Recent Publications

Security Implications for the United States from Iranian and Hezbollah Activities in Latin America
December 18, 2024 — This presentation will examine engagement with Latin America by Iran, its government agents, and surrogate groups such as Hezbollah, including terrorist finance, terrorism, and other activities and their evolution in recent years. It will address the interaction of that presence with the risk of escalating the conflict in the Middle East and weak... MORE

Security Implications for the United States from Iranian and Hezbollah Activities in Latin America | R. Evan Ellis
WEBINAR

2024 Annual Estimate of the Strategic Security Environment (Podcast)
October 2, 2024 — In this episode of Conversations on Strategy, Dr. C. Anthony Pfaff, Dr. Brian Carlson, Dr. Michael Lynch, Dr. John Deni, and analyze the 2024 Annual Estimate of the Strategic Security Environment, led by Major Brennan Deveraux. The discussion covers the narrative’s impact on understanding military challenges, with regional perspectives from Carlson on the US-China rivalry, Deni on the Russia-Ukraine War’s... MORE

COVER Conversations on Strategy Podcast – Ep 49 – Darrin L. Frye – “Nanoweaponry and the Resolution Revolution: Making Danger Invisible”

SSI Live 112 – Homeland Defense in the Indo-Pacific
August 21, 2024 — Reconceptualizing Homeland Defense in the Indo-Pacific – Homeland defense does not begin at the water’s edge, at least not on the east and west coasts of the United States. How do we think about, plan for, and operationalize defense of far-flung American territories? In their latest publication, Dr. Mike Lynch and Major Brennan Deveraux argue the... MORE

2024 Annual Estimate of the Strategic Security Environment
July 24, 2024 — The United States faces a complex and ever-changing global environment. The 2024 Annual Estimate of the Strategic Security Environment is designed to guide the collective defense community to research and write about critical national security challenges to help the Army prepare for a wide range of potential conflicts and threats... MORE

The 2024 Annual Estimate of the Strategic Security Environment sets the foundation for cutting-edge research to understand the ever-evolving security environment domestically and internationally.

2023 Annual Estimate of the Strategic Security Environment
August 24, 2023 — The United States operates within a global context that is increasingly complex, interconnected, and unpredictable. The Annual Estimate of the Strategic Security Environment serves as a guide to define broadly the contemporary security landscape and the diverse range of interests that shape our national security agenda... MORE

2023 Annual Estimate of the Strategic Security Environment
The Annual Estimate of the Strategic Security Environment serves as a guide for academics and practitioners in the defense community on the current challenges and opportunities in the strategic environment. This year’s publication outlines key strategic issues across the four broad themes of Regional Challenges and Opportunities, Domestic Challenges, Institutional Challenges, and Domains Impacting US Strategic Advantage. These themes represent a wide range of topics affecting national security and provide a global assessment of the strategic environment to help focus the defense community on research and publication. Strategic competition with the People’s Republic of China and the implications of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine remain dominant challenges to US national security interests across the globe. However, the evolving security environment also presents new and unconventional threats, such as cyberattacks, terrorism, transnational crime, and the implications of rapid technological advancements in fields such as artificial intelligence. At the same time, the US faces domestic and institutional challenges in the form of recruiting and retention shortfalls in the all-volunteer force, the prospect of contested logistics in large-scale combat operations, and the health of the US Defense Industrial Base. Furthermore, rapidly evolving security landscapes in the Arctic region and the space domain pose unique potential challenges to the Army’s strategic advantage.
https://press.armywarcollege.edu/monographs/962/

Investigating the Benefits and Drawbacks of Realigning the National Guard Under the Department of Homeland Security
August 1, 2016 — Author: Dr Ryan Burke, Dr Sue McNeilPart I of the 2014-2015 Army War College’s Key Strategic Issues List (KSIL)—Army Priorities for Strategic Analysis—asks: “Given the growing importance of homeland defense, what would be the benefits and drawbacks of realigning the [National] Guard under the department of Homeland Security to enhance domestic... MORE

2015-16 Key Strategic Issues List
August 28, 2015 — Author: Prof John F Troxell The recently published National Military Strategy emphasizes the unpredictability of the global security environment. According to General Dempsey, “global disorder has significantly increased while some of our comparative military advantage has begun to erode. We now face multiple, simultaneous security challenges…”... MORE

Cyber Infrastructure Protection: Vol. II
May 3, 2013 — Authors: Dr Vincent Boudreau, COL Louis H Jordan Jr, Dr Tarek N Saadawi View the Executive SummaryIncreased reliance on the Internet and other networked systems raise the risks of cyber attacks that could harm our nation’s cyber infrastructure. The cyber infrastructure encompasses a number of sectors including: the nation’s mass transit and other... MORE

2011-2012 U.S. Army War College Key Strategic Issues List (KSIL)
September 19, 2011 — Dr. Antulio J. Echevarria, IIUpdate: The PDF of the KSIL is now available.Topics with an * are from Headquarters Department of the Army G-3/5 and G-4ForewordThe Key Strategic Issues List (KSIL) is published annually for the purpose of making students and other researchers aware of strategic topics that are, or should be, of special importance to... MORE

The Mexican Armed Forces in Transition
January 1, 2006 — Authors: Dr Jordi Diez, COL Ian Nicholls After the 9/11 attacks on the United States, homeland defense became the primary issue in U.S. defense policy. It was clear that homeland defense would have to become a trilateral continental issue and include Canada and Mexico. Because the United States and Canada already had developed a relatively close... MORE

Expanding the Use of State Defense Forces in Homeland Defense Missions
November 1, 2003 — Author: LTC Brent C Bankus Each month a member of the SSI faculty writes an editorial for our monthly newsletter. This is the Op-Ed for the November 2003 newsletter.Read Now MORE

The Hart-Rudman Commission and the Homeland Defense
September 1, 2001 — Author: Dr Ian Roxborough With the exception of attacks by ballistic missiles, the continental United States was long held to be virtually immune from attack. For Americans, wars were something that took place in other countries. In the future, that may not hold. But while strategic thinkers agree that homeland defense needs greater attention,... MORE