From the Editor in Chief
Antulio J. Echevarria II
Welcome to the Summer 2025 issue of Parameters. This issue consists of an In Focus special commentary, three forums (Indo-Pacific Challenges, Russia-Ukraine Issues, and Historical Studies).
The full PDF version of this issue can be found here.
Features
In Focus
The Next National Defense Strategy: Mission-Based Force Planning
Frank G. Hoffman
©2025 Frank G. Hoffman
The Pentagon needs to embrace a new methodology called mission-based planning to size and shape the defense enterprise properly. This article critiques several proposals for reestablishing the long-standing two major theater war construct in the face of ongoing shifts in the strategic environment, including the nation’s $36 trillion debt and prospects of annual interest payments beyond $1 trillion. It presents a mission priority alternative focused on strategic prioritization based on the authors’ four decades of experience in strategy/force planning at the service, the department, and the Office of the Secretary of Defense levels. Strategic-level service planners and students of Joint professional military education / top-level schools will better understand the strategic context and key parameters of the internal debate at the Pentagon about the upcoming National Defense Strategy.
Keywords: defense planning, National Defense Strategy, China, Russia, budget
Indo-Pacific Challenges
China’s Role in a Future Korean War
Jake Rinaldi
This article argues that China’s intervention in a Korean conflict will hinge more on North Korea’s ability to hold territory than on bilateral ties. Rather than treat Chinese intervention as a yes-or-no proposition, this study models three scenarios—full intervention, sustained support, and limited support—based on North Korean resilience. Using Chinese-language sources and scenario-based analysis, it assesses how each model would shape key functional areas such as ISR, cyber, materiel, and force posture. The findings offer US defense planners a framework for anticipating variable People’s Liberation Army involvement in a future Korea contingency.
Keywords: China, North Korea, weapons of mass destruction, Korean Peninsula, cyber
Strategic Narratives to Counter Global Threats
Jerry E. Landrum, Chase Metcalf, and Michael M. Posey
This article argues that the current National Security Strategy lacks the necessary coherence and fidelity to mobilize collective action against the emerging Russia-China axis. It merges multiple theoretical concepts to assert that the “rules-based order” theme is insufficient for mobilizing public support. Using textual analysis of the strategy compared with publicly available polling to determine levels of popular resonance, the authors find that the “rules-based order emphasis” does not resonate. This study’s conclusions will assist practitioners as they develop an updated National Security Strategy in the new presidential administration.
Keywords: strategic narrative, mobilization, Russia, China, public opinion
Russia-Ukraine Issues
A More Perfect Peace: Can the Russia-Ukraine War End Justly?
Nathaniel B. Davis and Marlon A. Thomas
©2025 Nathaniel B. Davis and Marlon A. Thomas
This article argues that thinking creatively about war termination, both philosophically and politically, utilizing jus post bellum principles and counterintuitive political trade-offs, reveals an opportunity to achieve a sustainable peace that approximates justice. The article surveys how war aims among belligerents have changed, indicating that further change is possible, particularly at the point of war termination. Next, the article examines jus post bellum principles and their application to the Russia-Ukraine War. Finally, the article contends that Ukraine relinquishing Crimea and the Donbas in exchange for NATO membership might be the key to achieving a durable peace that addresses long-term security.
Keywords: Ukraine, war termination, just war, jus post bellum, Russia, NATO
What the Russia-Ukraine Conflict Tells Us about Educational Resilience
Jason Jabbari
©2025 Jason Jabbari
Education, which can operate as a source of vulnerability or resiliency across multiple domains before, during, and after armed conflicts, is often only examined within a single domain, limiting the use and effectiveness of civil-affairs operations. This article outlines a novel conceptual framework of the primary mechanisms across seven unique domains by which education can serve as a key area of resiliency or vulnerability. A case study of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine illustrates how vulnerabilities can manifest in the seven domains and what military planners can do to build resiliency. The article concludes with a discussion of the costs, benefits, and potential role military civil affairs can play in a post-conflict scenario.
Keywords: education, armed conflict, human rights, civil affairs, vulnerabilities and resiliencies
Historical Studies
The Enduring Lessons of Vietnam: Implications for US Strategy and Policy
Martin G. Clemis
©2025 Martin G. Clemis
This article argues that the Vietnam War is a useful case study for assessing an enduring flaw in America’s approach to war. The United States suffered defeat in Vietnam because it privileged military strength and the pursuit of victory on the battlefield over other elements of national power. As in Vietnam, the wars America will likely face in the future will blend conventional and unconventional methods and use a carefully calibrated mixture of military and non-military means. The United States must situate its demonstrated strengths in conventional war fighting within a holistic framework or face similar strategic outcomes.
Keywords: strategy, Vietnam Revolutionary War, hybrid warfare, gray-zone conflict
Restoring the Primacy of Army Mobilization Planning: Lessons from the Interwar Period (1919–41)
Tim Devine
©2025 Tim Devine
This article argues that the US Army must restore the primacy of mobilization planning to prepare for the growing likelihood of a protracted large-scale war involving the United States. While the Army’s transformation initiatives have emphasized important tactical matters, this piece calls attention to critical strategic vulnerabilities associated with mobilization—one of the Army’s enduring core functions. The article identifies insights, challenges, and recommendations for contemporary leaders and practitioners by analyzing the body of thought on mobilization planning during the interwar period (1919–41) and drawing connections to the present day.
Keywords: mobilization, strategic planning, large-scale war, readiness, Interwar Period
Strategy
The War for Ukraine: Strategy and Adaptation under Fire
by Mick Ryan
Reviewed by Dr. Jonathan P. Klug (colonel, US Army, retired), course integrator, Theater Army Staff Course, Center for Strategic Leadership, US Army War College
Keywords: Russia-Ukraine War, World War I, World War II, NATO, Russia
How to Fight a War
by Mike Martin
Reviewed by Chase Metcalf (US Army), assistant professor, Department of Military Strategy, Planning, and Operations, US Army War College
Keywords: Joint war-fighting concept, strategy, warfare, logistics, training, morale
Dr. Seuss and the Art of War: Secret Military Lessons
edited by Montgomery McFate
Reviewed by John Erickson, senior engineer, Axiom Technologies
©2025 John Erickson
Keywords: Dr. Seuss, Theodore Seuss Geisel, strategy, post-traumatic stress disorder, warfare
Military History
Origins of the Just War: Military Ethics and Culture in the Ancient Near East
by Rory Cox
Reviewed by Dr. Pauline Shanks Kaurin, Stockdale Chair in Professional Military Ethics and professor, College of Leadership and Ethics, US Naval War College
©2025 Pauline Shanks Kaurin
Keywords: jus ad bellum, jus in bello, just war, military ethics, religion
Into the Void: Special Operations Forces after the War on Terror
edited by James D. Kiras and Martijn Kitzen
Reviewed by Eric Robinson, special operations researcher, RAND Corporation
Keywords: special operations forces, war on terrorism, elite, Indo-Pacific, World War II