This study determines whether or not unconditional surrender leads to a more lasting peace. The answer is paradoxical-yes, unconditional surrender can achieve the desired effects; however, it is no longer a suitable policy in the twenty-first...
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 purpose of this monograph is to provide an in-depth study of how the U.S. miscalculation of Iraqi will to fight during the planning of Operation Iraqi Freedom contributed to post major conflict operational problems. The specific nature of these...
At the operational and strategic levels, military planners use the concepts of centers of gravity and decisive points to assist them in determining the best ways for accomplishing assigned tasks. By identifying the enemy's center of gravity, the...
In 1993, the Bottom-Up Review (BUR) concluded that the United States could fight and win in two nearly simultaneous major regional conflicts (MRCs). Nearly simultaneous required that the two MRCs be spaced at least 42 days apart to allow adequate...
This thesis examines what a soldier's legal, ethical, and moral obligations are when he is ordered to surrender but still has the will and means to resist. The question pits two of the military's highest values against one another. The first is the...
This monograph introduces a model of defeat mechanisms that could help establish a common, useful framework for planning. Brigadier General (Retired) Huba Wass de Czege’s experience and study have shown him that three basic defeat mechanisms...
The 1993 version of FN4 100-5, Operations, formally added the theoretical term of decisive points to our professional warfighting lexicon without providing a useful methodology for their identification. This monograph undertakes a study of decisive...
This monograph attempts to define the underlying cause of today’s tension between the Western and Arab-Islamic worlds, along with identification of existing similarities which can be utilized and exploited to bring about common understanding and...
The following monograph is a circumscribed look at the effects of air power on achieving political objectives. It is no way intended to be a commentary on the relative bravery of airmen compared to soldiers and sailors or an attempt to justify...
Although the end of World War II enabled devastated countries to rebuild and enjoy a time of peace, another bloody war had just started in Lithuania. Lithuanian Freedom Fighters (LFF) fought for almost a decade (1944-1953) against the Soviets who...
The problem is, valid but incompatible service theories of operational warfighting inhibit rather than promote jointness. One cause of this problem is the joint definition of the center of gravity, which is vague and ineffective. This monograph...
Coercion theory is traditionally segmented into compellence and deterrence. Recently
theorists have begun to consider coercion comprehensively. This monograph continues that line
of study and defines coercion as the threat of, or use of, elements...
Many authors in recent years have written about the Army's reaction to change. They have explored the topic from various perspectives; some look at bureaucracy, others at culture, and still others look at the increasing speed with which the Army's...
It is the enemy’s will to resist that is the true objective of war. Destruction of his armed forces is a means and not necessarily mandatory to achieve this objective. To save the precious resources of blood and treasure and to assure the...
The operational level of war lies at the heart of the United States Army's warfighting doctrine and the focus of this level of war is the operational art. In order to successfully prosecute war at the operational level, American military commanders...
United States Army Forces, Pacific, Office of the Commander-in-Chief
Psychological warfare against the Japanese homeland was conducted by the various United States and Allied commands which engaged the enemy forces in the Pacific and by other governmental agencies in the United States. This report looks at the...
Office, U.S. Secretary of the Combined Chiefs of Staff
The minutes of the Combined Chiefs' meeting at the major conferences touch on virtually every policy and strategy issue of World War II, from initial troop deployments to counter Axis aggression, through the debates about the location and timing of...
The construction, attack, and defense of field works, with a particular emphasis on field fortification; includes an introduction to the science of general fortification.
The realist paradigm is the USG's dominate perspective for conflict analysis. Historically, this perspective has served the United States well, leading to its ascension from colonial possession to global hegemon in less than two centuries. There is...