Demystifying Global Strike
Abstract
What is global strike? By now we have all heard the question or asked it ourselves, but the answer to that questions depends on whom you ask. Some think global strike is nothing more than a passing fad in defense ideology. Others say it's the assimilation of existing capabilities into an expedited mission. Ask more people and they say it's the future of American defense. Global strike is a new mission given to U.S. Strategic Command in 2002 with the major changes in the Unified Command Plan. The mission statement for global strike reads: "Global strike will deliver kinetic and non-kinetic effects on targets with a minimum of planning time and for limited duration." But what does global strike mean? In essence, global strike integrates several critical elements of future warfighting. These elements include powerful, deep strikes, across great distances, with conventional rather than nuclear weapons (conventional strategic strike), and using Space to disrupt enemy information systems including computers and satellites (information disruption). Together, these elements form the core of a "global strike" capability. Ideally, global strike can carry out military action designed to preempt an enemy from attacking the United States or our allies. Global strike could prohibit the enemy from taking actions that are counter to our interests, such as engaging in the support or aid of terrorists or making weapons of mass destruction. Global strike is an essential part of the doctrine of preemption issued by the Bush administration in Sept. 2002 in the National Security Document. In a speech made to West Point in the summer of 2003, President Bush said, "If we wait for threats to fully materialize, we have waited too long."
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2004
- Accession Number
- ADA523254
Entities
People
- Richard Wolfe
Organizations
- United States Army Space and Missile Defense Command