This monograph is an audit of the policies pursued by the Obama Administration in support of the so-called "pivot to Asia." After explaining why U.S. President Barack Obama chose to accord top priority to the Indo-Asia-Pacific (IAP) region, Dr. Douglas T. Stuart discusses the diplomatic, information, military, and economic instruments of power, which were available to Washington to accomplish its goals. Dr. Stuart notes that the United States faced some unique problems in its efforts to rely upon diplomacy, public information, and economics to gain influence in the region. Under these...
This monograph is an audit of the policies pursued by the Obama Administration in support of the so-called "pivot to Asia." After explaining why U.S. ...
Strategic Studies Institute (Ssi) Army War College U
There is no word or phrase more important and essential to the national security community than "strategy." In this monograph, Dr. Tami Davis Biddle argues that, while most of us have a sense of what the word means, we do not always fully appreciate all that it entails and all that it demands of us. Indeed, she argues that because strategy is so difficult on so many levels, we must not delude ourselves into believing that it can be practiced in any idealized form. But she insists that in situations where lives are at stake, we have a moral obligation to do all we can to meet the wide array of...
There is no word or phrase more important and essential to the national security community than "strategy." In this monograph, Dr. Tami Davis Biddle a...
The Middle East and North Africa region has been one of the world's most unstable areas since World War II, and yet, the nations of the region have failed to develop any form of security architecture. The Arab Spring and its aftermath seemed to have opened a window of opportunity for certain Arab states to cooperate more-but how and to what extent remain to be seen. This Letort Paper explains why the region has struggled so far to establish cooperative security, and what obstacles need to be overcome on the way to a system akin to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Unless they are...
The Middle East and North Africa region has been one of the world's most unstable areas since World War II, and yet, the nations of the region have fa...
This report is the product of the U.S. Army War College's (USAWC) inaugural Integrated Research Project (IRP) on "U.S.-China Competition: Asia-Pacific Land Force Implications." It addresses a Chief of Staff, Army priority research topic and was sponsored by the U.S. Army Pacific and the Headquarters, Department of the Army, Directorate of Strategy and Policy (HQDA G-35). The report resulted from a whole-of-War-College effort. Core curriculum and regional elective studies augmented student research and facilitated analysis. The Center for Strategic Leadership hosted an implementation workshop...
This report is the product of the U.S. Army War College's (USAWC) inaugural Integrated Research Project (IRP) on "U.S.-China Competition: Asia-Pacific...
Although different U.S. Presidential administrations often face differing national security challenges, one element common to all American Presidents is the desire for policy options when it comes to managing those challenges. Options provide room for maneuver strategically, operationally, and politically. In this monograph, the U.S. Army War College's Dr. John R. Deni argues that some persistent biases and some more recent trends in defense strategy, planning, and budgeting are likely to have the effect of reducing the options available to current and future senior U.S. leaders.
Although different U.S. Presidential administrations often face differing national security challenges, one element common to all American Presidents ...
The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) was once focused on China's immediate periphery. The PLA Navy had no "blue water" naval capabilities and very limited combat logistics support. The Air Force could not fly long-distance missions overwater or operate effectively in conjunction with the Navy or naval air forces; nor could it coordinate joint, precision strikes with the missiles of the Second Artillery. Land forces, meanwhile, could move effectively within China by rail, and could operate on China's periphery, but were neither capable of nor equipped for long-distance force projection....
The Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) was once focused on China's immediate periphery. The PLA Navy had no "blue water" naval capabilities and ve...
For the U.S. Armed Forces, and militaries throughout the world, non-traditional missions have become an increasingly important part of the range of operations that they are called on to conduct. In the Western Hemisphere, one of the most prominent examples has been the involvement of Central American armed forces in the fight against transnational organized crime groups and violent street gangs such as Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13) and Barrio 18 (B-18). The longterm propriety of employing the military in what is, at its core, a law enforcement role, continues to be a subject of debate not only in...
For the U.S. Armed Forces, and militaries throughout the world, non-traditional missions have become an increasingly important part of the range of op...
As India rises in the international system, its foreign and defense policies are attaining greater influence in shaping global security. This Letort Paper explores Indian nuclear policy approaches and views, and makes a major contribution to our understanding of this factor of growing significance in Asian security. India's nuclear arsenal development is generating new technical options for its nuclear strategy. India is developing intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)-range Agni-V and Agni-VI ballistic missiles, and is claiming that these will be able to host multiple nuclear warheads....
As India rises in the international system, its foreign and defense policies are attaining greater influence in shaping global security. This Letort P...
For years, the Israel-Turkey partnership was believed to be an anchor of stability in the troubled Middle East. For the United States the two regional players were supposed to pave the way to a regional system, but the collapse of their bilateral relation over the last years has put an end to these expectations. As a result of this crisis between Ankara and Jerusalem, the competition in the East Mediterranean region evolved significantly. Whereas Turkey increased its inflammatory rhetoric against Israel, the latter counterbalanced Turkey's position by strengthening ties with two rivals of...
For years, the Israel-Turkey partnership was believed to be an anchor of stability in the troubled Middle East. For the United States the two regional...
The papers included here, except for the editor's introduction, all come from the Strategic Studies Institute's annual conference on Russia in May 2012. In one way or another, they all point to the internal pathologies that render Russian security a precarious affair, at the best of times. As the editor suggests, the very fact of this precariousness makes Russia an inherently unpredictable and even potentially dangerous actor, not necessarily because it will actively attack its neighbors, though we certainly cannot exclude that possibility, but rather because it may come apart trying to play...
The papers included here, except for the editor's introduction, all come from the Strategic Studies Institute's annual conference on Russia in May 201...