Before, During, and After: Can Defense and State Communicate?

Abstract

Today's Long War requires, even demands, that all elements of America's national power be focused on victory. The Department of Defense (DoD) is the lead for the military element and the Department of State (DoS) is the lead for the diplomatic element, but can these two agencies communicate and synchronize their pieces of the complex victory formula? Only through a closely coordinated and synchronized war effort that relies on the National Security Strategy (NSS) as the fundamental planning document will victory be possible. This joint effort will require a fundamental change in the interagency process, including a substantial reprogramming of budgets and staffs. Indeed, recent Secretary of Defense (SECDEF) speeches and testimony assert that civilian personnel are now full partners in the Long War and must step up and fulfill their role. History reveals that the interagency challenge is not new. This SRP discusses interagency cooperation in Germany after World War II and during the Vietnam War. Next, it shows that interagency efforts during the past two presidential terms were inadequate in terms of strategy, coordination, personnel, and funding. Although both presidents recognized the complexity of the interagency, they attempted to address the issues by means of Presidential Directives. The SRP then argues that emerging processes have great potential. For example, recent changes to the National Security Council (NSC), the Office of the Coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization (S/CRS), and the Interagency Management System (IMS) all show potential for building unity of effort and unity of command in the Long War. The SRP concludes with recommendations for changes to the National Security Strategy (NSS), interagency doctrine, and interagency training that will synergize the interagency process.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 23, 2009
Accession Number
ADA499397

Entities

People

  • Christopher W. Stockel

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Materials and Manufacturing Processes

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Civilian Personnel
  • Congress
  • Department Of Defense
  • Department Of State
  • Education
  • Governments
  • International Organizations
  • Law
  • Military Budgets
  • National Governments
  • National Security
  • Personnel Management
  • Security
  • Teamwork
  • Training
  • United States
  • War Colleges

Readers

  • Joint Military Operations and Doctrine.
  • Military and Counterinsurgency Studies.