The War in Afghanistan: A Strategic Analysis

Abstract

This paper is a strategic analysis of the war in Afghanistan. It begins by articulating the United States' strategic objectives for the war, the approaches taken to achieve those objectives, and the resources employed in each approach. In other words, it identifies the ends, ways, and means of the United States' strategy for the war in Afghanistan. After describing what the United States is trying to accomplish in Afghanistan and how it is pursuing those objectives, the paper provides an assessment of the strategy. The assessment focuses primarily on whether or not the United States has achieved its strategic objectives. It describes, in broad terms, the United States' strategic successes and failures in Afghanistan. The analysis concludes by describing a number of implications for the future, to include what U.S. successes and failures may mean for the broader, global war on terrorism.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 07, 2003
Accession Number
ADA420140

Entities

People

  • G. K. Herring

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Afghanistan
  • Central Asia
  • Department Of State
  • Governments
  • International Organizations
  • Joint Military Activities
  • Military Operations
  • Military Organizations
  • National Governments
  • National Security
  • Nato
  • Strategic Analysis
  • Terrorism
  • Terrorists
  • Unconventional Warfare
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Fields of Study

  • Political science

Readers

  • Strategic Security Studies