Colloquium Briefs

The “People” in the PLA: Recruitment, Training, and Education in China's 80-Year-Old Military Mr Justin B Liang, Dr Sarah K Snyder Colloquium Brief by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, with The National Bureau of Asian Research "On September 28, 2007, more than 60 leading experts on China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) convened at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, for a 2-day discussion on “The ‘People’ in the PLA: Recruitment, Training, and Education in China’s 80-Year-Old Military.” The 2007 PLA Conference, conducted by The National Bureau of Asian Research and the Strategic Studies Institute of the U.S. Army War College, sought to investigate the 80-year-old military’s human infrastructure, identifying trends in PLA recruitment, education and training, demographics, and historical perspectives."

Exploring the "Right Size" for China's Military: PLA Missions, Functions, and Organizations Mr Justin B Liang, Dr Sarah K Snyder Colloquium Brief by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, with the National Bureau of Asian Research "On October 6, 2006, more than 60 leading experts on China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) convened at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, for a two-day discussion of the drivers of PLA force modernization. The 2006 PLA Conference was co-sponsored by National Bureau of Asian Research and the Strategic Studies Institute of the U.S. Army War College. Entitled “Exploring the ‘Right Size’ for China’s Military: PLA Missions, Functions, and Organization,” the conference explored continuities and discontinuities in the forces driving PLA force modernization, assessed how current modernization efforts are linked to national requirements, and examined what such development reveals about China’s national defense strategies."

Defense, Development, and Diplomacy (3D): Canadian and U.S. Military Perspectives Dr Max G Manwaring Colloquium Brief by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, with Queens University, and the Canadian Land Forces Doctrine and Training System "War has changed. New organizing principles require a new paradigm that facilitates change from a singular military approach to a multidimensional, multi organizational, and multilateral/multinational whole-of-government and whole-of-alliance/coalition approach to deal more effectively with the contemporary global security reality."

The Future of Transatlantic Security Relations Mr Patrick B Baetjer, Dr Joseph R Cerami, LTG Richard A Chilcoat Colloquium Report by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute Sponsored by: U.S. Army’s Dwight D. Eisenhower National Security Series, U.S. Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, The European Union Center for Excellence at Texas A&M University, The George Bush Presidential Library Foundation, The George Bush School of Government and Public Service "The Transatlantic Security Relationship has been an anchor of European and U.S. foreign policy since the closing days of World War II. As the conflict drew to a close, a new one rose from its ashes. The Cold War and its many harrowing moments reinforced, time and again, the importance of maintaining close ties and mutual understanding across the ocean—a distance that has grown ever smaller in this age of globalization."

U.S. Military Operations in Iraq: Planning, Combat and Occupation Mr Shane Lauth, Ms Kate Phillips, Ms Erin Schenck, Dr W Andrew Terrill Colloquium Report by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies "Even before Operation IRAQI FREEDOM began, the Strategic Studies Institute (SSI) published a monograph about planning for transition to Phase IV operations. Now that we are 3 years beyond the start of that transition, the debate continues about the adequacy of planning for and proficiency of execution of Phase IV operations in Iraq and elsewhere. The debate most often surrounds three issues concerning this final operational phase: the relationship to preceding operational phases; responsibility for planning; and responsibility for execution. Inevitably, the interagency process becomes central to addressing each of these issues."

The Challenge of Governance and Security Dr Max G Manwaring Colloquium Brief by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, with the U.S. Southern Command, the Latin American and Caribbean Center of Florida International University "A contemporary assessment of Latin American and Caribbean security must address a comprehensive, all-inclusive threat environment and consider the utility of all instruments of state power."

The PLA Shapes the Future Security Environment Mr Andy Gudgel Colloquium Brief by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, with The Heritage Foundation "Over 50 experts on China and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) gathered at Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, from September 23-25, to attend the 2005 PLA Conference, “The PLA Shapes the Future Security Environment,” cosponsored by the Heritage Foundation and the U.S. Army War College. The colloquium considered how the PLA shapes the global security environment."

Contending Perspectives: Southeast Asia and American Views on a Rising China Ms Corazon S Foley Colloquium Brief by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, with The U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Intelligence and Research, The National Bureau of Asian Research, and The Institute for Defence and Strategic Studies, Singapore "The State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research (INR), the National Bureau of Asian Research, the Institute for Defence and Strategic Studies of Singapore, and the U.S. Army War College conducted a colloquium on Southeast Asia and American views of China in August 2005 in Singapore. The event brought together analysts and scholars from Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and the United States to examine the economic, diplomatic, and military dimensions of China’s rise from two perspectives. An abbreviated follow-on colloquium conducted by INR was held in Washington, DC, on November 3, 2005. This brief focuses on summarizing Southeast Asian perspectives on China as articulated by participants at the two events."

The Test of Terrain: The Impact of Stability Operations Upon the Armed Forces Dr Douglas V Johnson II Colloquium Brief by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, Centre d’Etudes en Sciences Sociales de la Défense, Royal United Services Institute, the Association of the United States Army, the Förderkreis Deutsches Heer, the Heritage Foundation, and the United States Embassy, Paris "Peace operations and their associated stability undertakings have a very long history, but relatively little attention has been paid to the impact these have had on military organizations. Obviously the more such operations a military force is engaged in, the greater effectiveness one would expect, but that effect seems to run from institutional ad hocery to formalization in doctrine and established policies. Further, as the conditions under examination generally follow conflict operations of one sort or another, a period of transition always occurs. In some national security establishments, mechanisms exist to make the Conference Brief Strategic Studies Institute transition relatively easy; in others they do not, and the transition becomes more difficult."