Also included are an introduction describing the intellectual and practical challenges facing the military reformer in peacetime and a concluding essay by Dennis Showalter drawing together the issues examined in the preceding studies and setting these themes in an interpretive, historiographical context. The Challenge of Change has been designed to meet the needs of historians, military professionals, and defense analysts."--BOOK JACKET.
The U.S. military has been continuously engaged in foreign conflicts for over two decades. The strains that these deployments, the associated increases in operational tempo, and the general challenges of military life affect not only service members but also the people who depend on them and who support them as they support the nation â€" their families. Family members provide support to service members while they serve or when they have difficulties; family problems can interfere with the ability of service members to deploy or remain in theater; and family members are central influences on whether members continue to serve. In addition, rising family diversity and complexity will likely increase the difficulty of creating military policies, programs and practices that adequately support families in the performance of military duties. Strengthening the Military Family Readiness System for a Changing American Society examines the challenges and opportunities facing military families and what is known about effective strategies for supporting and protecting military children and families, as well as lessons to be learned from these experiences. This report offers recommendations regarding what is needed to strengthen the support system for military families.
This major comparative study examines the challenges faced by countries of postcommunist Europe in reforming and professionalizing their armed forces. It explores how the interaction of the common challenges of postcommunism and the diverse circumstances of individual countries are shaping professionalization processes in this changing region. The detailed country case studies in this volume, written by leading experts to a common analytical framework, compare the experiences of Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Croatia, FRY, Russia and Ukraine.
Since the end of bipolarism, the concept of asymmetric warfare, and of asymmetric conflict in general, has been increasingly applied with regard to armed forces activities and tasks. This book presents the findings of comparative empirical research conducted in selected military units by a group of distinguished experts on military organization, who hail from the eight participating countries: Bulgaria, Cameroon, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Lithuania, the Philippines and Spain. It discusses remarks made by military leaders with extensive experience in the field regarding current doctrines on military leadership and their applicability in the field, as well as proposals and suggestions for new directions. “It is a complex relation, always based on respect and politeness, but often with mismatched interests.” (Army Colonel). “It makes you realize that there is a cultural gap. You must firstly understand who you are going to relate to, and the culture of these people, and then try to establish a certain kind of relationship. Often the platoon commander states his objective and must try to establish a relationship, contact with the village chief.” (Army Lieutenant, Platoon Commander). “[In Afghanistan] We had meals with the locals, sometimes the food didn’t taste good, but you had to eat it if you wanted to be welcomed back again” (Army Captain, Company Commander). These are just some of the many voices stemming from the ground in diverse international asymmetric conflict theatres (in Iraq, in Kosovo, in Afghanistan...), comments by military officers, commanders at different hierarchical levels, asked to reflect on their experiences as military leaders in crisis response operations. Military professionals, and military leaders in particular, perceive themselves as facing ambiguous situations that require an update in their professional training, and new skills to confront unexpected and unpredictable factors. Drawing on lived experiences, the book offers insights into what a new kind of leadership means when leaders have to cope with diverse and unclear missions. It also addresses leadership styles and behaviours, as well as individual adaptive behaviours on the part of military leaders, with special reference to middle and middle-high level ranks, such as captains, majors and colonels. Given its scope, the book will appeal not only to military professionals and military affairs scholars and experts, but also to readers interested in gaining a better understanding of the challenges that international expeditionary units are facing in crisis areas around the globe.
CSIS senior adviser Mark Cancian annually produces a series of white papers on U.S. military forces, including their composition, new initiatives, long-term trends, and challenges. This report is a compilation of these papers and takes a deep look at each of the military services, the new Space Force, special operations forces, DOD civilians, and contractors in the FY 2021 budget. This report further includes a foreword regarding how the Biden administration might approach decisions facing the military forces, drawing on insights from the individual chapters.
A critical look into how and why the U.S. military needs to become more adaptable. Every military must prepare for future wars despite not really knowing the shape such wars will ultimately take. As former U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates once noted: "We have a perfect record in predicting the next war. We have never once gotten it right." In the face of such great uncertainty, militaries must be able to adapt rapidly in order to win. Adaptation under Fire identifies the characteristics that make militaries more adaptable, illustrated through historical examples and the recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Authors David Barno and Nora Bensahel argue that militaries facing unknown future conflicts must nevertheless make choices about the type of doctrine that their units will use, the weapons and equipment they will purchase, and the kind of leaders they will select and develop to guide the force to victory. Yet after a war begins, many of these choices will prove flawed in the unpredictable crucible of the battlefield. For a U.S. military facing diverse global threats, its ability to adapt quickly and effectively to those unforeseen circumstances may spell the difference between victory and defeat. Barno and Bensahel start by providing a framework for understanding adaptation and include historical cases of success and failure. Next, they examine U.S. military adaptation during the nation's recent wars, and explain why certain forms of adaptation have proven problematic. In the final section, Barno and Bensahel conclude that the U.S. military must become much more adaptable in order to address the fast-changing security challenges of the future, and they offer recommendations on how to do so before it is too late.
The military is one of the few institutions that cut across the divides of Indonesian society. As it continues to play a critical part in determining Indonesia's future, the military itself is undergoing profound change. The authors of this book examine the role of the military in politics and society since the fall of President Suharto in 1998. They present several strategic scenarios for Indonesia, which have important implications for U.S.-Indonesian relations, and propose goals for Indonesian military reform and elements of a U.S. engagement policy.
This CSIS report examines the evolution of European military capabilities over the next decade. It asks two main questions. What military capabilities might European allies and partners of the United States possess by 2030? And what types of military missions will these states be able (and unable) to effectively perform by 2030? First, European militaries—including the largest and most capable European NATO members—will continue to struggle to conduct several types of missions without significant U.S. assistance. Second, European militaries will face significant challenges in the Indo-Pacific. Third, Europe’s major powers will likely have the capability to conduct most types of missions at the lower end of the conflict continuum without significant U.S. military aid. To sustain progress and overcome remaining challenges, NATO will have to revise its burden-sharing metrics, modernize defense planning and procurement practices, and address lagging political will.
Today's protracted asymmetrical conflicts confuse efforts to measure progress, often inviting politics and wishful thinking to replace objective evaluation. In Assessing War, military historians, social scientists, and military officers explore how observers have analyzed the trajectory of war in American conflicts from the Seven Years’ War through the war in Afghanistan. Drawing on decades of acquired expertise, the contributors examine wartime assessment in both theory and practice and, through alternative dimensions of assessment such as justice and proportionality, the war of ideas and economics. This group of distinguished authors grapples with both conventional and irregular wars and emerging aspects of conflict—such as cyberwar and nation building—that add to the complexities of the modern threat environment. The volume ends with recommendations for practitioners on best approaches while offering sobering conclusions about the challenges of assessing war without politicization or self-delusion. Covering conflicts from the eighteenth century to today, Assessing War blends focused advice and a uniquely broad set of case studies to ponder vital questions about warfare's past—and its future. The book includes a foreword by Gen. George W. Casey Jr. (USA, Ret.), former chief of staff of the US Army and former commander, Multi-National Force–Iraq.
