Strategic Issues

Experimentation in Support of DoD's Homeland Defense and Civil Support Joint Operating Concept Prof Bert B Tussing Issue Paper by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership "On 23 and 24 September 2008, the Center for Strategic Leadership hosted a “Limited Objective Experiment” (LOE) in support of the validation and refinement of the Department of Defense’s (DoD)Homeland Defense and Civil Support Joint Operating Concept (HD-CS JOC). The event was the fourth in a series that envisions a total of 12 such experiments, all designed to help describe how Joint Force Commanders will conduct and support operations in this regime eight to twenty years in the future. Previous LOE’s were hosted and facilitated by the National Defense University and the Naval Postgraduate School’s Center for Homeland Defense and Security. The last two experiments have been hosted and conducted by CSL at Collins Hall."

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. "

Collins Center Update, Volume 10, Issue 4 (Fall 2008) COL Eric Ashworth & LTC Eric McEldowney, Mr. William O. Waddell, COL (Ret.) B.F. Griffard, COL (Ret.) Arthur L. Bradshaw Collins Center Update by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership

Slowing Military Change Dr Zhivan Alach Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "All actions begin from an evaluation of the environment. If our perceptions of the environment are flawed, then our actions flow from error. This is especially important in the military field, given the lives that are in danger if our actions are mistaken, as well as the heavy financial cost associated with equipment, personnel, and training. Unfortunately, it appears that many evaluations of the contemporary military environment are based on a flawed perception of that environment. This monograph revises, reexamines, and reevaluates the contemporary military environment. It finds that the environment is a period of relative military stasis, of slow technological development, and of little novelty in broader issues. If anything, it is a return to an older period, of the time before the Cold War, before the fear of nuclear war dominated all other thinking in the field. This monograph is a first step in a broader and more incisive revision of contemporary strategic thought."

State Emergency Management Staff Training and Evaluation LTC Anthony Abbott Student Academic Research Paper by the US Army War College, Center for Strategic Leadership "According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in its recently released National Preparedness Guidelines, serious gaps exist between ‘all hazards’ risks and the resources and capabilities available for responding to those risks. Key factors such as time constraints, staff size and organization, money, and the range of possible hazards leaves state emergency management agencies with tough resource allocation decisions. State agencies must decide what hazards to plan for, how to best allocate limited financial resources, prioritize training tasks, schedule and manage time available, and identify and quantify acceptable risks to all hazards. An efficient method of prioritizing these resources along with metrics for quantifying results is needed."

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."

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 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 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."