Recent Publications

Anticipating Contemporary War: How Well Did We Do?
September 12, 2011 — Dr. Antulio J. Echevarria, II Few recognized it at the time, but in 1974 the eminent British historian Sir Michael Howard wrote what was to become one of the most important phrases for the Revolution in Military Affairs (RMA)-Transformation era of the 1990s and early 2000s:I am tempted to declare that whatever doctrine the Armed Forces are working... MORE

Profession of Arms — Starfish Metaphor
September 9, 2011 — COL (R) Charles D. Allen The Profession of Arms (PoA) Campaign began with much fanfare, but the Community of Practice (CoP) has since wrestled with many important issues during the planning and conduct of the campaign. While there are many implicit assumptions about the Army as a Profession, the PoA White Paper (December 8, 2010) provided the... MORE

Puncturing the Counterinsurgency Myth: Britain and Irregular Warfare in the Past, Present, and Future
September 1, 2011 — Author: Dr Andrew Mumford This monograph holds that an aura of mythology has surrounded conventional academic and military perceptions of British performance in the realm of irregular warfare. It identifies 10 myths regarding British counterinsurgency performance and seeks to puncture them by critically assessing the efficacy of the British way of... MORE

Threat Posed by Mounting Vigilantism in Mexico
September 1, 2011 — Author: Dr George W Grayson Until the 1980s, Mexico enjoyed relative freedom from violence. Ruthless drug cartels existed, but they usually abided by informal rules of conduct hammered out between several capos and representatives of the dominant Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), which ruled the country until the 1990s. Relying on bribes,... MORE

Adapting, Transforming, and Modernizing Under Fire: The Mexican Military 2006-11
September 1, 2011 — Author: Mr Inigo Guevara Moyano Since December 2006, when Felipe Calderon assumed the office of the President, Mexico has embarked upon the implementation of a culture of law and security that has triggered a war with organized crime involving all sectors of society. This implementation has activated a series of renovations in its armed forces,... MORE

Improvised Explosive Devices in Iraq, 2003-09: A Case of Operational Surprise and Institutional Response

Colloquium Brief: Kingston Conference on International Security (KCIS-2011): The Changing Arctic: Sovereignty, Resources, and Security
August 26, 2011 — Mr. Dru LauzonA Partnership Between Strategic Studies Institute, U.S. Army War College, Centre for International and Defence Policy, Queen's University, Chair of Defence Management Studies, Queen's University, and Land Force Doctrine and Training System of the Canadian ForcesKey Insights. The threat of military conflict in the Arctic is low, while... MORE

At Crossroads: Iceland’s Defense and Security Relations, 1940-2011
August 18, 2011 — AMB Einar BenediktssonIntroductionIt is a pleasure to introduce this very interesting and relevant paper written by my colleague and friend, Ambassador Einar Benediktsson. In this paper, Ambassador Benediktsson looks at security policy from the standpoint of the totality of Icelandic national security as distinct from a single portion of it. His... MORE

Op-Ed: The Criminals South of the Border: Lessons from Mexico
August 9, 2011 — Dr. Max G. ManwaringYou might also like: "La Familia Drug Cartel: Implications for U.S.-Mexican Security."Authorities have no consistent or reliable data on the Transnational Criminal Organizations (TCO)-gang phenomenon in Mexico. Nevertheless, the TCO-gang phenomenon in that country is acknowledged to be large, complex, and increasingly violent... MORE

The Arab Spring and the Future of U.S. Interests and Cooperative Security in the Arab World
August 2, 2011 — Table of Contents Summary Introduction Tunisia Egypt Libya Bahrain Syria Yemen Algeria Jordan Morocco Oman Kuwait Lebanon Mauritania Saudi Arabia Conclusion EndnotesSummaryThe Arab Spring is an ongoing and deeply significant process occurring in the contemporary Middle East that will have important implications for the United States government. In... MORE

China-Latin America Military Engagement: Good Will, Good Business, and Strategic Position
August 1, 2011 — Author: Dr R Evan Ellis This monograph examines Chinese military engagement with Latin America in five areas: (1) meetings between senior military officials; (2) lower-level military-to-military interactions; (3) military sales; (4) military-relevant commercial interactions; and, (5) Chinese physical presence within Latin America, all of which have... MORE

National Security Reform 2010: A Midterm Assessment
August 1, 2011 — Authors: Dr Joseph R Cerami, Dr Robert H Dorff, Mr Matthew Harber On April 22, 2010, the Bush School of Government and Public Service and the U.S. Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute co-sponsored a colloquium in Washington, DC, on a midterm assessment of leadership and national security reform in the Obama administration. Panelists... MORE

Colloquium Brief: The Energy and Security Nexus: A Strategic Dilemma
July 15, 2011 — Key Insights. The U.S. is relatively well placed when it comes to energy security (defined as security from shocks in prices). We are finding more fossil fuels — especially natural gas — and are otherwise buffered from disaster by advantages ranging from the existence of strategic reserves to market mechanisms that plug gaps in our supply. In the future, we have less to fear from diminishing supply than from rising demand, especially in rapidly industrializing countries. The U.S. should engage in a policy of strategic restraint in the Middle East: military force is not the best instrument to use in securing energy supplies. However, the U.S. Armed Forces can increase energy efficiency, provided this does not undermine the effectiveness of its fighting forces... MORE