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In the News

Pentagon Crosses $1 Trillion Threshold In War On Terror Spending

June 21, 2011 Bloomberg

The Pentagon says it has spent at least $1 trillion prosecuting the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and defending the U.S. homeland, according to newly released Defense Department figures through April 30/.../

In the News

A Soldier’s Soldier

June 13, 2011 Army Times

Gen. Ray Odierno has been chosen to become Army chief of staff, to replace Gen. Martin Dempsey, who was nominated to be chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff/…/

In the News

Interview with Jim Thomas: Challenging the Conventional Wisdom on US Traditional Alliances from Protectorates to Partnerships

June 10, 2011 Small Wars Journal

America’s alliances are quite real, but they differ from a number of historical alliances in that the preponderance of military power was invested in the US military. The fragility of post-war economies in Europe and Northeast Asia limited what those states could do for their own defense, and led to their dependence on the US military to provide for their security. Consequently, they became to all intents and purposes protectorates of the US; that is, they became dependent on the US for their protection from the Soviet Union. What is troubling is that even in the aftermath of their economic recoveries and the dissolution of the Soviet empire, these states have not increased defense spending, but have in fact further reduced such spending and become even more dependent on the US to protect their interests, especially out of area.

In the News

Panetta’s Excellent Pentagon Adventure: Cut Cash, Rewrite Strategy

June 8, 2011 Wired Magazine

CIA Director Leon Panetta knows what his overriding task will be as President Obama’s next defense secretary: cutting the defense budget down to size. No one needs to wait for his Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday to hear about that. But defense analysts are itching to hear how Panetta will adjust U.S. defense strategy to make the impending budget cuts make sense/…/

In the News

Resourcing the AirSea Battle Concept

June 6, 2011 Defense Magazine

China’s rapidly improving military capability and its increasingly aggressive effort to keep U.S. military forces out of striking range are raising concerns about America’s future ability to protect its vital interest and its allies in Northeast Asia.

In the News

Military Personnel, Retirees Could Face Cuts

June 4, 2011 News Herald

President Obama announced earlier this year the need for about $400 billion in military-related budget cuts over the next decade.

Understanding NATO’s Concept for Deterrence and Defense of the Euro-Atlantic Area

May 20, 2024 Katherine Kjellström Elgin, Sean Monaghan, Sara Bjerg Moller

NATO, the largest and most powerful military alliance in history, turned seventy-five in April. In July, the leaders of NATO will return to the city where its founding document, the Washington Treaty, was signed in 1949. Most people have heard of NATO. Fewer know its most important document is the Strategic Concept, which is updated every decade or so, and sets the Alliance’s strategy. An even smaller group know about NATO’s “Concept for Deterrence and Defence of the Euro-Atlantic Area.”

More of the Same? The Future of the Russian Military And Its Ability to Change

Assessing the type of threat that Russia is likely to pose in the aftermath of the war in Ukraine is a critical challenge for the United States and its allies. What will the Russian military look like in the future? Some argue that the Russian military will remain a significant threat – and perhaps become a very different and even more serious one. This argument holds that the Russian military will reconstitute in a relatively short time frame and may reform according to lessons learned during the war in Ukraine. Others argue that the Russian military will pose a far less formidable conventional threat going forward. Not only has the war against Ukraine exposed fundamental weaknesses in the Russian military, the argument goes, but Moscow’s ability to address those weaknesses will be limited by available manpower, sanctions, and export controls.

An Ongoing and Necessary Renaissance: NATO’s Nuclear Posture

January 25, 2024 Eric Edelman, Franklin C. Miller

President Putin’s nuclear saber-rattling while the war in Ukraine has raged, along with lurid nuclear threats by Russian officials and propagandists, have once again focused attention on NATO’s nuclear mission. As the alliance approaches a summit in Washington later this summer, it is an appropriate time to review its nuclear posture.

Strengthening the Phalanx: Layered, Comprehensive, and Distributed Air and Missile Defense in the Indo-Pacific

January 17, 2024 Carl Rehberg, Herbert Kemp

One of the most critical operational challenges the United States is likely to confront in a future conflict, particularly in the Indo-Pacific theater, is the threat of massed precision-guided air and missile attacks on overseas ports, bases, and other vital facilities. DoD has invested significant resources to defend against ballistic missile attacks on the United States, as well as its forward bases and forward-operating forces. However, it cannot still defeat large numbers of ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and unmanned aerial systems.

Inconsistent Congress: Analysis of the 2024 Defense Budget Request

After increasing the Department of Defense (DoD) budget in real terms during seven of the past eight fiscal years, Congress has now pivoted toward restraining spending by passing the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023. Approved in early June as part of the debt ceiling deal, the law imposes a liberating limit on defense. It unshackles defense spending from parity with nondefense spending but still caps military budgets at or near current spending levels for the next two fiscal years while brandishing the threat of a lowered defense cap and potential sequestration if Congress delays in passing full-year appropriations for any budget account.

More of the Same? The Future of the Russian Military And Its Ability to Change

Strengthening the Phalanx: Layered, Comprehensive, and Distributed Air and Missile Defense in the Indo-Pacific

Inconsistent Congress: Analysis of the 2024 Defense Budget Request

Evaluate Like We Operate: Why DOD Should Evaluate Weapons Systems as Networked Force Packages, Not Individual Platforms

Extending Deterrence by Detection: The Case for Integrating Unmanned Aircraft Systems Into the Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness

Beyond Precision: Maintaining America’s Strike Advantage in Great Power Conflict

The Decisive Decade: United States–China Competition in Defense Innovation and Defense Industrial Policy in and Beyond the 2020s

Speeding Toward Instability? Hypersonic Weapons and the Risks of Nuclear Use

Air Power Metamorphosis: Rethinking Air Force Combat Force Modernization

Innovating for Great Power Competition: An Examination of Service and Joint Innovation Efforts

2023 Annual Report

Featured Event

Report Release Webinar: Strengthening the Phalanx: Layered, Comprehensive, and Distributed Air and Missile Defense in the Indo-Pacific

Pentagon Crosses $1 Trillion Threshold In War On Terror Spending

A Soldier’s Soldier

Interview with Jim Thomas: Challenging the Conventional Wisdom on US Traditional Alliances from Protectorates to Partnerships

Panetta’s Excellent Pentagon Adventure: Cut Cash, Rewrite Strategy

Resourcing the AirSea Battle Concept

Military Personnel, Retirees Could Face Cuts

Latest Publications

Understanding NATO’s Concept for Deterrence and Defense of the Euro-Atlantic Area

More of the Same? The Future of the Russian Military And Its Ability to Change

2023 Annual Report

An Ongoing and Necessary Renaissance: NATO’s Nuclear Posture

Strengthening the Phalanx: Layered, Comprehensive, and Distributed Air and Missile Defense in the Indo-Pacific

Inconsistent Congress: Analysis of the 2024 Defense Budget Request