INTRODUCTION

The US Armed Forces protect and preserve the United States as a free nation. US forces help assure the physical security of the United States as a democracy and protect US interests abroad. The basic military strategy of the United States is the deterrence of war. A credible deterrent across the full spectrum of conflict requires a strong military posture. Although strong support by the Administration and Congress has generated improvements in our warfighting capability during recent years, much of this gain could be lost if funding cuts in rate of growth continue.

MILITARY POSTURE

AND GLOBAL REALITIES

The United States has global interests and commitments. The security interests of the United States, its allies, and friends continue to be challenged by the sustained growth and complexity of Soviet military power, Eastern bloc and surrogate exploitation of regional conflicts, and instabilities in many areas of the world.

The Soviets continue to modernize their strategic nuclear, theater nuclear, and conventional forces and their capabilities for projecting military power. Together with clients and surrogates, they are attempting to weaken the ties between the United States and its allies and to extend their influence in the Third World. Soviet global ambitions further impede the peaceful resolution of Third World problems and contribute to regional instability in ways that promote wider conflict.

US military strategy seeks to deter attacks against the United States and its allies, limit Soviet capabilities for coercion, and provide the flexibility to respond appropriately to aggression. Therefore, US forces must be capable of meeting regional challenges as well as threats of global dimension. Readiness, sustainability, and sound force dispositions are imperatives of the US military posture.

Global Considerations

US interests are best pursued within a stable, peaceful international community. Armed conflicts, international terrorism, and regional instability adversely affect the United States and its allies with potential global implications. These challenges have led to the development of sophisticated US mili

tary forces and to the need for collective approaches to security.

The Soviet Union continues its efforts to influence international events through disinformation, foreign aid, negotiations, the introduction of Soviet equipment and personnel, the use of surrogate forces, support to insurgencies, and, in the case of Afghanistan, direct military intervention.

The continuing Soviet buildup of nuclear and conventional forces has global significance. Soviet military capabilities have put great pressure on US and allied defensive strategies and threaten international stability. The United States and Soviet Union could inflict unprecedented damage on each other by the use of strategic nuclear forces. Nevertheless, the Soviets have continued to develop strategic offensive and defensive capabilities in an effort to reduce the credibility of the US deterrent, to increase the options available to the Soviet leaders, and to diminish the options open to the United States and its allies. The Soviets' heavy dependence on military capabilities, along with their expansionist policies, continues to threaten the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and serves to maintain pressure on the Eastern bloc to ensure Warsaw Pact cohesion. In addition, the Soviet Union has broadened the scope of its military activity outside Europe, as shown by its aggression in Afghanistan; extensive maritime. operations, especially from facilities at Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam; and the accelerated buildup of air, ground, and naval forces in the Soviet Far East and the Pacific. The Soviets continue to expand their use of space for military purposes. These activities, along with increased Soviet support and employment of surrogates throughout the underdeveloped world, provide challenges to the West.

Implications for US
Strategy and Forces

Military strategy is designed to meet the challenges to US security interests. Such interrelated factors as US-USSR relations, relative strengths and weaknesses of major nations, global military balance, arms control agreements, and current regional military situations must be considered in the formulation of strategy and the development of forces to support

US military strategy and force levels must be adequate to confront a wide range of challenges, from low-intensity conflict to threats involving modern conventional and nuclear forces.

US MILITARY STRATEGY

The security requirements summarized above form the basis for US military strategy to support the more comprehensive national security objectives. The US military strategy seeks to deter war while maintaining a secure environment within which the United States, its allies, and its friends can pursue legitimate interests. This strategy of deterrence is rooted in a national commitment to peace and freedom.

Elements of the Strategy

The fundamental elements of US military strategy are nuclear deterrence supported by negotiated arms reductions and the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI); strong alliances; forward-deployed forces; a strong central reserve; force mobility; freedom of the seas, air, and space; effective command and control; and good intelligence.

Nuclear Deterrence With Arms Reductions

The fundamental objective of US nuclear forces is to remove all incentives for direct attack against the United States and its allies by promising a devastating retaliation to any attacker. The Soviet Union has continued to challenge the US

guarantee of effective retaliation and has threatened US deterrent capabilities by strengthening certain measures of Soviet nuclear strength. To counter growing Soviet nuclear warfighting potential, the United States places high priority on the modernization of its nuclear forces and, under SDI, the study of means for defending against ballistic missile attack. Equitable and verifiable arms reduction agreements are being pursued in parallel with modernization programs. The goal of the United States is a more stable nuclear balance at lower levels of armament.

Strong Alliances

US military strategy is based on a system of strong alliances (Figure 1-1). The shared values and combined economic strength of friendly countries provide a firm basis for effective collective security among the NATO nations, Pacific nations, and US allies elsewhere. The cohesion of US collective security arrangements requires understanding that interests of the United States and its allies may not always coincide. Nevertheless, US alliances are more reliable than those of the Soviet Union because they are built on voluntary association, shared values, mutual trust, common purpose, and strong commitment.

In this period of challenges to the nuclear balance between the United States and the Soviet Union, conventional military forces have become increasingly important. The Warsaw Pact has fielded large. armed forces with modern conventional, chemical, and nonstrategic nuclear weapons. The United States alone does not match these forces in numbers. US allies make a significant contribution to deterrence by providing weaponry, well-trained manpower, facilities, and control of key geographical areas, thereby enabling the Free World to meet Soviet challenges.

The United States, with its NATO allies, is pursuing increased stability at lower levels of forces in Europe's Central Region through the NATO-Warsaw Pact Mutual and Balanced Force Reduction (MBFR) talks. Further, there is more openness regarding the activities of military forces in the 35-nation Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE). The United States is also committed along with its allies. to begin new discussions of conventional reductions in the area from the "Atlantic to the Urals."

Forward-Deployed Forces

A key factor in the success of US alliances is the forward deployment of military forces. These forces demonstrate the US commitment to the common defense and serve notice that an attack will be met immediately by US opposition. In peacetime, the American presence among allies reduces the coercive potential of Soviet military threats and facilitates early reinforcement in crises. In the event deterrence fails, sufficient forward-deployed forces can ensure an effective combined defense.

Central Reserve

The majority of US nuclear and conventional forces are based in the United States. The readiness and preparedness of these forces to deploy contributes to deterrence of major conflict. These forces provide the capability to reinforce and sustain forward-deployed forces in combat and help deter or contain conflicts in areas of interest where the United States has no permanent military presence.

Force Mobility

In order to project US military power globally, US forces must maintain a high degree of mobility. The successful implementation of US strategy requires highly capable airlift, sealift, and aerial refueling forces. Additionally, overflight arrangements, access and use rights for overseas bases, airfields, ports, and staging areas contribute to deployment flexi

bility and efficiency. Other important components of US reinforcement are pre-positioning of supplies and equipment in certain areas to reduce significantly dependence on strategic lift for deploying force equipment and sustaining supplies and establishment of host-nation support.

Freedom of the Seas, Air, and Space

Freedom of navigation and access to space are inherent elements of US military strategy. Unimpeded use of the air, seas, and space allows support and reinforcement of forward-deployed forces, enables US and allied forces to operate worldwide, and ensures uninterrupted commerce for the nation and its allies.

Freedom to operate in space is a modern military requisite. The United States depends heavily on satellites for early warning of missile attack, weather data, navigation, surveillance, and command and control. Superior space capabilities will be required to ensure uninterrupted US use of key space assets. Command, Control, and Communications (C3)

C3 is imperative to the successful employment and most effective use of US military forces. C3 systems must be as survivable and endurant as the forces they support because these systems provide the essential link between the National Command Authorities (NCA), Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), commanders in chief of unified and specified commands (CINCs), and the executing forces. Survivable facilities and systems that operate effectively during all phases of conflict add to deterrence and are vital should deterrence fail.

Intelligence

US military strategy depends heavily on accurate and timely intelligence for warning and the effective employment of military forces. Such intelligence increases the likelihood that forward-deployed and reinforcing forces will deter conflict or defend successfully and maximizes the potential of modern weapon systems.

Applying the Strategy

US forces are not available to defend simultaneously against every threat with equal strength. Nonetheless, the United States must make it clear that its interests will be defended and its obligations to allies will be met. US force employment planning considers the fundamental tasks that must be accomplished and the need to retain flexibility to meet other contingencies that threaten US security interests.

Should deterrence fail, US military forces will undertake missions to defeat aggression against the United States, its allies, and friends and to terminate conflict on favorable terms. US forces would seek to limit the scope and duration of any conflict in which they were involved.

Sound military doctrine is essential to the successful implementation of US strategic concepts. Joint doctrine ties together the capabilities of the Services, guiding the development, deployment, and employment of forces. Effective joint doctrine helps prevent duplication and gaps in Service capabilities and aids in the translation of plans into execution. Likewise, combined doctrine provides a standardized reference for military operations with our allies, enhancing interoperability and effectiveness. The CINCS are charged with the mission of executing these military operations in support of national objectives. Further discussion of the role of the unified and specified commands is contained in Chapters 5 and 6.

military capability could be lost if funding cuts to the Defense budget continue.

The force structure within which US military forces are organized continues to change to give the balance needed to maintain the capability to respond at various levels of conflict. The Army has moved toward a 28-division structure that has a better balance of light and heavy forces. The number of US Navy ships has increased to meet expanding maritime requirements, and Air Force structure provides greater fighter aircraft capabilities. Modern equipment and organization enhancements have improved the Marine Corps' amphibious forcible entry capability. This improved force structure needs modern equipment to meet the threat. Equipment from the strategic level to the very personal area of ground combat is being modernized, and inventories are being increased. Specifics are addressed in subsequent chapters.

Because of production limitations, funding constraints, and equipment transition periods, modernization benefits will be distributed over the next several years. Training with evolving joint tactics makes our units more robust and allows fewer forces to protect more. Readiness efforts, on the other hand, have produced steady and measurable improvements all through the period. Mission-capable rates of aircraft, the numbers of sorties and aircraft utilization rates, and capabilities in strategic warning and attack assessment have all increased. The readiness of US military forces to execute assigned tasks is at a high state.

One important factor that influences preparedness to respond to threats is sustainability. Both ammunition and missile inventories have been increased, though shortages still exist. Aircraft sortie rates have also improved as a result of increased spare parts. Redundancy of command, control, and communications and increased electromagnetic pulse hardening of strategic time-sensitive sites have enhanced survivability and thus provide sustaining command and control.

The key, however, to mission accomplishment is the men and women who have chosen to serve. The quality of men and women in the US Armed Forces has never been higher.

The combination of good people and effective programs has made US forces more professional, reliable, and capable. The continued support of