Sun Tzu's War Theory in the Twenty First Century

Abstract

War theories have great impacts on warfare. They provide ways to think about issues, and advice on problem solving regarding wars and use of force. Fundamentally, modern war theories are based on cultures, observation of war behaviors, and technology. The core values of a war theory are still of the human dimension. Therefore, prevention of any armed conflict still tends to be human nature of 20th century and will continue toward the 21st century with 4th Generation Warfare. In accordance with "winning without fighting a battle" scenario, I will argue that the battle-prevention theory school is the most suitable, and Sun Tzu's classic The Art of War is the best choice of approach. This paper will further discuss why Sun Tzu's theory is so precious and applicable in terms of modern strategic environment and contemporary values of his sophisticated theory.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 01, 2007
Accession Number
ADA470026

Entities

People

  • Li-sheng A. Kuo

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • Counter WMD
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Human Systems
  • Space

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Education
  • History
  • Human Intelligence
  • Intergovernmental Organizations
  • International Organizations
  • Joint Military Activities
  • Military Organizations
  • Military Science
  • National Security
  • Seal Teams
  • Second World War
  • Special Operations Forces
  • Students
  • Terrorists
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.
  • Systems Analysis and Design