Recent Publications

Strategic Insights: The Russian Intervention and the Internal Dynamics of Syria
October 1, 2015 — Dr. W. Andrew TerrillThe Syrian civil war began in March 2011 and has claimed nearly 250,000 lives so far. After over 4 years of internal fighting, the Kremlin has decided to expand its role in this conflict by moving combat aircraft and some ground troops to Syria to support the Bashar al-Assad government. These actions seem like a clear prelude... MORE

Strategic Insights: The Will To Fight
September 11, 2015 — Dr. M. Chris MasonEvents on world battlefields over the past two years should give the U.S. Army pause to reconsider the entire Foreign Internal Defense (FID) mission. The seemingly unarguable axiom that "good training makes good soldiers" has been proven to be not always true. Good training does not always make good soldiers. If the definition of... 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

Using Target Audience Analysis to Aid Strategic Level Decisionmaking
August 25, 2015 — Author: Dr Steve TathamView the Executive Summary The author explains how sophisticated social science research and behavioral profiling can be used to warn us of impeding issues and how that information might be used by senior strategy makers as a tool for testing and refining strategy. He makes a compelling case that the science of Target... MORE

Duffer’s Shoal: A Strategic Dream of the Pacific Command Area of Responsibility
August 11, 2015 — Authors: COL Russell N Bailey, LTC Bob Dixon, Ms Laura McAleer, LTC Derek J O'Malley, COL (NZ) Christopher J Parsons, COL Elizabeth R SmithView the Executive Summary This strategic assessment seeks to go beyond a traditional comparative analysis of the military, technological, political, cultural, and economic factors governing the relationships... MORE

Mastering the Gray Zone: Understanding a Changing Era of Conflict

The Army War College Review Vol. 1 No. 3
August 1, 2015 — Author: Dr Larry D Miller The Army War College Review, a refereed publication of student work, is produced under the purview of the Strategic Studies Institute and the United States Army War College. An electronic quarterly, The AWC Review connects student intellectual work with professionals invested in U.S. national security, Landpower, strategic... MORE

The Approaching Implosion of Venezuela and Strategic Implications for the United States
July 10, 2015 — Dr. R. Evan EllisThe U.S. response to the ever deepening political and economic crisis in Venezuela, and the regime’s increasingly aggressive behavior toward its neighbors and the international community, is compelling evidence that the Barack Obama administration is sincere in respecting the sovereignty of nations of Latin America and the... MORE

The Strategic Lessons Unlearned from Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan: Why the ANSF Will Not Hold, and the Implications for the U.S. Army in Afghanistan
June 25, 2015 — Author: Dr M Chris Mason View the Executive SummaryThe wars in Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan were lost before they began, not on the battlefields, where the United States won every tactical engagement, but at the strategic level of war. In each case, the U.S. Government attempted to create a Western-style democracy in countries which were decades... MORE

From Cooperation to Competition: The Future of U.S.-Russian Relations
May 28, 2015 — Authors: COL Gregory K Anderson, LTC Karen LT Briggman, Dr John R Deni, LTC Joseph E Hilbert, COL Gert-Jan Kooij, LTC Christopher T Lay, Dr James C McNaughtonRussian aggression in 2014 caught U.S. policy and strategy off guard, forcing reactive measures and reevaluation of the U.S. approach toward Russia. Moscow employed nonlinear methodologies and... MORE

Strategy Education Across the Professional Military Education Enterprise
May 18, 2015 — Colonel John C. Valledor We can find plenty to read and study on the subject of leadership; in fact, there is a veritable mountain of studies, essays, and books explaining how to build leaders. Not so if one wants to build (or become) a strategist.General John Galvin1Emerging Realities and the Education of Strategists. Since the horrific... MORE

From Frozen Ties to Strategic Engagement: U.S.-Iranian Relationship in 2030
May 12, 2015 — Author: Mr Roman MuzalevskyView the Executive SummaryThe nuclear talks between Iran and P5+1 following the most stringent sanctions against Iran to date have opened new prospects for relaxation of tensions between Tehran and the West and for a U.S.-Iranian détente in the long run. The coming to power of new presidential administrations in both the... MORE

Special Commentary – Fighting the “Islamic State”: The Case for U.S. Ground Forces
May 1, 2015 — Author: Dr. David E. JohnsonAbstract: This article argues counterinsurgency wars are not analogous to the challenges presented by the Islamic State. The United States needs to accept the nature of the war it is in, and undertake a clear and comprehensive assessment of the means necessary for strategic success. Such an assessment will make apparent... MORE