| Description |
1 online resource (viii, 48 pages) |
| Series |
Walker papers ;! no. 19 |
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Walker paper (Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala.) ; no. 19.
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| Contents |
Introduction -- Strategic Baggage -- US interest and military presence necessary and sustainable -- Assessing total costs -- Short- and long-term strategic trades -- Risks of long-term military presence -- Conclusion |
| Summary |
"Is U.S. military presence in the Middle East sustainable at current levels? Troop levels are low in individual war zones, casualties are rare, and the fiscal cost is a bargain by historical standards. However, these estimates do not take into account strategic baggage accrued over the last two decades of sustained engagement in the region. Baggage is not just the weight of commitments of the past, but also the inability to let it go. The sustained presence in the region limits choices impacting current readiness and future defense strategy. A more comprehensive analysis of U.S. military commitments to the Mid-East is achieved using a framework of analysis to evaluate perceived benefits, costs, and risks over time. This tally would include a wider scope of costs: tangible, societal, and forgone opportunities. The main opportunity costs are the strategic trade-offs between sustaining current overseas requirements and preparing a force for the future. In terms of developing and executing a defense strategy, the tension plays out during dialogue about readiness, capability, and capacity. National security leaders articulate pros and cons of trade-offs to identify the most consequential decisions about risk tolerance. Finally, maintaining baggage incurs risks in terms of unintended conse-quences, mission creep, potential for inadvertent escalation, and may lead to strategic insolvency. The nation is at an inflection point given the evolving world order and ero-sion of U.S. military advantages. To prepare for the future the U.S. military cannot replace hard-nosed analysis with hope and delay tough choices. A superpower should be able to sustain its posture in the Middle East, but also be forthright about the true costs to Americans and impacts on future readiness. The U.S. should find ways to jettison or minimize strategic baggage in the Middle East in order to devote more time and resources to invest in the future."--Abstract |
| Notes |
At head of title: Air University, Air Force Fellows |
| Bibliography |
Includes bibliographical references |
| Notes |
Online resource; title from PDF file (Air University Press website, viewed on August 26, 2021) |
| Subject |
Armed Forces.
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Military policy.
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Military relations.
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Strategic aspects of individual places.
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| SUBJECT |
United States -- Military policy.
http://id.loc.gov/authorities/subjects/sh85140379
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United States -- Armed Forces -- Middle East
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United States -- Military relations -- Middle East
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Middle East -- Military relations -- United States
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Middle East -- Strategic aspects
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| Subject |
Middle East.
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United States.
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| Form |
Electronic book
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| Author |
Air University (U.S.). Press, publisher.
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Air University (U.S.). Air Force Fellows.
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