Paper #50. All-Effects Warfare and Narrative Strategy in Ukraine 2014 & 2022
- April 26, 2022
- ICSL admin
- Eurasia, Strategy
- No Comments
Authoritarians wage all-effects warfare that democracies don’t regard as “real war.” The problem is that many so-called peacetime operations are information warfare and narrative strategies designed to shape conditions for “real warfare.” Such as inducing local support of a follow-on invasion force (Ukraine, 2014). Note: “warfare” refers to methods of war, whereas “war” is a…
Note #23. Net Assessment and JADC2: A Step Toward All-Effects Warfare?
- October 7, 2021
- Thomas A. Drohan, Ph.D., Brig Gen USAF ret.
- Asia-Pacific, Cyber, Eurasia, Strategy
- No Comments
Net Assessment The purpose of net assessment is to gain an asymmetric advantage over competitors. US goals generally seek technological superiority. The US Office of Net Assessment, in a rare run of leadership continuity (Andy Marshall, 1973-2015), analyzed strategic competitions and recommended offsets against adversary strengths. Some offsets threatened the mutual vulnerability of Mutual Assured…
Paper #37. The Strategy Cuboid: Elements, Dimensions, and Targets in the Global Information Environment
- March 26, 2021
- Thomas A. Drohan, Ph.D, Brig Gen USAF ret.
- Cyber, Security, Strategy
- No Comments
The need for a comprehensive approach to strategy that’s relevant to the global information environment is made clear by recent cyber and information attacks. The Solar Winds and Hafnium attacks from US data centers occurred in a context of persistent disinformation campaigns (Russia, China). Yet the US cyber, info ops and law enforcement communities have…
Paper #26. Supply Chain Competition & Warfare II: Strategic Decisions and Integrative Options
- July 7, 2020
- Thomas A. Drohan, Ph.D., Brig Gen USAF ret.
- Asia-Pacific, Commercial, Cyber, Eurasia, Strategy
- No Comments
Authoritarian states are weaponizing supply chains into all-effects warfare while democratic states compete with inferior strategies. We can be more competitive and wage superior complex warfare in kind.
Stick & Rudder #4. A Basic US Strategy Toward Russia: more than Deter & Defend
- June 4, 2020
- Thomas A. Drohan, Ph.D., Brig Gen USAF ret.
- Americas, Eurasia, Security, Strategy
- No Comments
If strategy means anything, it should have definition and purpose. US strategy toward the current Russia regime, and just about any competitor, continues to be described simplistically as deter and defend.
Note #13. Waiting to Win & Being Proactive
- January 22, 2020
- Thomas A. Drohan, Ph.D., Brig Gen USAF ret.
- Leadership, Strategy
- No Comments
Waiting to retaliate against use of force is a losing strategy by itself. The problem is, reacting to attacks fits prevailing outdated expectations of warfare.
Stick & Rudder #1. A Basic US Strategy Toward Iran: Deterrence, Defense, Persuasion & Coercion
- January 16, 2020
- Thomas A. Drohan, Ph.D., Brig Gen USAF ret.
- Middle East & North Africa, Strategy
- No Comments
In August 2019 (Note #11), while waiting to see if Iran’s shootdown of a US drone would prompt a counterstrike, I noted the apparently contradictory US policies.
Paper #12. Time to Recreate Effective Competitive Advantage: Strategy, Technology and Information
- October 29, 2019
- Thomas A. Drohan, Ph.D., Brig Gen USAF ret.
- Commercial, Leadership, Strategy
- No Comments
In 1983, Project Socrates began as a Reagan initiative to develop technology-driven competitive advantage. Then it ended.
Paper #11. China’s All-Effects All-Domain Strategy in an All-Encompassing Information Environment
- October 11, 2019
- Thomas A. Drohan, Ph.D., Brig Gen USAF ret.
- Asia-Pacific, Strategy
- No Comments
The essence of Chinese strategy consists of waging complex wars that exploit opponents’ expectations of warfare. The operational design creates preventative and causative effects that blend confrontation with cooperation, imposing dilemmas on opponents. Such asymmetric effects win wars via information that changes opponents’ behavior.
Paper #8. How to Integrate National Defense & Security Strategies: A Detailed Analysis
- August 16, 2019
- Thomas A. Drohan, Ph.D., Brig Gen USAF ret.
- Americas, Commercial, Leadership, Security, Strategy
- No Comments
As a detailed follow-on to The US National Security Strategy Needs Combined Effects, this paper integrates combined effects with the US National Defense Strategy (NDS), too.
Note # 7. Iran’s Shoot-down and a Strategic US Response
- June 20, 2019
- Thomas A. Drohan, Ph.D., Brig Gen USAF ret.
- Middle East & North Africa, Strategy
- No Comments
The Iranian regime’s shoot-down of an unmanned, non-stealth, hyper-expensive US reconnaissance aircraft in international airspace today was a highly anticipate-able event.
Note #6. A Response to Paper #4: Situational Awareness, Leadership and Strategy
- June 18, 2019
- Thomas A. Drohan, Ph.D., Brig Gen USAF ret.
- Leadership, Strategy
- No Comments
The first plenary of the US National Defense University’s Asia Policy Assembly today noted the tendency of US grand strategy to react to threats.
Paper #1. Tactics of Strategy and Strategy of Tactics: Winning and Losing in Complex Competition and Warfare
- April 15, 2019
- Thomas A. Drohan, Brig Gen USAF ret.
- Strategy
- No Comments
Smart competitors are using tactics of strategy to achieve broader-than-military objectives, while US policies produce strategies of tactics that deploy forces for ambiguous purposes.