Recent Articles

The View from There Dr Sherifa D Zuhur Op-Ed by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "A new U.S. President faces huge challenges in the Middle East. Unfortunately, he will not begin with a clean slate. Instead, some uncomfortable fabric has already been cut to fit various policy situations, and a deft tailor is needed to reconsider, redesign, and refit this ghastly, bulky, and multilayered garment we call a Middle East “policy” with an ear to objections from within the region. Granted, U.S. policy goals differ from those of Middle Eastern nation-states and national entities, like the Palestinians, who have not yet achieved their own states."

The 2006 Lebanon Campaign and the Future of Warfare: Implications for Army and Defense Policy Dr Stephen D Biddle, Mr Jeffrey A Friedman Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "The future of nonstate military actors is a central issue for U.S. strategy and defense planning. It is widely believed that such combatants will be increasingly common opponents for the U.S. military, and many now advocate sweeping change in U.S. military posture to prepare for this—the debate over the associated agenda for “low-tech” or irregular warfare transformation is quickly becoming one of the central issues for U.S. defense policy and strategy. As a prominent recent example of a nonstate actor fighting a Westernized state, Hezbollah’s 2006 campaign thus offers a window into a kind of warfare that is increasingly central to the defense debate in the United States. And the case’s implications for U.S. policy have already become highly controversial. "

U.S. Counterterrorism in Sub-Saharan Africa: Understanding Costs, Cultures, and Conflicts Dr Donovan C Chau Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "In this Letort Paper, Dr. Donovan C. Chau examines U.S. counterterrorism policy in SSA. He begins by analyzing the policy debate in Washington, DC, especially the fundamental divergence of approaches between development and defense. From there, the paper shifts to a discussion of the attitudes and views of terrorism and counterterrorism in SSA. Vast and diverse, SSA is divided subregionally into East, West, and Southern Africa so as to highlight the different geographies, histories, threats, and perceptions."

The American Military Advisor: Dealing with Senior Foreign Officials in the Islamic World Michael J Metrinko PKSOI Paper by the US Army War College, Peacekeeping and Stability Operations Institute, Strategic Studies Institute "The American Military Advisor: Dealing with Senior Foreign Officials in the Islamic World is a comprehensive guide for American military officers assigned as advisors to regional officials in places very different from the United States. Starting with a definition of terms and a brief description of the advisory role, it brings the reader into today’s Islamic political and social context, pointing out the complexities inherent in the advisory position, as well as the tools an advisor must use in order to perform successfully..."

Real Change or Retrenchment? Dr Douglas V Johnson II Op-Ed by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "It is frequently asserted in our 0930 daily kaffe klatsch that as soon as the insurgency phenomenon in Iraq and Afghanistan is suppressed, the Army reflexively will return to its fixation on the kinetic approach to major combat. It is also popular to hold up the post-Vietnam era as a demonstration of that phenomenon with occasional references to similar reactions following the suppression of the Philippine Insurrection. These facile analyses are adduced to support the American Army’s distaste for counterinsurgency work."

The "People" in the PLA: Recruitment, Training, and Education in China's Military Mr. Roy Kamphausen, Dr Andrew Scobell, Mr. Travis Tanner Book by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute

China-Russia Security Relations: Strategic Parallelism without Partnership or Passion? Dr Richard Weitz Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "Chinese-Russian security relations directly concern many subjects of interest to the Strategic Studies Institute. These areas include regional conflicts, nonproliferation issues, and military force balances. Given the importance of these two countries in international affairs, however, almost any foreign policy action of their governments affects some American national interest. For almost 2 decades, China and Russia have been strengthening their security ties. Nonetheless, as this monograph makes clear, the relationship between Beijing and Moscow remains in flux. In some cases, they share overlapping interests. In other instances, they compete for power and wealth, particularly for oil and gas resources."

The American Military Advisor: Dealing with Senior Foreign Officials in the Islamic World Mr Michael J Metrinko Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "The advisory role is at best loosely defined in military career terms, and realities on the ground further complicate the advisory mission. These include differences in American and foreign perception of the advisory position, differences in the way Americans and host country officials view time lines, the impact of the local calendar on the advisor’s work, and the importance of cultural adaptation and intellectual openness. In the end, establishing personal rapport with a host country official is the basis for success as an advisor, and the qualities in an advisor’s personality that allow for such a relationship are difficult to quantify."

Collins Center Quarterly Update, Vol 10, Iss. 3 (Apr-Jun 08) LTC Art Loureiro, Professor James Kievit, Mr. John Auger, Mr. William O. Waddell, COL (Ret.) B.F. Griffard, LTC Edward McLarney, Collins Center Update by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership