Recent Publications

Dissent and Strategic Leadership of the Military Professions
February 1, 2008 — Author: Dr Don M Snider One of the central difficulties to a right understanding of American civil-military relations is the nature of the U.S. military. Are our armed forces just obedient bureaucracies like most of the Executive branch, or are they vocational professions granted significant autonomy and a unique role in these relationships because... MORE

Towards a New Russia Policy
February 1, 2008 — Author: Dr Stephen J Blank It is obvious that U.S.-Russian relations and East-West relations more broadly have recently deteriorated. Yet analyses of why this is the case have often been confined to American policy. The author examines some of the key strategic issues at stake in this relationship and traces that decline to Russian factors which... MORE

Development and Reform of the Iraqi Police Forces
January 1, 2008 — Author: COL Tony Pfaff Despite 4 years of millions of dollars in aid, equipment, education, and advisors, Iraqi police force development lags far behind the military. Numerous reasons are offered to account for this gap: corrupt practices left over from the previous regime, infiltration by militias, weak leadership, competition by better armed and... MORE

COIN of the Realm: U.S. Counterinsurgency Strategy
January 1, 2008 — Authors: Dr Steven Metz, Mr Ralph Wipfli Participants at the seminar developed these key insights: Regardless of whether counterinsurgency (COIN) will be the dominant form of military activity in the future or simply one of several, the United States needs an effective national strategy which explains when, why, and how the nation should undertake... MORE

Pakistan’s Nuclear Future: Worries Beyond War
January 1, 2008 — Author: Mr Henry D Sokolski This book, completed just before Pakistani President Musharraf imposed a state of emergency in November 2007, reflects research that the Nonproliferation Policy Education Center commissioned over the last 2 years. It tries to characterize specific nuclear problems that the ruling Pakistani government faces with the aim... MORE

Intrepidity . . . And Character Development within the Army Profession
January 1, 2008 — Author: Dr Don M Snider How many Army soldiers, particularly Leaders, who just read the title of this opinion piece, knew the meaning of the first word; how many brought to their reading an accurate understanding of the term? More importantly, how many Army Leaders could place a true meaning of the word into the context of the Army as a unique... MORE

Cover for Intrepidity . . . And Character Development within the Army Profession

Jordanian National Security and the Future of Middle East Stability
January 1, 2008 — Author: Dr W Andrew Terrill The United States and Jordan have maintained a valuable mutually-supportive relationship for decades as a result of shared interests in a moderate, prosperous, and stable Middle East. In this monograph, the author highlights Jordan’s ongoing value as a U.S. ally and considers ways that the U.S.-Jordanian alliance might... MORE

Transforming to Effects-Based Operations: Lessons from the United Kingdom Experience
January 1, 2008 — Author: Dr Andrew M Dorman The author examines the extent to which the United Kingdom (UK) has transitioned to effects-based operations to ascertain: (1) Areas where the U.S. Army could draw lessons from UK policies; (2) Areas where the U.S. Army and the British Ministry of Defence could develop integrated or complementary approaches and doctrines... MORE

Women in Combat Compendium
January 1, 2008 — Authors: Dr Douglas V Johnson II, COL Michele M Putko These facts involving women in combat are: Women comprise approximately 15 percent of the U.S. Army today, and as of September 2007, 70 Army women have been killed and a significantly larger number wounded; the American public is vaguely aware of this state of affairs and has raised no outcry... MORE

A Contemporary Challenge to State Sovereignty: Gangs and Other Illicit Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCOs) in Central America, El Salvador, Mexico, Jamaica, and Brazil
December 1, 2007 — Author: Dr Max G Manwaring Another kind of war within the context of a “clash of civilizations” is being waged in various parts of the Americas, Africa, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and elsewhere around the world today. Some of the main protagonists are those who have come to be designated as first-second-, and third-generation street gangs, as... MORE

Is it Time to Mandate Volunteerism?
December 1, 2007 — Author: Dr Leonard Wong Each month a member of the SSI faculty writes an editorial for our monthly newsletter. This is the Op-Ed for the December 2007 newsletter.Read Now MORE

The Interagency and Counterinsurgency Warfare: Aligning and Integrating Military and Civilian Roles in Stability, Security, Transition, and Reconstruction Operations
December 1, 2007 — Author: Mr Jay W Boggs, Dr Joseph R Cerami For decades since the formation of the defense establishment under the 1947 National Security Act, all U.S. cabinet departments, national security agencies, and military services involved in providing for the common defense have struggled to overcome differences in policy and strategy formulation,... MORE