Limited war and its emphasis on the deliberate limitation of the objectives sought in a conflict differs sharply with its counterpart total war, which demands unlimited objectives. The distinction between these two forms of war can be traced...
This paper challenges the idea that the thinkers who developed the American Theory of Limited War prior to Vietnam were grossly in error. A framework for the elements of the theory is constructed through a discussion of the historical American way...
The modern term, creeping into the American lexicon, "Tomahawk Diplomacy" has come to represent a form of limited military response where the National Command Authority (NCA) employs cruise missiles and other high technology weapons as a means of...
This monograph investigates how the Air Force concept of air occupation applies to operational campaign planning. The post Cold War era and a New World Order poses new challenges for operational planners. They must meet the changing geopolitical...
The perception among many officers of all ranks in the U.S. armed services is that casualty aversion limits the military’s ability to perform its mission. A frequent remark from military members during discussions of world crisis spots and what...
After toppling the regime of Saddam Hussein in a few weeks, the decisive operational maneuver victory was not enough to defeat the enemy’s will to fight. Instead of challenging US forces in a conventional military battle, the enemy has now sought...
The ownership of vast quantities of military power and the ability to project that power globally does not ensure the achievement of the 'ends' desired from a war. Since 1945, the United States and her Western allies increasingly fail to realize a...
This monograph approached Lieutenant General James M. Gavin as a military theorist and explored his influence as the Army transitioned from World War II to the Cold War. Gavin's theory of future warfare required an army with capability in atomic...
This monograph discusses heavy division organic SIGINT and its limited ability to aid the commander in the division's fight. Modern weapon system employment demands that intelligence and SIGINT provide precision intelligence at extended ranges....
From Desert Storm to Operation Joint Endeavor to Operation Allied Force, the Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar Systems (JSTARS) mission has evolved and expanded following each contingency it was called upon to support. As these supplementary...
This monograph examines the French experience in Algeria (1954-1962) and the Israeli experience in Lebanon (1982) in order to determine how operational forces can overcome the operational advantages an adversary derives from border sanctuaries in...
This monograph analyzes the effectiveness of operational campaign design during the initial US ground combat in the Vietnam War. The focus is on the linkage of national strategic ends with military means and ways from the Spring of 1965 through the...
This study analyzes the concepts of dominant maneuver and precision engagement at the operational level of war as defined in Joint Vision 2020. The analysis begins by establishing the relationship between today’s geostrategic environment,...
This study seeks to identify the doctrine, tactics and techniques unique to employment of light, heavy, and special operations forces as a mixed force. The doctrine, tactics and techniques are applied to a likely contingency scenario of a "Strike...
United States military forces face a different world as the 21st century begins. The phenomenon known as 'globalization' has created increased political, economic, and social interdependence among nations. With the emergence of new regional and...
This monograph examines the adequacy of current jungle and infantry doctrine in addressing the conduct of night operations in a jungle environment. Daytime jungle operations already have much in common with night operations in general due to the...
Emory Upton believed that politicians should leave war to professionals. This led to two assumptions that became conventional wisdom: first, an apolitical army represented a more professional force; and second, the problems at the tactical and...
This monograph examines the adequacy of command and control doctrine for joint amphibious operations in limited warfare, focusing on command and control structure and unity of command. Current joint doctrine in several new Joint Chiefs of Staff...
The consequences for failing to prepare for the next war can be significant. How does the United States military balance the perceived requirement for its traditional competencies in major combat operations with the near-term requirement for...