From the Editor in Chief
C. Anthony Pfaff
Welcome to the Summer 2026 issue of Parameters, which consists of two In Focus special commentaries, three forums (Indo-Pacific, Strategy, and Historical Studies) and the Strategic Competition Corner.
The full PDF of this issue can be found here.
Features
In Focus
The State of the US Army
Richard D. Hooker Jr.
©2026 Richard D. Hooker Jr.
This article argues that the US Army remains dangerously optimized for counterinsurgency, leaving it ill-equipped for a high-intensity ground war against near-peer adversaries like Russia or China. Unlike standard modernization literature that focuses solely on technology, this analysis highlights how bloated staffs and personnel policies that prioritize equity over battlefield excellence undermine combat readiness. The analysis evaluates 2026 force structure projections against current personnel metrics and acquisition timelines to identify systemic readiness gaps. The findings provide military and policy practitioners with actionable frameworks to reallocate personnel resources and address critical gaps in field artillery, electronic warfare, and short-range air defense before a major conflict occurs.
Keywords: Army modernization, military readiness, capability gaps, force structure, lethality
Fighting for Intelligence in Large-Scale Combat Operations: The Role of the Intelligence and Electronic Warfare Battalion–Next
Richard Appelhans, Michael Liesmann, B. Clay Jackson, and Mikael Heikkinen
This article contends the US Army’s proposed intelligence and electronic warfare battalion–next concept constitutes an organizational solution essential for achieving intelligence dominance in large-scale combat operations. Transcending legacy formations that are predicated on specific intelligence disciplines, this innovative design furnishes a functionally oriented, modular, and layered architecture that affords the requisite analytic capabilities, agility, and endurance for the contemporary battlefield. The analysis incorporates lessons extracted from the Russia-Ukraine War, US Army experimental endeavors, assessments of peer threats, and doctrinal evolutions, thereby providing readers of US Army War College Press publications with vital insights into how the Army is adapting to the future of warfare.
Keywords: military intelligence, large-scale combat operations, electronic warfare, war fighting, intelligence and electronic warfare battalion–next
Indo-Pacific
Geopolitical Chessboard: How Vietnam Shapes American-Chinese Competition
Kiet H. Lê and Hiep X. Trần
Vietnam’s geostrategic position—bordering China and commanding key South China Sea maritime routes—makes it a pivotal actor in shaping great-power competition in Southeast Asia. This article argues that the United States should support Vietnam’s neutrality and strategic autonomy as a means of countering Chinese influence. Unlike prior studies that portray regional states as passive players, this analysis highlights Vietnam’s active role in influencing regional dynamics. Through comparative analysis with the Philippines, using historical case studies, geographic assessments, and policy reviews, the article offers practical insights for military and policy practitioners on how geography shapes alliance formation and strategic competition.
Keywords: geopolitics, United States, China, Vietnam, South China Sea, Southeast Asia
Key Themes in Sino-American History
David J. Lorenzo and Ian Murphy
©2026 Ian Murphy
This article examines how historical narratives shape the messaging of the Chinese Communist Party and the People’s Republic of China, particularly regarding Sino-American relations. It identifies three key historical themes—trade, discriminatory policies, and Taiwan—that are frequently invoked in China’s statements and information campaigns. By contextualizing these themes, the article argues that military and national security professionals need a deeper understanding of Sino-American history to interpret China’s messaging correctly and counter its influence effectively. The article advocates for the integration of Sino-American historical content into professional military education curricula to enhance strategic awareness and policy formulation.
Keywords: People’s Republic of China, Chinese Communist Party, Sino-American relations, Century of Humiliation, trade, Exclusion Acts, Taiwan, professional military education
Strategy
Rethinking Power: E. H. Carr’s Enduring Lessons for Modern Strategists
Brian J. Hasse
©2026 Brian J. Hasse
This article argues E. H. Carr’s classic conception of power provides enduring lessons for national security, but these lessons are easily lost in application. Unlike much of the existing literature, this article emphasizes how modern conceptions of power convey an illusion of balance, while the national security bureaucracy constrains the effective synchronization of power. The analysis leverages both historical and contemporary case studies to identify what a balanced conception of power looks like in practice, with the hope of informing US national security strategy and policy in today’s complex security environment.
Keywords: E. H. Carr, power, balance, integration, DIME (diplomatic, informational, military, and economic)
How Is Going to War Like Buying a Car?: The Bargaining Model of War
Richard R. Johnson
©2026 Richard R. Johnson
The bargaining model of war, a popular, yet complex international relations theory, emphasizes how nations communicate signals regarding military strength, resolve to fight, and foreign policy goals. Since the military plays a major role in communicating these signals, its leaders should understand this theory, despite its complexities. This article explains the model and its components through the used car sale bargaining process and supplements the analogy with real-world examples of international events. This article will help military and foreign policy professionals easily grasp the concepts of the model.
Keywords: bargaining, conflict, uncertainty, signaling, commitment
Historical Studies
A New Security Framework for NATO’s Eastern Flank
Matthew J. Kukla and Anna Batta
©2026 Matthew J. Kukla and Anna Batta
This article argues for a NATO-EU–led security strategy to achieve long-term deterrence in Ukraine after the end of the Russia-Ukraine War. Unlike existing analyses, this article straddles the strategic level of deterrence, outlining an operational road map. Its historical example of the Iraq War shows that long-term security requires the development of plans before a conflict ends, long-term commitments, and multilateral—not unilateral—security efforts. The proposed solution provides strategic planners and policymakers with a low-risk, high-reward approach that leverages burden sharing through a multinational framework.
Keywords: Ukraine, security, deterrence, NATO, training
Turning Tactical Victories into Strategic Success: Counterinsurgency in the Irish Civil War, 1922–23
Gareth Prendergast and John A. Nagl
©2026 Gareth Prendergast and John A. Nagl
The fundamentals the Irish National Army used in the Irish Civil War (1922–23) are a model for the successful application of a classic counterinsurgency which, if understood earlier, could have made a difference in the United States’ most recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Irish Civil War has not been examined in-depth through the lens of modern counterinsurgency doctrine. This article draws on military history and recent counterinsurgency doctrines to provide US policymakers and military practitioners practical guidance for how counterinsurgent forces can foster trust and use appropriate tactics that lead to strategic success.
Keywords: counterinsurgency, Ireland, Irish Civil War, military strategy, treaty
Strategic Competition Corner
Closing the Gap Between Threat and Rival
Antulio J. Echevarria II
This article explores the advantages and risks associated with leveraging interstate rivalry frameworks for strategy development and planning. Advantages include reducing strategic uncertainty and gaining efficiencies in some aspects of force planning. Risks include trusting the data and accepting the methodical pace of research. United States security documents typically describe adversaries as threats or competitors but rarely acknowledge the fact that behavior patterns among interstate rivals, of which the United States currently has three—China, Russia, and Iran—differ fundamentally from those of mere threats or competitors. This analysis will benefit defense professionals responsible for developing regional or global strategies and for directing war-gaming efforts.
Keywords: strategic rivalry, interstate competition, grand strategy, great-power competition, threat framework, rivalry framework
Review Essay
Tubby: Raymond O. Barton and the United States Army, 1889–1963
by Stephen A. Bourque
Patton’s Tactician: The War Diary of Lieutenant General Geoffrey Keyes
Edited by James W. Holsinger Jr.
Reviewed by Dr. John A. Bonin, distinguished fellow, US Army War College
Keywords: biography, World War II, military leadership, European Theater, campaigns
Strategy
The New Calculus of Escalation: Avoiding Armageddon in Great Power Conflict
by Martin C. Libicki
Reviewed by Colonel Darren W. Buss, faculty instructor, Department of Military Strategy, Planning, and Operations, US Army War College
Keywords: great-power competition, cyberwar, nuclear war, conflict thresholds, international politics, military strategy
Obama and the Bomb: New START, Russia and the Politics of Post–Cold War Arms Control
by Frank Leith Jones
Reviewed by Major Brennan Deveraux, US Army strategist, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College
Keywords: arms control, nuclear weapons, strategic cooperation, two-level game
Occupation: Russian Rule in South-Eastern Ukraine
by David Lewis
Reviewed by Colonel Christopher J. Hickey, PhD, associate professor, Department of Military Strategy, Planning, and Operations, US Army War College
Keywords: repression, deterrence, Joint war fighting, authoritarianism, resistance
Military History
Lessons Learned and Unlearned: The Drivers of US Indirect-Fire Innovation
by Brennan S. Deveraux
Reviewed by Dr. Michael E. Lynch, professor of national security affairs, US Army War College
Keywords: precision-guided munitions (PGM), indirect fire, innovation, artillery, adaptation, mobility
Total Defense: The New Deal and the Invention of National Security
by Andrew Preston
Reviewed by Dr. Michael S. Neiberg, chair of war studies, US Army War College
Keywords: national security, New Deal, Franklin D. Roosevelt, government expansion, American history
Blood, Mud, and Oil Paint: The Remarkable Year That Made Winston Churchill
by J. Furman Daniel III
Reviewed by Dr. Kevin J. Weddle, distinguished fellow, US Army War College
©2026 Kevin J. Weddle
Keywords: foreign military, biography, memoir, Winston Churchill, World War I
Beyond Black Hawk Down: Intervention, Nation-Building, and Insurgency in Somalia, 1992–1995
by Jonathan Carroll
Reviewed by Colonel Christian Werner, director of European studies, Department of National Security and Strategy, US Army War College
©2026 Christian Werner
Keywords: Somalia, Black Hawk Down, nation building, insurgency, UN operations, military history, peacekeeping