The U.S. Army is facing a time of great change. The security environment is becoming increasingly complex and uncertain, with defense challenges multiplying. At the same time, the Army is adjusting to rapidly diminishing operational demands, falling endstrength, reorganization, and tightening budgets. Given these new realities, the CSIS Harold Brown Chair in Defense Policy Studies examined the current state of the soldier/squad system and how it might be best advanced in the face of constrained budgets. The effort was conducted under the rubric of the Ground Forces Dialogue, a Brown Chair effort aimed at facilitating a broad, sustained, web-based conversation about the future of U.S. ground forces.
In this report, the CSIS Harold Brown Chair in Defense Policy Studies analyzes the types of capabilities necessary across the range of military operations, and compares that with the characteristics of amphibious ships, as well as those in the Combat Logistics Fleet, Maritime Prepositioning Force, and others. Resulting shortfalls in key capability areas suggest some degree of risk. The study then describes how amenable those risks may be to mitigation and some of the associated implications. This report provides a framework for policymakers to understand those areas in which alternative platforms might be most useful, where risks associated with their employment are most significant, and how readily broadening platforms beyond the uses for which they were designed might be accomplished.
The third background report in the New Energy, New Geopolitics series, this report examines the dramatic increase in the production of shale gas and light tight oil in the United States and suggests possible energy scenarios and strategies could emerge from the unconventional revolution. This report pairs with the original "New Energy, New Geopolitics" report and two other background reports, all available from Rowman & Littlefield: New Energy, New Geopolitics: Balancing Stability and Leverage New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 1: Energy Impacts New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 2: Geopolitical and National Security Impacts
This report evaluates the energy impacts of the dramatic increase in the production of shale gas and light tight oil in the United States. It examines how the unconventional energy trend has already impacted energy economics and policy and then posits several possible energy futures that could emerge from the unconventional revolution. This report pairs with the original "New Energy, New Geopolitics" report and two other background reports, all available from Rowman & Littlefield: New Energy, New Geopolitics: Balancing Stability and Leverage New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 2: Geopolitical and National Security Impacts New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 3: Scenarios, Strategies, and Pathways
The second background report in the New Energy, New Geopolitics series, this report evaluates the geopolitical and national security impacts of the dramatic increase in the production of shale gas and light tight oil in the United States. It examines how the unconventional energy trend has already impacted U.S. national security and geopolitics and then posits several possible energy futures that could emerge from the unconventional revolution. This report pairs with the original "New Energy, New Geopolitics" report and two other background reports, all available from Rowman & Littlefield: New Energy, New Geopolitics: Balancing Stability and Leverage New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 1: Energy Impacts New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 3: Scenarios, Strategies, and Pathways
This report evaluates the energy and geopolitical shifts that have arisen from the production of shale gas and light tight oil in the United States. It begins by assessing how much the unconventional energy trend has already impacted energy, geopolitics, and national security. The report then posits several possible energy futures that could emerge from the unconventionals revolution. Finally, it offers views on the major geostrategic question: how will the United States seek to utilize this, so far, domestic resource trend, and given the range of potential future energy outcomes, what might the geopolitical and national security implications be. This report pairs with three background reports, all available from Rowman & Littlefield: New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 1: Energy Impacts New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 2: Geopolitical and National Security Impacts New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 3: Scenarios, Strategies, and Pathways
Peace operations (POs) are arguably the military operations other than war most likely to stress the U.S. Army's ability to maintain combat readiness. POs require: a higher ratio of combat support/combat service support units and special operations forces relative to combat arms units than do major theater wars (MTWs); smaller, more tailored deployments; training for some new tasks and, more important, for a more restrictive and sensitive operational environment; and readier access to--and more of--some kinds of equipment (such as crowd and riot-control gear, nonlethal weapons, and vehicles). At a time when the Army is shrinking, changing its posture, and participating in a rising number of both exercises and operational deployments, its challenge is to both maintain MTW readiness (its primary mission) and meet the very different requirements of POs. As long as MTWs remain the national priority--and thus the Army's--the Army can make some marginal changes to force structure, training, and doctrine that will help improve PO performance while also mitigating the effects of PO deployments on MTW readiness. If POs become a higher priority, and resources remain constrained, the Army will have to trade off some MTW capabilities to better meet PO requirements. These challenges must also be viewed in light of existing Army problems (such as maintaining units at levels below normal strength and overestimating the readiness of the reserve component), which transcend POs but are severely exacerbated by PO deployments.
The study examines the demand for amphibious capabilities in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region and explores the strategic and operational utility of various models for combined U.S. and Australian amphibious forces. The demand for amphibious capabilities reflects the operational and strategic challenges faced by the U.S. Marine Corps and Australian Defense Forces. Both nations have indicated the importance of deepening their strategic partnership, yet there has been a lack of clarity around the desired outcomes for and priority among the variety of cooperative activities.
The study examines the demand for amphibious capabilities in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region and explores the strategic and operational utility of various models for combined U.S. and Australian amphibious forces. The demand for amphibious capabilities reflects the operational and strategic challenges faced by the U.S. Marine Corps and Australian Defense Forces. Both nations have indicated the importance of deepening their strategic partnership, yet there has been a lack of clarity around the desired outcomes for and priority among the variety of cooperative activities.
This report evaluates the energy and geopolitical shifts that have arisen from the production of shale gas and light tight oil in the United States. It begins by assessing how much the unconventional energy trend has already impacted energy, geopolitics, and national security. The report then posits several possible energy futures that could emerge from the unconventionals revolution. Finally, it offers views on the major geostrategic question: how will the United States seek to utilize this, so far, domestic resource trend, and given the range of potential future energy outcomes, what might the geopolitical and national security implications be. This report pairs with three background reports, all available from Rowman & Littlefield: New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 1: Energy Impacts New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 2: Geopolitical and National Security Impacts New Energy, New Geopolitics: Background Report 3: Scenarios, Strategies, and Pathways
The U.S. Army is facing a time of great change. The security environment is becoming increasingly complex and uncertain, with defense challenges multiplying. At the same time, the Army is adjusting to rapidly diminishing operational demands, falling endstrength, reorganization, and tightening budgets. Given these new realities, the CSIS Harold Brown Chair in Defense Policy Studies examined the current state of the soldier/squad system and how it might be best advanced in the face of constrained budgets. The effort was conducted under the rubric of the Ground Forces Dialogue, a Brown Chair effort aimed at facilitating a broad, sustained, web-based conversation about the future of U.S. ground forces.
In this report, the CSIS Harold Brown Chair in Defense Policy Studies analyzes the types of capabilities necessary across the range of military operations, and compares that with the characteristics of amphibious ships, as well as those in the Combat Logistics Fleet, Maritime Prepositioning Force, and others. Resulting shortfalls in key capability areas suggest some degree of risk. The study then describes how amenable those risks may be to mitigation and some of the associated implications. This report provides a framework for policymakers to understand those areas in which alternative platforms might be most useful, where risks associated with their employment are most significant, and how readily broadening platforms beyond the uses for which they were designed might be accomplished.
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