Smart Power And U.S. National Strategy

The publication of Dr. Wong-Diaz's monograph coincides with a major strategic reassessment of U.S. national security interests and future military posture taking place at the national level. Driven by the end of Operation New Dawn, the last phase of the Iraq War, and the impending withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan, this reassessment considers both the desired international role of the United States and the military posture needed to secure U.S. interests. At the same time, politically mobilized populations have brought sweeping change to the Middle East and North Africa, creating security challenges that cannot be met solely through conventional military means. Indeed, the strategic environment the U.S. finds itself in today requires astute statecraft to formulate and execute grand strategy, a concept Dr. Wong-Diaz explores in depth. For the last 10 years the United States has projected its national power primarily through large-scale troop deployment in major contingency operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. At the time of the 9/11 attacks, the United States was indisputably the world's super power, able to exert dominant influence across the globe. There were few challenges to the nation's economic and conventional military strength. A decade later, the U.S. position in the world has changed dramatically. Though the United States remains the world's largest economy and retains unparalleled military capability, very high levels of debt undermine America's global stature. In 2010, Admiral Mike Mullen, then Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, declared the national debt to be the most severe threat to national security, undermining U.S. capability to act. Indeed, attempts to reign in the national debt will require deep cuts in defense spending. Under the current budget request to Congress the U.S. Department of Defense will reduce spending by $487 billion over the next 10 years, a 20 percent decrease from 2010 levels. To pursue its global interests in an era characterized by austerity, the United States will need to draw on all of its tools of statecraft-including diplomatic, economic, psychological, and subversive-as well as military means. The term "hard power" often refers to conventional military force, economic sanctions, and other coercive means, including diplomacy. 'Soft power' is the x ability to influence others to act in ways that achieve one's goals. To achieve its goals the United States must conduct strategies that effectively blend all forms of power and uses them smartly to achieve its goals. Though there is no agreement on what constitutes smart use of U.S. power, the concept of "smart power" is a dominant theme in policy circles. Smart power, however defined, is directly relevant to the SOF community. With a smaller footprint than conventional forces, SOF are both a costeffective and less visible instrument of national power. Moreover, SOF warriors are '3-D' warriors, skilled in diplomacy, development, and defense, and expected to combine both 'hard' and 'soft' power approaches instinctively to achieve strategic level effects. Using case studies from around the world, Dr. Wong-Diaz's monograph expertly draws the links between the strategic level projection of power by states and their consequences on the ground. Undoubtedly this monograph will spark significant debate for years to come. Kenneth H. Poole, Ed.D. Director, JSOU Strategic Studies Department

• | Author: Francisco R. Wong-diaz
• | Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
• | Publication Date: Aug 09, 2017
• | Number of Pages: 130 pages
• | Language: English
• | Binding: Paperback
• | ISBN-10: 1974399834
• | ISBN-13: 9781974399833