Monographs

Wars of Ideas and the War of Ideas Dr Antulio J Echevarria II Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "Despite widespread emphasis on the importance of winning the war of ideas in recent strategic literature, we find few analytical studies of wars of ideas as such. With that in mind, this monograph offers a brief examination of four common types of wars of ideas, and uses that as a basis for analyzing how the United States and its allies and strategic partners might proceed in the current war of ideas. "

From the New Middle Ages to a New Dark Age: The Decline of the State and U.S. Strategy Dr Phil Williams Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "Security and stability in the 21st century have little to do with traditional power politics, military conflict between states, and issues of grand strategy. Instead, they revolve around governance, public safety, inequality, urbanization, violent nonstate actors, and the disruptive consequences of globalization. This monograph seeks to explore the implications of these issues for the future U.S. role in the world, as well as for its military posture and strategy."

Precision in the Global War on Terror: Inciting Muslims through the War of Ideas Dr Sherifa D Zuhur Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "This monograph questions the messages conveyed to Muslims about their religion and extremism in the war of ideas. Why do American strategic messages on this issue play so badly in the region? Why, despite broad Muslim disapproval of extremism as shown in surveys and official utterances by key Muslim leaders, has support for bin Ladin actually increased in Jordan and in Pakistan since some polling suggests bin Ladin’s approval in Jordan suffered a great deal after the hotel bombings? A reason that the United States is winning so few “hearts and minds” in the broader Islamic world is confusion and imprecision in American strategic messages. The grand strategy of defining, isolating, and destroying Islamism or radical Islamism may not be possible if America does not proceed more carefully, and listen to what its allies think, know, and feel about their faith."

Baloch Nationalism and the Geopolitics of Energy Resources: The Changing Context of Separatism in Pakistan Dr Robert J Wirsing Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "Today the quest for energy security stands at or near the top of most nations’ foreign policy agendas. For energy-dependent countries lacking sufficient energy resources of their own, achieving energy security is a formidable problem. Pakistan, currently the world’s sixth most heavily populated nation, is one such country. To ensure its energy future, its government is active on several fronts, including efforts to more fully exploit the country’s own energy resources, to negotiate the construction of transstate natural gas pipelines, and to build a new coastal seaport at Gwadar, an ambitious project which its developers hope will enable Pakistan to occupy an important place in the emerging Asian energy refining and distribution system."

Building for the Future: China's Progress in Space Technology during the Tenth 5-Year Plan and the U.S. Response Mr Kevin Pollpeter Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "China’s space program has achieved spectacular success in recent years. Since 2003 China has launched two human space flight missions, destroyed a satellite with a direct ascent anti-satellite weapon, and launched a moon orbiter. In this monograph, Mr. Kevin Pollpeter assesses China’s rise as a space power and its implications for the United States. He argues that China’s use of space power is part of an integrated approach to increasing its comprehensive national power and achieving great power status. As a result, China’s increasing space power challenges the United States militarily, economically, commercially, and politically."

Security Sector Reform in Liberia: Mixed Results from Humble Beginnings Mr Mark Malan Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "In this monograph, Mr. Mark Malan of Refugees International finds that the SSR program in Liberia is not governed by an overarching strategic framework, not informed by a wide-ranging and integrating public security concept, and not effectively linked to wider government planning and budgeting processes. He argues that a multi-sectoral, whole-of-government approach to SSR, while conceptually valid, has not been applied in Liberia. He concludes that much more can be done to arrest insecurity in Liberia within a more modest program that focuses primarily on military and criminal justice reform, but that this would require a sustained injection of technical and financial support from the United States. He also calls for the U.S. Government to provide advice and support to the Government of Liberia in the formulation and implementation of a comprehensive national security strategy and policy. "

Projecting Pyongyang: The Future of North Korea's Kim Jong Il Regime Dr Andrew Scobell Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "This monograph considers the future trajectory of the Pyongyang regime and explores a range of future scenarios. It does not consider the future of North Korea as a geographic or territorial entity. Some analysts and observers discuss the future without clarifying whether they are discussing the country of North Korea or the Pyongyang regime. In this monograph, the focus is on the fate of the regime dominated by the Kim Dynasty, initially ruled by Kim Il Sung and then led by his son, Kim Jong Il, following the former’s death in 1994. A fundamental assumption is that the regime will collapse. Thus, the key question is not whether the regime will collapse, but when and how it will collapse. The logic behind this assumption is based on this author’s assessment that the Kim regime is a totalitarian one, and that such a regime has a limited life span. However, this collapse may be a long and drawn out process that could very well play out over a period of years or even over the course of a decade or more."

Drug Intoxicated Irregular Fighters: Complications, Dangers, and Responses Dr Paul Rexton Kan Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "The presence of drugged fighters is not unknown in the history of warfare. Yet widespread drug use on the battlefield is now part of protracted conflicts largely fought by nonprofessional combatants that take place in an international system characterized by the process of globalization. From marijuana, khat, hallucinogenic mushrooms, cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine to looted pharmaceuticals, irregular fighters have found a ready supply of narcotics to consume for a variety of combat purposes. Such consumption has led to unpredictable fighting, the commission of atrocities, and to the prolongation of internal violence. The presence of intoxicated combatants will continue to be a feature of armed conflict and requires a fuller accounting to adequately prepare policymakers and military planners for future conflicts."

The Political Context Behind Successful Revolutionary Movements, Three Case Studies: Vietnam (1955-63), Algeria (1945-62), and Nicaragua (1967-79) LTC Raymond A Millen Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute "Lieutenant Colonel Raymond Millen examines the extent to which some states create the conditions for revolutionary movements to flourish. Employing Jeff Goodwin’s analytical framework for exploring the political context behind revolutionary movements, Lieutenant Colonel Millen explores how the governments in Vietnam (1955-63), Algeria (1945-62), and Nicaragua (1967-79) unintentionally empowered revolutionary movements, resulting in these governments’ demise. He supplements Goodwin’s framework by including an examination of the insurgent leadership’s political-military acumen. "