Afghanistan looms as the key foreign policy challenge for the Obama administration. Under the previous Bush administration, foreign policy was driven primarily by security considerations, and Afghanistan was viewed a frontline state in the Global...
Recent years have seen the US, UK and other ISAF and Coalition nations enmeshed in protracted, complex and intense campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan. Resilient and highly adaptable opponents have operated asymmetrically, and amongst the people, to...
Focusing efforts toward building security force capability without increasing state capacity is an ineffective strategy to achieve government victory in civil war. The purpose of this monograph is to advance and test the hypothesis that...
Governments attempting to counter insurgent threats often lack the authority, influence, and control to counter these threats, creating what some have described as 'ungoverned' spaces. A number of governments seek alliances with non-state armed...
This monograph examines the execution of the Commander’s Emergency Response Program (CERP) by operational forces and offers a methodology to better its execution. This study asserts that CERP is a necessary and appropriate program for operational...
This newsletter focuses on a comprehensive approach to integrated civilian-military command and control (C2) and staff integration in complex operations. Interagency operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, and several other locations have revealed the...
The United States has committed to training and equipping the Afghan National Army. This mission is executed primarily by conventional American soldiers, who naturally transfer much of their martial culture to their Afghan partners. This study...
The attacks against the United States on September 11, 2001, originating from Afghanistan, and the earthquake in January 2010 that devastated Haiti illustrate the different dangers that weak and failed states represent to the international...
Culture awareness is the most vital criteria for a successful state or nation-building strategy for the United States. Some strategists believe the level-of-effort is the criteria for a successful state or nation-building strategy. Through the...
The Singapore Army is transforming towards a Third Generation fighting force to meet the challenges of the contemporary security environment. As part of this transformation, the Singapore Army needs to review the training and education roadmap of...
Second Place Winner of the MacArthur Military Leadership Writing Competition for the CGSC Class 2009-02. Clausewitz, a renowned theorist of war, describes war as "the realm of chance, (which) makes everything more uncertain and interferes with the...
The current U.S. Army operating concept prominently includes stability operations built on the core competency of wide area security. Stability operations secure national goals for military action by establishing the conditions for lasting peace...
During a staff meeting at United States European Command (USEUCOM), while General James L. Jones was the USEUCOM commander, he said "Engineers are the maneuver force for Phase Zero operations." In this paper, I will argue why engineers should be...
The United States' democratization strategy since World War II demonstrates an estimated success rate of less than 3%. America currently uses a counterinsurgency / line of effort approach in democratization. This approach seeks to shape an...
The purpose of the monograph is to explore the trends in retention during the last fifteen years during an era of persistent conflict. Frequent deployments influence soldiers' retention decisions. Based on extensive research from surveys, focus...
A long conflict has been going on in the Kivu region of Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Today, in its later stages, the conflict has become an amalgamation of insurgencies by the former Rwanda Armed Forces (FAR) and genocidal forces...
Since 2001, the capabilities of the Afghan state have been a priority on the world stage. The reign of Amir Abdur Rahman, who established the current state of Afghanistan, is critical in understanding the development of the current state, and the...
This research asked the question why had US military intervention in Haiti in the past 20 years not produced long-term stability. Haiti is a nation of internal division and racial tension, suffering from years of upheaval, external intervention,...
At the core of U.S. counterinsurgency doctrine is the concept of “hearts and minds.” Although the concept has significantly deviated from its historical grounding and has become a nebulous concept that is frequently maligned, misunderstood, and...