Books

U.S. National Security: Beyond the Cold War AMB Robert Ellsworth, Dr Morton H Halperin, Dr David Jablonsky, Dr Lawrence Korb, Prof Ronald Steel Book by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "U.S. national security is a subject that has been under intense scrutiny since the end of the Cold War. What constitutes such security for the United States as this country approaches the new century? Are the ends, ways, and means of our national security and national military strategies sufficient to provide for the nation's future? And above all, as this country celebrates the 50th anniversary of the National Security Act of 1947, are the institutions that resulted from that act still sufficient for the post-Cold War era? With these questions in mind, the Strategic Studies Institute and Dickinson College's Clarke Center co-sponsored the series of lectures on American national security after the Cold War which are contained in this volume."

Syria and the Peace: A Good Chance Missed Dr Helena Cobban Book by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "One of the more dismaying aspects of the current peace process has been the failure of Syria and Israel to make a deal. According to Christian Science Monitor correspondent Helena Cobban, these two long-standing foes came very close to composing their decades-old quarrel. The Syrian and Israeli leaders persevered to overcome extraordinary obstacles, but in the end failed. A terrible setback, says Cobban, because so much hard negotiating work had been done up to the very last moment when the whole carefully constructed edifice of peace drifted away."

Two Perspectives on Interventions and Humanitarian Operations AMB Robert B Oakley, Dr Earl H Tilford Jr, Dr David Tucker Book by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "The following two papers from that symposium complement each other well. In the first, a revised after action report on his experiences in Somalia, Ambassador Robert B. Oakley, a career foreign service officer who served as Special Envoy to Somalia during both the present and previous administrations, provides an honest and compelling look at that controversial operation. In the second paper, Dr. David Tucker, who serves on the staff of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict, dissects the arguments to develop criteria which might be used for and against engagement in humanitarian operations in an attempt to guide U.S. policymakers."

The Arab-Israeli Peace Process: Assessing the Costs of Failure Dr Stephen C Pelletiere, Prof Shibley Telhami, Mr Lawrence R Velte Book by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "As of mid-1997, the fate of the Arab-Israeli peace process is dangerously uncertain. Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's decision to begin work on a new Jewish settlement in Jerusalem has so enraged Palestinians that they have effectively walked out of the negotiations. President Clinton has called on his special envoy, Dennis Ross, to exert every effort to get the Palestinians to return. Meanwhile, elements opposed to the peace process from within the Israeli political establishment have pressured the Prime Minister to halt or even reverse the steps taken to date."

Command in NATO After the Cold War: Alliance, National, and Multinational Consideration Dr Thomas-Durell Young Book by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute

Between a Rock and a Hard Place: The United States, Mexico, and the Agony of National Security Dr Donald E Schulz Book by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "This study analyses the changing nature of U.S.-Mexican national security issues, with a focus on narcotrafficking, the growing militarization of Mexico's counterdrug and police institutions, the danger of spreading guerrilla war, and the prospects of political and economic instability. The conclusion is that Mexico is in the midst of an extended period of transition in which it is extremely vulnerable to disruption on several different fronts simultaneously. While the economy has largely recovered from the 1994-95 peso crisis, it remains both fragile and volatile. Although much progress has been achieved in democratization, there is still a long way to go. Both political and criminal violence are growing. A new guerrilla group has appeared which may prove to be more troublesome than the Zapatistas. At the same time, the drug cartels are increasingly targeting law enforcement officers for assassination."

Why Russian Policy is Failing in Asia Dr Stephen J Blank Book by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "Since its inception as a state, Russia has been both a European and an Asian power. Although Russia today, as was true during much of its history, is torn by an identity crisis over where it belongs, its elites have never renounced Russia's vital interests in Asia and the belief that it should be recognized as a great power there. However, that belief and Moscow's ability to sustain it are now under threat, due, as Dr. Stephen Blank's thorough analysis informs us, to the ongoing failures of Russian policymakers to come to grips with changed Russian and Asian realities."

World View: The 1997 Strategic Assessment from the Strategic Studies Institute Dr Earl H Tilford Jr Book by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "Each January the analysts at the Strategic Studies Institute (SSI), U.S. Army War College, assess domestic and global trends for the year ahead and beyond as part of a process for devising a strategic context that may be used by Army planners and other policymakers. At this writing, the Army's approach to the future, along with that of the other services, confront the ongoing Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR), the outcome of which may establish entirely new directions. The global strategic assessments reached by SSI analysts, when considered in conjunction with the roles and missions the Army leadership proposes for the future, will shape SSI's study plan and focus the efforts of our Strategic Outreach Program."

Asian Security to the Year 2000 Prof Marc Jason Gilbert, Prof Paul HB Godwin, Mr Abraham Kim, LTC Dianne L Smith, Dr William J Taylor Jr, Dr Robert J Wirsing, Mr Perry L Wood Book by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "The end of the Cold War transformed the global security environment in Asia. Old security and military ties based on the superpower rivalry underwent serious examination and transformation, as regional issues gained greater importance. With a shift away from military threats, national security concerns have expanded beyond external threats to a state's territorial integrity; states face economic threats, the possibility of social cataclysm, ideological or religious conflict, environmental problems, heightened violence and crime, proliferation of conventional and nuclear weapons, and transnational issues such as drugs, refugees, and international terrorism."