Cartel Car Bombings in Mexico Dr Robert J Bunker, Mr John P Sullivan Letort Paper by US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "Improvised explosive devices and car bombs have long been identified as threats to U.S. Army personnel deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan. They have gained considerable attention and notoriety, even infamy, among our troops, who have had to learn the appropriate responses and countermeasures to contend with the fielding of these systems against them. Far less recognized is the fact that a similar threat—embodied in car bombs—has emerged much closer to our homeland within Mexico. Since mid-2010, cartel car bombings have taken place in a country on our southern border and have been targeted against both the forces of opposing cartels and those belonging to Mexican military and law enforcement agencies. "

AFRICOM at 5 Years: The Maturation of a New U.S. Combatant Command Mr David E Brown Letort Paper by US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "The U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), the newest of the six U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) geographic combatant commands (CCMDs), was created in 2007 amid great controversy in both Africa and the United States over its location and mission. Over the last 5 years, AFRICOM has matured greatly, overcome much of the initial resistance from African stakeholders, and addressed most U.S. interagency concerns about the Command’s size and proper role within the U.S. national security/foreign policy community. AFRICOM is a CCMD Plus, because it also has: 1) a broader soft power mandate aimed at building a stable security environment; and, 2) a relatively larger personnel contingent from other U.S. Government agencies."

Development of the Baltic Armed Forces in Light of Multinational Deployments Dr James S Corum Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "Coalition operations have been an important part of U.S. warfighting in the last decade of conflict. In the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan coalition partners, especially from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) nations, have played an important role. Given the ongoing instability in several regions of the world, there is a strong possibility that in the near future the U.S. Armed Forces will again have to operate with allied coalition partners to help support or rebuild a country devastated by internal conflict."

The Effectiveness of Drone Strikes in Counterinsurgency and Counterterrorism Campaigns Dr James Igoe Walsh Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "The United States increasingly relies on unmanned aerial vehicles—better known as drones—to target insurgent and terrorist groups around the world. Proponents argue that drones are, in both political and military terms, an effective way to coerce such adversaries. Critics suggest that drone strikes not infrequently result in inadvertent civilian casualties, which terrorist and insurgent organizations use as rallying cries to garner support and legitimacy for their acts of violence. There is surprisingly little systematic evidence that either of these positions is correct. It is not clear if drone strikes have degraded their targets, or that they kill enough civilians to create sizable public backlashes against the United States. Drones are a politically and militarily attractive way to counter insurgents and terrorists, but, paradoxically, this may lead to their use in situations where they are less likely to be effective and where there is difficulty in predicting the consequences."

The Causes of Instability in Nigeria and Implications for the United States LTC Clarence J Bouchat (USAF, Ret) Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "Understanding the political economy of Nigeria is needed to reveal the root causes of its many ethnic, religious, economic, and political problems and address them for the long term. The pressures now weighing on Nigeria could literally fracture the state along deep fault lines if rampant corruption and partisanship continues. The United States, in a mutually important partnership with Nigeria, should assist in specific but indirect ways to help Nigerians overcome their political economy problems, which could serve both the interests of the United States and Nigeria. Within such assistance, the role of the U.S. military is particularly delicate, but needed through focused aid to specific programs and sharing of expertise, all best managed through employing units that are regionally aligned to Nigeria or West Africa."

A Framework for Restructuring the Military Retirement System COL David S Lyle, Dr John Z Smith, Mr Roy A Wallace Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "For more than a century, the military has provided a defined benefit (DB) pension to service members who render 20 or more years of active-duty service. The U.S. civilian labor force has long since replaced DB pension programs with defined contribution pension programs where employers and employees contribute to a 401(k)-type account. The military, however, has continued to provide a DB pension plan worth in excess of a million dollars to veterans who retire as early as 38 years of age. With annual military retirement system outlays exceeding $50 billion, senior officials have begun calling for pension reform on the grounds that the current system is fiscally unsustainable. "

Russian Interests in Sub-Saharan Africa Mr Keir Giles Letort Paper by US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "Competition for resources, political influence, and access to markets will continue to increase among global powers as finite resources continue to dwindle. Russia is fully aware of this and has begun to look outside established power centers such as Europe and the West toward Africa. Sub-Saharan Africa is a hub of undeveloped natural resources, a nest of conflict to fuel potential arms sales, and an area ripe for cultivation of political support for Russian interests on the world stage."

Nuclear Weapons Security Crises: What Does History Teach? Mr Henry D Sokolski, Dr Bruno Tertrais Book by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press In addition to detailing the nuclear security crises that took place during the French Algerian coup of 1961, the Chinese Cultural Revolution, the collapse of the Soviet Union, and Pakistan’s persistent political instability since the 1980s, this volume showcases an analysis of this history by a series of distinguished nuclear experts and practitioners. The hope is that history and its lessons will help in support of preparations for the next Nuclear Security Summit, planned for the Netherlands in 2014.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization and Libya: Reviewing Operation Unified Protector Dr Florence Gaub Letort Paper by US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "The North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) military action in Libya was a first in many ways—the Alliance’s first combat operation against an Arab country; the first time the United States “led from behind”; and the first time the concept of Responsibility to Protect was applied to support Libya’s civilian population against a murderous regime. The action is also considered, militarily speaking, a success, and has inspired confidence in those who were doubtful after the Alliance’s patchy Afghanistan experience."