Survival, the IISS’s bimonthly journal, challenges conventional wisdom and brings fresh, often controversial, perspectives on strategic issues of the moment.In this issue:Robert Dalsjö, Michael Jonsson and Johan Norberg reconsider Russia’s military capability given its recent battlefield performance in UkraineWilliam Alberque and Benjamin Schreer argue that Finland and Sweden’s NATO membership would, if managed judiciously, bolster deterrence and European securityChuck Freilich contends that encouraging diplomacy is the best of Israel’s limited options for postponing Iran’s nuclear-weapons programmeNicolas Lippolis and Harry Verhoeven assess that if a wave of African defaults materialises in the near future, it will be catalysed more by private-sector manoeuvring and intransigence than by Chinese schemingDana H.Allin and Erik Jones argue that Russia’s isolation is not a viable endgame for the West, but it may be unavoidable for a generationAnd seven more thought-provoking pieces, as we