The State Department Office of Reconstruction and Stabilization and Its Interaction With the Department of Defense

Abstract

Over the past 15 years, the United States has been involved in seven major post-conflict reconstruction and stabilization operations. The ad hoc responses that characterized U.S. stabilization efforts in these missions have often proven inadequate. On each mission, our government has struggled to provide a responsive and enduring solution. The consequences have been the unnecessary loss of life, damage to infrastructure, and higher eventual costs for reconstruction and stabilization. Our unpreparedness to response to the instability in post-war Iraq has met with sharp criticism. In response to these failings, the Bush administration established the U.S. Department of State (DOS) Office of the Coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization (S/CRS). This paper will analyze the function of S/CRS, examine the organization's relationship with the military, and offer Department of Defense (DOD) policy recommendations to improve interagency cooperation with this new organization.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jul 01, 2005
Accession Number
ADA436010

Entities

People

  • John C. Buss

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Counter WMD
  • Materials and Manufacturing Processes

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Combat Forces
  • Combat Operations
  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Department Of Defense
  • Department Of State
  • Education
  • Employment
  • Governments
  • International Organizations
  • Lessons Learned
  • Military Planning
  • Military Science
  • Military Training
  • Personnel Management
  • Training
  • United States
  • War Colleges

Readers

  • Military and Counterinsurgency Studies.
  • Strategic Security Studies