Issue Papers

Transformation of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces Mr Ritchie L Dion, Prof Bernard F Griffard, Prof James W Shufelt Jr Issue Paper by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership "The South Caucasus region is bounded by the Black Sea in the west and the Caspian Sea in the east, by Russia in the north, Turkey in the west and Iran in the south. This region, in combination with the Russian North Caucasus, is often regarded as the land bridge where the East and the West meet. Within this geographically confined space three small, yet completely dissimilar nations have emerged – Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. The history of the region and the present character of its peoples are inextricably tied to the legacy of the several empires that have ruled over this region. Each left a legacy, for better or worse, within the three nations. Despite this legacy, or in some cases even because of it, each country has managed to develop their own distinct character, culture and history. "

Military Transformation Challenges: Moldova and Montenegro Prof Bernard F Griffard Issue Paper by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership "The dissolution of the Soviet Bloc and the disintegration of Yugoslavia produced 22 new independent governments across Europe and Central Asia. Prior to 1991 these countries were part of integrated economic and military structures where they contributed what was required and shared in the benefits of their closed loop systems. For those smaller entities at the lower end of the viability spectrum, independence, with the resulting disappearance of the economic and defense security blankets, has been more of a cold shower than a warm bath. "

Work Group 3 - The New Criticality of the National Guard Bureau Prof Bert B Tussing Issue Paper by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership "On 28 & 29 May 2008, the United States Army War College conducted the 7th annual Reserve Component Symposium at the Center for Strategic Leadership at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania. The series began in 2000, and is dedicated to examining issues of critical importance to the Services’ Reserve Component and the United States National Guard. Following 9/11, the preponderance of these symposiums have been devoted to issues surrounding the vital role of the Reserve Component in homeland security, homeland defense and civil support. The trend continued in this year’s forum, which was devoted to examining the evolving role of the Guard and Service reserves in support of civilian authorities. In the wake of studies, new legislative directives, and executive initiatives devoted to those ends, that role is undergoing remarkable change."

Work Group 1 - Assessing the Evolving Relationship of the NGB with Other DOD Organizations in Responding to Crises Mr Scott T Forster, Prof Bert B Tussing Issue Paper by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership "On 28 & 29 May 2008, the United States Army War College conducted the 7th annual Reserve Component Symposium at the Center for Strategic Leadership at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania. Among other issues, symposium workshop participants were charged with assessing the evolving relationship of the National Guard Bureau (NGB) to other Department of Defense (DoD) organizations which have domestic crisis response requirements. For the sake of this discussion, DoD organizations which share a crisis response with NGB were limited to the States’ National Guard, USNORTHCOM, the Joint Staff, and the Office of the Secretary of Defense. While each organization will be addressed in turn, there were several recurring discussion themes associated with all four."

Work Group 4 - Maximizing Access to Service Reserve Elements Prof James O Kievit Issue Paper by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership "Since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the Center for Strategic Leadership at the United States Army War College has conducted an annual Reserve Component Symposium dedicated to examining issues regarding the role of the Armed Services’ Reserve Components in homeland defense and civil support. That trend continued in this year’s forum, held 28 & 29 May 2008 at the War College’s Center for Strategic Leadership. Much of the symposium’s discussion centered on two recent research reports: the congressionally mandated Commission on the National Guard and Reserves and the Phase III Report of the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Beyond Goldwater-Nichols series, The Future of the National Guard and Reserves."

Work Group 2 - Assessing the Evolving Relationship of the National Guard to Other Components of Domestic Crisis Response Dennis M Murphy Issue Paper by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership "The new National Strategy for Homeland Security, the Commission on the National Guard and Reserves, the National Defense Authorization Act of 2008, Homeland Security Presidential Directive 8, Annex 1, and a host of other initiatives have signaled what could result in significant changes in the roles played by the Reserve Component in domestic preparedness, response and recovery operations. The National Guard Bureau (NGB) in particular may be postured to take on expanded responsibilities in these areas as its Chief assumes a new status as an advisor to the Secretary of Defense."

Strategic Vision Workshop; National Grand Strategy – A Constellation of Choices Prof Douglas B Campbell, Prof Philip M Evans, LTC Artur M Loureiro, MG Robert M Williams Issue Paper by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership "The United States Army War College (USAWC), in support of the Army Staff and in cooperation with national security faculty and researchers at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Security Studies Program, and Tufts University’s Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, conducted a series of workshops from 7-10 April 2008 entitled Strategic Vision Workshop: National Grand Strategy. The Strategic Vision Workshop was organized to assist the Department of the Army in the understanding of Grand Strategy and future policy options that will prepare the Army to meet challenges in a world of persistent conflict."

Adaptability of Land Forces to 21st Century Security Challenges Prof Bernard F Griffard Issue Paper by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership "Transforming a nation’s military to face 21st century challenges requires recognition of the need for change and then taking action to accomplish that change. Neither component of this two-step process is easy, but adapting the national military culture and equipping the force for full spectrum operations is the hardest part. With this in mind, the 2008 Land Forces Symposium brought together Army commanders or their representatives from 23 countries within the U.S. Central Command region to discuss the Adaptability of Land Forces to 21st Century Security Challenges. "

Albania - Observations on a Changing Nation COL William R Applegate, COL Patrick O Carpenter, Prof Bernard F Griffard Issue Paper by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership "Today’s nation of Albania is the result of a long tortuous journey through history, during which it was mostly not treated well. Thought to be descended from the Illyrian Albanoi tribe, Albanians have been subjugated by Philip of Macedonia, Tiberius of Rome, the Ottoman Turks, and Mussolini’s Italian Army. Geographically, Albania has encompassed much of the area we know as the Balkans; it has also been partitioned and disappeared as an entity from the maps of Europe. To German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck at the 1878 Congress of Berlin Albania was no more than a “geographical expression.” It was not until 1913, with the end of the Second Balkan War and the conclusion of the Treaty of Bucharest, that the boundaries of today’s Albania took form."