1998 Strategic Assessment Engaging Power For Peace

Book excerpt: Over the past few years the Department of Defense has been intensifying its study of the global security situation, U.S. force posture, and future defense requirements. The National Defense University contributes to this dialog through Strategic Assessment, an annual publication which applies the expertise of this institution through the leadership of its interdisciplinary research arm, the Institute for National Strategic Studies, with the assistance of specialists from elsewhere in government and academe. Offering such analyses, in both general and particular areas of interest to the national security community is an important aspect of the NDU mission. This volume examines various approaches that the United States might adopt to shape the strategic environment of the future. The current environment is characterized by instability and change. The U.S. Government needs to apply the full range of options at its disposal to achieve national goals and ensure the peace and stability required to preserve our rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. But such options must be studied and conceptualized for years (and in some cases, decades) in advance to take advantage of the opportunities presented by a changing global environment. The recent Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) recommended a series of defense posture changes. This volume reviews these recommendations and takes the next analytical step, to propose what is entailed by such changes. Strategic Assessment 1998: Engaging Power for Peace should prove useful beyond the defense establishment, to all readers with an interest in national security affairs.