Strategic Adaptation in the 'Long War'
Abstract
The United States is currently engaged in what strategic security documents call the "long war" against terrorism. Also called the Global War on Terrorism, this struggle takes place in an international security environment that has evolved greatly since the end of the Cold War and that now includes many new actors. This new global security environment is more complex than in previous decades as a host of nonstate actors, including transnational terrorists and criminal groups, exert their influence in ways that were not possible years earlier. The greatest threat to the United States is no longer a single state with large nuclear weapon stockpiles but, instead, terrorist groups that adhere to a militant branch of Islam that professes hatred for apostate Muslim governments, Israel, and the United States. This branch of Islam, militant Salafism, is gaining in popularity among Islamic populations around the world in both Muslim and Western nations. The United States must strategically adapt to the new security environment and the rise of militant Salafism to effectively counter the growing threats. These adaptations include framing the "long war" as a global counterinsurgency and not as a war on terrorism, tempering the doctrine of prevention and the strident promotion of democracy, and recognizing the preeminence of ideology in this struggle.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 03, 2007
- Accession Number
- ADA494081
Entities
People
- James C. Boisselle
Organizations
- The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy