries warehouses.
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@TheStudyofWar Lots of ways to respond:
1. Strikes against Russian military targets in Ukraine.
2. Strikes against Kaliningrad.
3. Complete blockade of Kaliningrad.
4. Invasion of Kaliningrad.
5. Repatriation of Transnistria with Moldova.
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@TheStudyofWar Trump will obviously say no, so Russia doesn't need to test article 5.
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Against accounts of the same size
100 posts from the last 90 days, next to the 1M–10M follower range. shown to more people than peers of the same size.
Median views44 660this account14 648median for 1M–10M
Reach, %3.11%this account0.74%median for 1M–10M
Engagement, %0.64%this account0.70%median for 1M–10M
| Metric | This account | Median for 1M–10M | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median views per post | 44 660 | 14 648 | 3.05× |
| Reach (views ÷ followers) | 3.11% | 0.74% | 4.21× |
| Engagement rate | 0.64% | 0.70% | 0.91× |
Others in this range → Compare with another account → How these benchmarks are built →
Growth & engagement
How the posts we collected actually performed: views and reaction rate post by post, what the audience did with them, and where the follower count goes.
Views per post
195.6K20 Sep
184.1K21 Sep
39.9K
24.2K
732.1K
215.7K
64.4K22 Sep
59.7K
38.4K
169.2K23 Sep
45.3K
24.5K
19.5K
4.3K24 Sep
Last 14 collected posts, oldest on the left. The scale is logarithmic: one post can outrun the rest a hundred times over.
Engagement rate per post
1.01%20 Sep
0.80%21 Sep
0.64%
0.31%
0.39%
0.78%
1.10%22 Sep
0.74%
1.50%
0.51%23 Sep
0.92%
0.87%
0.20%
0.42%24 Sep
Reactions — likes, reposts, replies and quotes — divided by views. Median for 1M–10M accounts is 0.70%.
What the audience does
Likes68.6%14 613 in total
Reposts17.8%3 795 in total
Replies1.4%308 in total
Quotes1.5%317 in total
Bookmarks10.7%2 274 in total
Share of every reaction we collected for this account. Replies mean argument, reposts mean endorsement, bookmarks mean the post was worth keeping.
Followers by day
23 Sep
Daily snapshots since 23 Sep 2026; the dashed line is the starting count.
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