Recent Articles

Strangely Silent: The Missing Strategic Debate in the 2010 Mid-Term Elections Dr Robert H Dorff Op-ed by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "As dust settles on the November 2, 2010, elections—and the dust storm leading to the November 6, 2012, elections begins—there is no dearth of analysis and explanation of what these mid-term elections meant. Traditional Republican victories combined with some untraditional Tea Party victories yielded an historic shift in power in the House of Representatives, and echoed across state legislatures and governorships throughout the country. Those results suggest that “lower taxes, less government spending, and smaller government” will prevail in the policymaking that begins in earnest in January."

Nuclear Power's Global Expansion: Weighing Its Costs and Risks Mr Henry D Sokolski Book by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press

Russia's Prospects in Asia Dr Stephen J Blank Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "Northeast Asia (NEA) is a place where economic interdependence among the NEA “troika”—China, Japan and South Korea—is growing. Moreover, intense interaction within that troika will determine the extent of further economic (and political) integration in the much wider region—Pacific Asia (which stretches from areas of Pacific Russia in the north to New Zealand in the south). This is a very important fact for Russia, though an understanding of its significance for the country has come only very recently. The long-standing issue for Russia is the future of the Russian Far East (Pacific Russia or RFE), its social and economic development, and its security. Pacific Russia’s future depends to a great extent on its involvement in the NEA regional economy... "

La Familia Drug Cartel: Implications for U.S.-Mexican Security Dr George W Grayson Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "La Familia Michoacana or as it is also known, La Familia, has emerged as one of Mexico’s strangest and most grotesque drug cartels. Its leaders—Nazario “El Chayo” Moreno González and José de Jesús “El Chango” Méndez Vargas—insist they are doing the Lord’s work when they discipline teenagers for wearing long hair or spraying graffiti on colonial buildings in the Michoacán state capital of Morelia. However, this syndicate is not content with trying to civilize young people..."

The Republic of Moldova Military Institute's Lecture Series: Leadership and Ethics Dr Craig Bullis, LTC Vince Lindenmeyer Issue Paper by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership "As part of the Republic of Moldova’s defense transformation efforts, the Moldovan Military Institute (MMI) is in its second year of a three year action plan to completely revise its professional military education (PME) curriculum. In September 2011, the MMI will begin its new curriculum for its incoming cadets where they will complete the four-year program finishing with a bachelor’s degree in public administration. To prepare the faculty members in developing the curriculum, the MMI is hosting a series of subject matter expert lectures through Mar 2011 when their curriculum is due to the Moldova Ministry of Education."

America's Most Committed Muslim Ally Dr W Andrew Terrill Op-ed by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "Somehow in the rage over the New York Mosque and Cultural Center, many of America’s Muslim allies have been forgotten. Jordan is an especially important case. This country is both a victim of terrorism and one of America’s most committed allies in the struggle against al Qaeda. As with the United States, al Qaeda has struck Jordanian targets without mercy..."

Deciding to Buy: Civil-Military Relations and Major Weapons Programs Mr Quentin E Hodgson Letort Paper by US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "In this timely monograph, Mr. Quentin Hodgson explores how the civilian and military leadership of the Pentagon have debated and argued decisions on major weapons programs. Drawing on interviews with participants and archival research, he has demonstrated the enduring nature of these debates, despite efforts to improve, transform, and overhaul the defense planning and programming system..."

Crisis and Contingency Response Planning in the Serbian Armed Forces COL Michael S Chesney, Prof Bernard F Griffard, Lt Col Gregory D Hillebrand Issue Paper by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership "By the very nature of their missions, the world’s militaries spend much of their time developing plans that address identified risks, only to find themselves reacting to security threats from an unanticipated sector, or to manmade and natural disasters. The ability to “turn on a dime” is based in a creditable crisis action planning (CAP) process designed to support the military commander’s efforts to develop, analyze, select and implement a course of action (COA) within a constrained timeframe. Although most militaries have a CAP capability, the United States has institutionalized the process, and demonstrated its capabilities to address issues from the strategic to the local."

Environmental Change, Natural Disasters and Stability in Central America and the Caribbean Ms Marcela Ramirez Issue Paper by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership "Threats to state and human security result from a variety of areas and issues such as criminal gangs, political and military sources, as well as from social, economic and environmental issues. A wide array of factors contribute to making people feel insecure, from the proliferation of small arms and drug trafficking, to transnational threats like water pollution, natural disasters, the spread of diseases and climate change."