This paper proposes a conceptualization of surrogates that includes all human actors that patrons,
who can be both state or non-state actors, delegate some or all of the burden of warfare to.
Surrogates could thus be other states, non-state actors, or private military companies. It will then
explore how surrogates can be used for strategic advantage in a context of great power competition
where there is an incentive to stay underneath the threshold of conventional war. The idea of victory
in great power competition, and what strategies may lead to success will be analysed, as well as
different strategies and approaches great powers use to compete with one another, such as gray
zone warfare or hybrid warfare. The concept will be applied to the case of the great power
competition between the US and Russia, looking specifically at their use of surrogates in the conflicts
Ukraine and Syria. Their grand strategy as well as their goals and strategies in great power
competition with one another will be studied, as well their use of surrogates to achieve said goals.
This includes investigating the patron-surrogate relationship, surrogate selection, alignment of
interests between patron and surrogate, the risks as well as methods of control, type and level of
support and duration of the relationship in order to explore what approach is best suited to lead to
strategic success in great power competition.
