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801. China, Space Weapons, and U.S. Security

Author:
Bruce W. MacDonald
Publication Date:
09-2008
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Council on Foreign Relations
Abstract:
On January 11, 2007, China launched a missile into space, releasing a homing vehicle that destroyed an old Chinese weather satellite. The strategic reverberations of that collision have shaken up security thinking in the United States and around the world. This test demonstrated that, if it so chose, China could build a substantial number of these anti- satellite weapons (ASAT) and thus might soon be able to destroy substantial numbers of U.S. satellites in low earth orbit (LEO), upon which the U.S. military heavily depends. On February 21, 2008, the United States launched a modified missile-defense interceptor, destroying a U.S. satellite carrying one thousand pounds of toxic fuel about to make an uncontrolled atmospheric reentry. Thus, within fourteen months, China and the United States both demonstrated the capability to destroy LEO satellites, heralding the arrival of an era where space is a potentially far more contested domain than in the past, with few rules.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Defense Policy, and Diplomacy
Political Geography:
United States, China, and Asia

802. Free Hand Abroad, Divide And Rule At Home

Author:
Jack Snyder, Robert Y. Shapiro, and Yaeli Bloch-Elkon
Publication Date:
03-2008
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Arnold A. Saltzman Institute of War and Peace Studies
Abstract:
Under unipolarity, the immediate costs and risks of war are more likely to seem manageable for a militarily dominant power like the U.S. This does not necessarily make the use of force cheap or wise, but it means that the costs and risks of the use of force are comparatively indirect, long-term, and thus highly subject to interpretation. Unipolarity, combined with the opportunity created by September 11, opened a space for interpretation that tempted a highly ideological foreign policy cohort to seize on international terrorism as an issue to transform the balance of power in both the international system and American party politics. This cohort's response to the terrorist attack was grounded in ideological sincerity, but also in the routine practice of wedge issue politics, which had been honed on domestic issues during three decades of partisan ideological polarization and then extended into foreign policy.
Topic:
Defense Policy, Government, International Political Economy, and Terrorism
Political Geography:
United States and America

803. Information Operations during Counterinsurgency Operations: Essential Option for a Limited Response

Author:
Raimundo Rodríguez Roca
Publication Date:
01-2008
Content Type:
Journal Article
Journal:
Athena Intelligence Journal
Institution:
Athena Intelligence
Abstract:
The importance of Information in the XXI century has become a fact that nobody can deny. The relevant role of the Information in societies can be observed as well during the development of conflicts where western forces participate. That is one of the reasons why controlling information flow arises as a significant requirement. The purpose of this article is to present a theory of operational and tactical information operations (IO) employment, as limited and non-lethal effects during counterinsurgency operations (COIN), with an important role to support area control. Firstly, this study will mainly focus on four integrating elements of IO: psychological operations (PSYOPS), civil-military operations (CMO), public affairs (PA) and computer network operations (CNO). Secondly, a practical case of IO execution will be simulated and a concept of operation will be developed. It should be noted that the approach presented herein is from a Spanish Army perspective. As we will appreciate in this article, the knowledge and managing of IO and the employment of CNO as a tool to empower PSYOPS, CMO and PA activities is of extreme significance and it will become essential to understand and to face the scenes of future conflicts and new wars.
Topic:
Defense Policy
Political Geography:
Europe and Spain

804. The Decision-Making Process behind Launching an ESDP Crisis Management Operation

Author:
Annika Björkdahl and Maria Strömvik
Publication Date:
04-2008
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Danish Institute for International Studies
Abstract:
Overall, the development of the European security and defence policy (ESDP) and the deployment of ESDP operations have been nothing less than impressive. At the time of writing the EU has, within a five-year period, initiated twenty-one ESDP operations, on three continents, of which about a dozen are presently ongoing. The rapid growth of this completely new field of activities for the EU has placed new demands on the whole system of ESDP decision-making. Contrary to most EU policy areas, decision-making concerning ESDP operations involves all member states at all times and with a right to veto the process at any time (with the partial exception of Denmark). This examination of the European Union's decision-making process for launching EU-led peace support operations captures and describes the dynamics of the process and investigates the working methods of ESDP decision-making. It reveals that the intergovernmental character of this process is more fluid and involves fewer formalised steps than one would imagine at a first glance. At times the processes preceding the launch of an ESDP operation can also be surprisingly quick, although at other times it displays bottlenecks for instance in the force generation process constraining efficiency and rapidity of decision-making. One of the biggest challenges facing the EU today relates to capacity – in terms of planning, funding and availability of civilian and military personnel and equipment for ESDP operations.
Topic:
Defense Policy
Political Geography:
Europe

805. Asia — Shaping the Future

Author:
Douglas H. Paal
Publication Date:
06-2008
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract:
Washington has no proactive vision toward a “rising Asia”; “more of the same” will not advance U.S. interests. Decide early on clear U.S. strategic objectives in the region, and signal to China where constructive cooperation will lead. Appoint a high-level advocate for Asia befitting its status as the new global “center of gravity.” Prioritize the bewildering alphabet of organizations and venues to achieve those objectives. Consider inviting China and India to join the G8. Anticipate greater Chinese and Indian military and trade capabilities by developing new multilateral security and economic arrangements in the region. Avoid coalitions based on common values or democracy. Asia is too diverse and complicated for them to succeed. Ditch the “war on terror” rhetoric, which has proved divisive and counterproductive.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Defense Policy, Diplomacy, and International Cooperation
Political Geography:
China, Washington, India, and Asia

806. The "Real" al Qaeda

Author:
Frederick W. Kagan
Publication Date:
04-2008
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
Abstract:
In a recent article, AEI resident scholar Frederick W. Kagan examined one of the recurring themes in the recent congressional hearings on the situation in Iraq. General David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker were repeatedly told that the size and scope of our Iraq effort were preventing the United States from prevailing in the "real fight" against al Qaeda in the Afghan-Pakistan border region. Kagan, the author of four reports on Iraq strategy, including the latest, Iraq: The Way Ahead, examines the reality of the popular claim.
Topic:
Defense Policy, Terrorism, and War
Political Geography:
Afghanistan, Iraq, Middle East, and Asia

807. Two Decades Late

Author:
Frederick W. Kagan
Publication Date:
06-2008
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
Abstract:
More than five years after the war on terror began, the strains it has placed on the U.S. military are beginning to show. Some observers have noticed increasing signs of tension between the Pentagon and our commanders in the field. Inter service rivalries have started to kick up again as the U.S. Marines talk about getting back to their boats; the U.S. Navy talks about recapitalizing parts of its fleet; and the U.S. Air Force takes up the case of the F-22, the Joint Strike Fighter, and so on, with reference to more-or-less distant threat.
Topic:
Defense Policy and War
Political Geography:
United States

808. African Voices on AFRICOM

Publication Date:
02-2008
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Africa Policy Information Center
Abstract:
Due to the perceived importance of Africa in the U.S. “war on terror” and the increasing U.S. dependence on African oil, President Bush announced on February 6, 2007 the establishment of a Unified Command for U.S. military forces in Africa, known as AFRICOM. According to Bush, “The Africa command will enhance our efforts to bring peace and security to the people of Africa and promote our common goals of development, health, education, democracy, and economic growth in Africa.
Topic:
Defense Policy
Political Geography:
Africa and United States

809. The United States:A normative power?

Author:
Daniel S. Hamilton
Publication Date:
05-2008
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Centre for European Policy Studies
Abstract:
To what degree may the US be considered a normative power? The US foreign policy mainstream tends to reflect a varying blend of normative and hegemonic approaches. The US has been and continues to be simultaneously a guardian of international norms; a norm entrepreneur challenging prevailing norms as insufficient; a norm externaliser when it tries to advance norms for others that it is reluctant to apply to itself; and a norm blocker when it comes to issues that may threaten its position, or that exacerbate divisions among conflicting currents of American domestic thought. On balance (and despite exceptions), the US has sought to manage this normative-hegemonic interplay by accepting some limits on its power in exchange for greater legitimacy and acceptance of its leadership by others. The unresolved question today is whether the US and other key players are prepared to stick with this bargain. Closer examination of the US case also raises a considerable number of questions about the notion of the EU as a 'normative power'.
Topic:
International Relations, Foreign Policy, Defense Policy, International Law, International Organization, and International Political Economy
Political Geography:
Africa, United States, and Europe

810. Missile Defence Systems: Global and Regional Implications

Author:
Dennis M. Gormley, Catherine M. Kelleher, and Scott Warren
Publication Date:
10-2008
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
The Geneva Centre for Security Policy
Abstract:
The GCSP hosted a workshop on missile defence systems, supported by the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. A range of experts, officials and academics contributed to the policy discussion on current and future issues related to missile defence systems. Participants sought to develop a common understanding of current missile defence capabilities, as well as potential threats. Throughout the workshop, experts explored military-technical and political-diplomatic responses to these identified threats.
Topic:
Security, Defense Policy, Nuclear Weapons, War, and Weapons of Mass Destruction
Political Geography:
Switzerland