Afghanistan: A War That Can Only Be Won via the Concentration of United States Elements of National Power
Abstract
September 11, 2001 marked the deadliest single-day attacks on American soil in United States' history. Out of the dust, smoke, and carnage arose a change in American policy towards terrorism and a proclaimed commitment to wage war in Afghanistan against a determined adversary whose Islamic revolutionary ideology presents a grave threat to U.S. national interests. In relatively short order, a small United States military and CIA footprint, in concert with the Northern Alliance, toppled the ruling Taliban regime and degraded al Qaeda command and control. Consequentially, this rapid success created a window of opportunity to employ decisive U.S. diplomatic, information, military, and economic (DIME) elements of national power to achieve strategic success. Strategic success is defined as the creation of a viable Afghanistan representative government and a professional military establishment that can provide fundamental human needs to its people and security within its borders -- thereby denying al Qaeda sanctuary from which to attack the United States once again. Six years later, the United States has yet to concentrate these elements, which has resulted in indecisive operations, a fragile Afghanistan government, and the continuance of a protracted counterinsurgency fight. This paper first demonstrates the moral and legal legitimacy of the United States' decision to wage war in Afghanistan using the Just War Theory (JWT), and how critical it is in light of the pillars of its National Security Strategy. Next, the paper addresses the grave threat posed by the Islamic Revolutionary Movement (IRM). JWT, coupled with the severity of the IRM, require the concentration of U.S. elements of national power to achieve victory. The remainder of the paper addresses current DIME initiatives and offers a way ahead to better set conditions for success.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 04, 2008
- Accession Number
- ADA487223
Entities
People
- James E. Kraft Jr.
Organizations
- National Defense University