Recent Publications

Parameters | Summer 2024
May 29, 2024 — The Summer issue is out! In this edition: "What American Policymakers Misunderstand about the Belt and Road Initiative" by Zenel Garcia and Phillip Guerreiro; A Major's Perspective “Professional Discourse Is Shaping the Force”; Civil-Military Relations Corner, "Introduction to the US Army War College Civil-Military Relations Center"; "Exploring the Nexus of Military and Society at a 50-Year Milestone" by Patricia M. Shields;... MORE

“Ambivalent Balancer in the Middle East and Beyond”
December 15, 2023 — This podcast enters the debate on American grand strategy by questioning the logic underpinning offshore balancing. It concludes that the United States is an ambivalent balancer due to the stopping power of water. It builds on the relevant literature in international relations, producing a novel set of theoretical propositions that are applied to the contemporary Middle East. There and elsewhere,... MORE

On “The Grand Strategy of Gertrude Bell”: From the Arab Bureau to the Creation of Iraq
March 29, 2023 — The remarkable life of early-twentieth-century British adventurer Gertrude Bell has been well documented through her biographies and numerous travel books. Bell’s role as a grand strategist for the British government in the Middle East during World War I and the postwar period, however, is surprisingly understudied. Investigating Gertrude Bell as both a military strategist and a grand strategist offers important insights into... MORE

"The Grand Strategic Thought of Colin S. Gray”
January 10, 2022 — A titan of modern strategic studies, Colin S. Gray distinguished himself from other scholars in the field with his belief that grand strategy is indispensable, complex, and inherently agential. This article identifies key themes, continuities, conceptual relationships, and potential discontinuities from his decades of grand strategic thought. Gray’s statement that “all strategy is grand strategy” remains highly relevant today, emphasizing the importance of agential context in military environments—a point often neglected in strategic practice. ... MORE

Parameters VOL. 46 NO. 4 WINTER 2016-17
December 1, 2016 — Editor: Dr Antulio J Echevarria IISpecial Commentary: The Army's Identity Crisis by Gates Brown. Toward Strategic Solvency Ensuring Effective Military Voice, by William E. Rapp. The Crisis of American Military Primacy and the Search for Strategic Solvency, by Hal Brands and Eric Edelman. Are Our Strategic Models Flawed? Faith in War: The American... MORE

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The Pivot to Asia: Can it Serve as the Foundation for American Grand Strategy in the 21st Century
August 1, 2016 — Author: Dr Douglas StuartDeciding when, where, and how to prioritize is the essence of strategy. U.S. President Barack Obama’s decision to designate the Indo-Asia-Pacific (IAP) as his top regional priority made good sense, in light of the ongoing shift in economic power from West to East and the rise of China as a potential global and regional peer... MORE

American Grand Strategy and the Future of U.S. Landpower
December 1, 2014 — Authors: Major Joseph V Da Silva, Dr Hugh P Liebert, Prof Isaiah Wilson IIIView the Executive Summary The U.S. military faces a dramatic rebalancing among its services. As the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq have waned, an era of budget austerity has emerged and the U.S. strategic focus has shifted toward the Pacific, American air and sea power have... MORE

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Forging an American Grand Strategy: Securing a Path Through a Complex Future. Selected Presentations from a Symposium at the National Defense University
October 22, 2013 — Author: Dr Sheila R Ronis View the Executive SummaryOn November 8-9, 2011, the National Defense University (NDU) held a conference entitled "Forging an American Grand Strategy: Securing a Path Through a Complex Future." The discussion that began at that conference needs to be further developed and continued. More importantly, we, as a nation, need... MORE

Conflict Management and Peacebuilding: Pillars of a New American Grand Strategy
October 16, 2013 — Authors: Dr Robert H Dorff, Dr Volker C Franke View the Executive SummaryThe authors examine the utility of the U.S. Government’s whole-of-government (WoG) approach for responding to the challenging security demands of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. They specifically discuss the strategic objectives of interagency cooperation particularly in... MORE

Strategic Landpower Task Force Research Report
October 3, 2013 — Dr. Steven MetzAcknowledgement. The author would like to thank Frank Hoffman of the National Defense University for major contributions to this report. Introduction. The 21st-century security environment compels the United States to develop more effective and efficient ways to promote its national interests. This includes refining... MORE

Sharing Power? Prospects for a U.S. Concert-Balance Strategy
April 26, 2013 — Author: Dr Patrick Porter View the Executive SummaryThe subject of U.S. grand strategy has been getting increasing attention from the policy and academic communities. However, too often the debate suffers from being too reductionist, limiting America’s choices to worldwide hegemony or narrow isolation. There is a wide spectrum of choices before... MORE

The Promise and Pitfalls of Grand Strategy
August 1, 2012 — Author: Dr Hal Brands What is “grand strategy,” and why is it seemingly so important and so difficult? This monograph explores the concept of grand strategy as it has developed over the past several decades. It explains why the concept is so ubiquitous in discussions of present-day foreign policy, examines why American officials often find the... MORE

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