The USCG in the Pacific

08/13/2011
An Interview with Vice Admiral Manson Brown 08/09/2011 - Second Line of Defense has highlighted the USCG role and its sister services in shaping Pacific strategy.  The companion website the Second Line of Defense Forum focused its initial look at the impact of China on the evolving Pacific challenges, and…

Pondering American Grand Strategy

08/13/2011
08/12/2011: Pondering American Grand Strategy By Richard Weitz On Thursday, August 4, 2011, CNA convened a one-day unclassified conference on "American Grand Strategy and Maritime Power" at the Army and Navy Club in downtown Washington. This column will address the grand strategy issues that were raised; the next one will…

Perspectives On The Iranian Nuclear Challenge

08/09/2011
By Dr. Richard Weitz 08/09/2011 - The Iranian nuclear question was the focus of a panel discussion at the Hudson Institute on July 13. The three nuclear security experts who provided panel presentations offered both overlapping and alternative perspectives and policy prescriptions regarding the Iranian nuclear challenge. They addressed such…

Re-“Working” the Question

08/09/2011
by Michael W. Wynne 21st Secretary of the USAF Under Secretary Work focused on TACAIR options for the USN and USMC.  Work focused on “warfighter capability and affordability trades, and costs and potential cost savings of different TACAIR force structure combinations.” http://www.sldforum.com/2011/08/under-secretary-of-the-navy-robert-works-july-tac-air-memo/ Perhaps a better question would be to ask:…

PLA Navy Capabilities on the March

08/07/2011
By Dr. Richard Weitz 08/07/2011 - The PRC’s sustained military buildup has over time allowed the PLAN to modernize many of its platforms and weapons systems. Since the late 1990s, China has undertaken an ambitious modernization program that has produced approximately one hundred new warships since 2001. The PLAN already…

Re-Norming the Navy Battle Fleet: Supportable Defense Within a Manageable Budget

08/07/2011
By the Honorable Ed Timperlake [slidepress gallery='navy-battle-fleet'] 08/07/2011 - The air fleet of an enemy will never get within striking distance of our coast as long as our aircraft carriers are able to carry the preponderance of air power to sea. —   Real Admiral W. A. Moffet, Chief of the…

Jointness, Airpower, and the Emerging Security Environment

08/05/2011
By Lt. General (Retired) Deptula 08/05/2011 - Since the advent of Goldwater-Nichols, a joint approach was to move contingency organizations and operations from independent, de-conflicted, service-oriented approaches to sustained interoperability.  How well the U.S. military has done that, where we are today, and where we ought be heading, could and…