Roles and Missions for Special Operations Forces in the 1990's

Abstract

The challenges of the new world order in which the United States finds itself in the 1990's mandate a fresh look at how our special operations forces should be employed. Without a Soviet Union to serve as our defense focus, we must reconsider the various threats to our security and national interests, and consider how best to train, equip and organize to address them. The public groundswell demanding economies from the government in general, and the defense establishment in particular, forces the special operations forces to examine their capabilities and to look for ways to accomplish additional missions. While many tend to link special operating forces with low intensity conflict, recent experience in mid-intensity conflict proves their usefulness in that level as well. We must be prudent in the choices we make about missions and capabilities in the near term, so that we don't eliminate or degrade forces which offer a great deal of flexibility across the wide spectrum of conflict.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Feb 08, 1993
Accession Number
ADA264205

Entities

People

  • John M. Mitchell

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Human Systems
  • Sensors
  • Space
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Civil Affairs
  • Department Of Defense
  • Employment
  • Governments
  • Law
  • Low Intensity Conflict
  • Military History
  • National Security
  • Personnel Management
  • Psychological Operations
  • Security
  • Special Forces
  • Special Operations Forces
  • United States
  • United States Special Operations Command
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Irregular Warfare and Special Operations Cyberspace Operations against Adversarial Threats.
  • Strategic Security Studies