The Concept of Cognitive Warfare in the Context of Hybrid Threats

The outbreak of Russo-Ukraine War in 2022 triggered concerns regarding new types of warfare and threats to the international worlds, so called hybrid threats. In particular, cognitive warfare is increasingly reorganized to Western liberal democracies because its threats transcends the boundaries between wartime and peacetime, directly impacting imporatnt areas of national security by targeting the critical infrastructures of democratic systems. In response, leading nations and international organizations such as NATO and the U.S. have been actively engaged in research and conceptual discourse to define and conceptualize this threat as a prerequisite for effective countermeasures. In South Korea, academic and policy discussions on cognitive warfare are emerging, but remain limited in the field of police studies, despite the expanding role of police in security and cybersecuriy. Therefore, this study analyzes NATO and U.S. conceptual frameworks to support the development of police capabilities in responding to cognitive threats.