Recent Publications

Strategic Challenges for Counterinsurgency and the Global War on Terrorism
September 1, 2006 — Author: Dr Williamson Murray In March 2006, President George W. Bush signed a new National Security Strategy that he refers to as a “wartime national security strategy” and states that to follow the path the United States has chosen, we must “maintain and expand our national strength.” One way to do this is to study and propose solutions to the... MORE

String of Pearls: Meeting the Challenge of China’s Rising Power Across the Asian Littoral
July 1, 2006 — Author: LTC Christopher J Pehrson China's rising maritime power is encountering American maritime power along the sea lines of communication (SLOCs) that connect China to vital energy resources in the Middle East and Africa. The "String of Pearls" describes the manifestation of China's rising geopolitical influence through efforts to increase... MORE

Friction in U.S. Foreign Policy: Cultural Difficulties with the World
June 1, 2006 — Author: LTC Andrew W Stewart The United States is so culturally different by virtue of its “New World paradigm” that its direct leadership style is becoming counterproductive. If the United States were more “street smart” on the world scene, it could better identify nuanced subtleties and better leverage allies, who, in turn, are better positioned... MORE

U.S. Army War College Guide to National Security Policy and Strategy, 2nd Edition
June 1, 2006 — Author: Dr J Boone Bartholomees Jr This edition of the U. S. Army War College Guide to National Security Policy and Strategy reflects to some extent recent changes in the structure of the core curriculum at the War College. The college broke its traditional core course, “War, National Policy and Strategy,” into two courses: “Theory of War and... MORE

Strategic Planning by the Chairmen, Joint Chiefs of Staff, 1990 TO 2005
May 1, 2006 — Author: Dr Richard M Meinhart This article examines how the Chairmen Joint Chiefs of Staff from 1990 to 2005 used a strategic planning system to respond to their global challenges. By analyzing this planning system’s evolution, processes and products along with each leader’s use, leadership concepts are identified for future leaders in the... MORE

Planning For and Applying Military Force: An Examination of Terms
March 1, 2006 — Author: LTG Paul K Van Riper The author briefly examines current and in some cases still evolving definitions in joint doctrine--especially as regards strategy, center of gravity, decisive point, and commander's intent. He discusses the heritage of those concepts and terms, most of which derived from the writings of Clausewitz and Sun Tzu, and... MORE

Irregular Enemies and the Essence of Strategy: Can the American Way of War Adapt?
March 1, 2006 — Author: Dr Colin S Gray The author offers a detailed comparison between the character of irregular warfare, insurgency in particular, and the principal enduring features of "the American way." He concludes that there is a serious mismatch between that "way" and the kind of behavior that is most effective in countering irregular foes. The author... MORE

Strategic Theory for the 21st Century: The Little Book on Big Strategy
February 1, 2006 — Author: Dr Harry R Yarger The word "strategy" pervades American conversation and our news media and is most often used as a general term for a plan, a concept, a course of action, or a "vision" of the direction in which to proceed at the personal, organizational, and governmental—local, state, or federal—levels. Such casual use of the term to... MORE

2005 Key Strategic Issues List (KSIL)
July 1, 2005 — Author: Dr Antulio J Echevarria II Half a decade into the new millennium, the strategic environment continues to change rapidly, and in important ways. Some of those changes, of course, challenge U.S. interests, while others advance them. And the challenges assume regular and, increasingly now, irregular forms. Yet, while the causes of change are... MORE

North Korea’s Strategic Intentions
July 1, 2005 — Author: Dr Andrew Scobell Dr. Andrew Scobell examines the topic of Pyongyang's strategic intentions. He first identifies a broad spectrum of expert views and distills this wisdom into three "packages" of possible strategic intentions. He then sets out to test which package appears to reflect actual North Korean policy. While he opines that one is... MORE

Transformation and Strategic Surprise
April 1, 2005 — Author: Dr Colin S Gray The current process of military transformation will enable the Armed Forces to do better what they already do superbly well. It is important to excel at decisive maneuver and in the application of precise, yet overwhelming firepower. But those attributes, though key in warfare against regular enemies, tend to be less... MORE

Winning the War by Winning the Peace: Strategy for Conflict and Post-Conflict in the 21st Century
December 1, 2004 — Author: COL Lloyd J MatthewsDuring each of the last 15 years, the U.S. Army War College has sponsored a broad-based strategy conference that addresses a major security issue of current relevance to the United States, its allies, and, indeed, the entire world. The conference theme for year 2004 was "Winning the War by Winning the Peace: Strategy for... MORE