The Economics of War Planning: An Addition to the Clausewitzian Trinity
Abstract
The attached monograph seeks to analyze in general terms the economic dimension in war planning. It focuses on the causes and implications of the often inescapable incompatibility between political/economic objectives and military aims. Much of what the monograph argues has only recently been discerned from Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm. It was a modern war of the kind whose effects we anticipated in AirLand Battle, but resulted in compressing the doctrine into ways never before visualized. Principally, the monograph seeks to analyze the economic domain through Clausewitz's framework of war. The author examines Clausewitz's trinity and suggests a modified version to his theory. Although the spectrum of the economic domain encompasses political, psychological, and military elements, the paper emphasizes the latter. This can be seen in the utility of finding economic features which may lead a planner to economic decisive points. The economic dimension is discussed to some degree, but only as a vehicle for continuity or for demonstrating the economic impact on military activities. The result of this research led the author to conclude that one can not limit himself to the destruction of the enemy's forces as the main effort without considering other possible centers of gravity such as their economic capacity to wage war.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- May 15, 1991
- Accession Number
- ADA243344
Entities
People
- Jeffrey W. Karhohs
Organizations
- United States Army Command and General Staff College