Brands offers a historical overview of US grand strategy that highlights and illustrates different facets of grand strategy in general, discussing the Harry Truman administration and evolution of containment, the personalized grand strategy of the Richard Nixon–Henry Kissinger years, the intuitive and daring approaches of the Ronald Reagan administration, and the dangers of grand ambitions in the George W. Bush administration. [35] This strategy advocates a significantly reduced overseas presence compared to liberal hegemony, but argues that intervention is necessary in more circumstances than restraint. "[9], An example of modern grand strategy is the decision of the Allies in World War II to concentrate on the defeat of Germany first. B.H. Clausewitz’s classic treatise, originally published in 1832, goes beyond discussions of military strategy and tactics. The authors see a military force structure that prioritizes a secure nuclear second-strike capability, intelligence, naval and special operations forces while limiting the forward-deployment of forces to Europe and Asia. These goals are based on national-level strategies in the areas of diplomacy, economics, science and technology, and military affairs. The end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union removed the focal point of U.S. strategy: containing the Soviet Union. Grand strategy is the highest level of national statecraft that establishes how states, or other political units, prioritize and mobilize which military, diplomatic, political, economic, and other sources of power to ensure what they perceive as their interests. With the end of the Cold War, an early strategic debate eventually coalesced into a strategy of primacy, culminating in the invasion of Iraq in 2003. The authors[21] write "the most important distinguishing feature of cooperative security is the proposition that peace is effectively indivisible. Indeed, to speak plainly, he personally planted the first seeds of our present devastated state of affairs – Zosimus[8], This charge by Zosimus is considered to be a gross exaggeration and inaccurate assessment of the situations in the fourth century under Constantine by many modern historians. [citation needed] They[21] propose that collective action is the most effective means of preventing potential state and non-state aggressors from threatening other states. "[30] Adherence to the light switch model, Carpenter argues, reflects intellectual rigidity or an effort to stifle discussion about a range of alternatives to the status quo. "[31] Failed states, in this view, are sources of instability; rogue states can sponsor terrorism, acquire weapons of mass destruction, and behave unpredictably; illiberal peer competitors would compete directly with the United States and "would complicate the spread of liberal institutions and the construction of liberal states. [28] "It makes enemies almost as fast as it slays them, discourages allies from paying for their own defense, and convinces powerful states to band together and oppose Washington's plans, further raising the costs of carrying out its foreign policy. Due to the perceived impenetrability of these perimeter defenses, the Emperors kept no central reserve army. Poirier, Lucien. Middle or smaller powers are often implicitly or explicitly assumed to be too constrained to pursue grand strategies. "[25] Drezner maintains the empirical evidence supporting the third argument is the strongest, though with some qualifiers. London: Faber and Faber, 1967. Coutau-Bégarie’s book is a systematic discussion of strategy at all levels and includes a discussion of grand strategy (stratégie générale). Warmington, for instance, argues that the statement by Zosimus is "[an] oversimplification," reminding us that "the charge of exposure of the frontier regions is at best anachronistic and probably reflects Zosimus' prejudices against Constantine; the corruption of the soldiers who lived in the cities was a literary commonplace. [31], Restraint is distinct from isolationism: isolationists favor restricting trade and immigration and tend to believe that events in the outside world have little impact within the United States. Moreover, fighting power is but one of the instruments of grand strategy – which should take account of and apply the power of financial pressure, and, not least of ethical pressure, to weaken the opponent's will. The concept of a grand strategy sounds very lofty and somewhat devious, but it's a very real part of the international geopolitical landscape. Tactics that were once the province of a company of cavalry would be applied to a panzer army. [24], Daniel Drezner, professor of international politics at Tufts University, outlines three arguments offered by primacy enthusiasts contending that military preeminence generates positive economic externalities. The chief difference on foreign policy between Republican and Democratic proponents of liberal hegemony, according to Posen, is on support for international institutions as a means to achieving hegemony. "The benefits of deep engagement...are legion. A major debate emerged about the future direction of U.S. foreign policy. International Relations and European Studies CEISS - ISA 2016, Ljubljana Panel – Rising Powers in International Relations Saturday, June 25, 11:00 AM - 12:45 PM Abstract The paper suggests that understanding grand strategy can … The introduction of the concept of strategy—a neologism based on the Greek word for commander—should be seen in the light of the formalization and the rationalization of social processes of the time. Other great powers are at present weaker than the United States, close to one another, and face the same pressures to defend themselves as does the United States. Also the moral resources – for to foster the people's willing spirit is often as important as to possess the more concrete forms of power. A country's political leadership typically directs grand strategy with input from the most senior military officials. Faculty Lead: Kiron K. Skinner If globalization is defined as the intersection of international politics, culture, markets, and technology, then the grand strategy of nation-states is economically, militarily, and politically central to this concept. Traité de stratégie. 321-22. Depending on one’s theoretical perspective, these perceived interests focus the most minimal goal of ensuring the state’s survival, pursuing specific domestic interests or ideational coalitions, or establishing a specific regional or global order. Strategy: The Indirect Approach. Corbett, Julian S. Some Principles of Maritime Strategy. How successful might China be at implementing its grand strategy goals by 2050? Essais de stratégie théorique. The emperor Constantine moved the legions from the frontiers to one consolidated roving army as a way to save money and to protect wealthier citizens within the cities. In the piece, Barry Posen classified himself as a "selective engagement" advocate, with the caveat that the United States should not only act to reduce the likelihood of great power war, but also oppose the rise of a Eurasian hegemon capable of threatening the United States.[18]. International relations (IR) or international affairs (IA)—commonly also referred to as international studies (IS), global studies (GS), or global affairs (GA)—is the study of politics, economics and law on a global level. On War. Liddell Hart, Basil Henry. The author uses historical examples from Asia and Europe and explores key concepts, the impact of technology, and so on, with an eye toward practitioners as much as scholars. Proponents of liberal hegemony favor a world order in which the United States is a hegemon and uses this power advantage to create a liberal international system and at times use force to enforce or spread liberal values (such as individual rights, free trade, and the rule of law). Is there a common definition? "[28] The United States was able to afford such adventurism during the 1990s, Posen argues, because American power projection was completely unchallenged. "[16] Even further, its proponents argue that "the United States is not responsible for, and cannot afford the costs of, maintaining world order. This translates into jettisoning the quest of shaping a world that is satisfactory to U.S. values and instead advances vital national security interests: The U.S. military would go to war only when it must. [4], Grand strategy expands on the traditional idea of strategy in three ways:[5], One of the earlier writings on grand strategy comes from Thucydides's History of the Peloponnesian War, an account of the war between the Peloponnesian League (led by Sparta) and the Delian League (led by Athens). Intellectuals, historians, policymakers, and scholars of international relations (IR) have vigorously engaged the issue of grand strategy, its definition, and even its usefulness. Rather, the United States should focus on three pressing security challenges: preventing a powerful rival from upending the global balance of power, fighting terrorists, and limiting nuclear proliferation. This way, if the legions could not win a battle through military combat skill or superior numbers, they could simply outlast the invaders, who, as historian E.A. [20] Selective engagement, however, mitigates the effect of the trade-off precisely because it is a moderate, strategic policy. "[27], Barry Posen, director of the Security Studies Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, believes the activist U.S. foreign policy that continues to define U.S. strategy in the twenty-first century is an "undisciplined, expensive, and bloody strategy" that has done more harm than good to U.S. national security. Its publication came at a time—the later stages of the Cold War—when policymakers and the larger public debated on whether the United States and the Soviet Union were facing similar moments of “imperial overstretch” that earlier great powers such as Spain, the Netherlands, France, and Britain had faced. In defining Grand Strategy, military historian B. H. Liddell Hart states: [T]he role of grand strategy – higher strategy – is to co-ordinate and direct all the resources of a nation, or band of nations, towards the attainment of the political object of the war – the goal defined by fundamental policy. "[28], Posen proposes the United States abandon its hegemonic strategy and replace it with one of restraint. Strachan, Hew. this page. What Good Is Grand Strategy? J. "[26] However, Drezner highlights a caveat: The cost of maintaining global public goods catches up to the superpower providing them. Conversely, while Japan's conquests garnered considerable public attention, they were mostly in colonial areas deemed less essential by planners and policy-makers. According to most scholars, there are two important considerations in how world leaders craft a grand strategy. It should not only combine the various instruments, but so regulate their use as to avoid damage to the future state of peace – for its security and prosperity. The “grand” in the concept is often confused for grandiose or ambitious; however, it does not suggest expansive goals but rather the managing of all the state’s resources toward the means of the state’s perceived ends. Grand strategy, a country’s most complex form of planning toward the fulfillment of a long-term objective.The formulation and implementation of a grand strategy require the identification of a national goal, a thorough assessment of the state’s resources, and, ultimately, the marshaling of those resources in a highly organized manner to achieve the goal. [28], John Ikenberry of Princeton University and Stephen Brooks and William Wohlforth, both of Dartmouth College, push back on Posen's selective engagement thesis, arguing that American engagement is not as bad as Posen makes it out to be. Furthermore, while the horizons of strategy is bounded by the war, grand strategy looks beyond the war to the subsequent peace. Théories stratégiques. [31] Other scholars have proposed a third policy, offshore balancing. The third argument postulates that states are most likely to enjoy global public goods under a unipolar distribution of military power, accelerating global economic growth and reducing security tensions. In a 1997 piece for International Security entitled "Competing Visions for U.S. Grand Strategy," Barry R. Posen and Andrew L. Ross identified four major grand strategic alternatives in the debate:[15], Stemming from a defensive realist understanding of international politics, what the authors call "neo-isolationism" advocates the United States remove itself from active participation in international politics in order to maintain its national security. The authors envision that a strategy of selective engagement would involve a strong nuclear deterrent with a force structure capable of fighting two regional wars, each through some combination of ground, air and sea forces complemented with forces from a regional ally. Proponents of a grand strategy of restraint call for the United States to significantly reduce its overseas security commitments and largely avoid involvement in conflicts abroad. [16], Posen and Ross identify such prominent scholars and political figures as Earl Ravenal, Patrick Buchanan and Doug Bandow.[16]. Some restrainers call for supporting this trade system via significant naval patrols; others suggest that the international economy is resilient against disruptions and, with rare exceptions,[33] does not require a powerful state to guarantee the security of global trade.[34]. Originally strategy was understood to govern the prelude to a battle while tactics controlled its execution. Cahiers de la Fondation pour les Études de Défense Nationale 22. "[30] Carpenter thinks that off-loading U.S. security responsibility must be assessed on a case-by-case basis. Blackwill recommends decisive action, ... ©2020 Council on Foreign Relations. Politics of Extraction: Theories and New Concepts for Crit... Popular Culture and International Relations. Historian Paul Kennedy brought the term to greater prominence through Kennedy 1990 (first published in 1987), a book on the rise and fall of great powers. It does, however, advocate for the active prevention of nuclear proliferation at a level similar to collective security. International relations encourages travel related to business, tourism, and immigration, providing people with opportunities to enhance their lives. Our International Relations MA is an opportunity to explore in depth, amongst others, the topics of globalisation, ethics and human rights, the international political economy, war, political violence and security through the contending perspectives of politics and international relations, philosophy and social theory. Selective engagement is a strategy that sits in between primacy and isolationism and, given growing multipolarity and American fiscal precariousness, should be taken seriously. You could not be signed in, please check and try again. Strategy and tactics are closely related. The focus, therefore, lies on those powers with significant industrial and military potential and the prevention of war amongst those states. DOI: 10.1080/00396330500248102E-mail Citation ». The latter includes “non-use” uses of military force such as deterrence and coercion. He engages with the notion that war inevitably consists both of rational and irrational elements, but that policymakers should not (but will) lose sight that violence should serve larger policy goals. "Washington wins when U.S. allies favor [the] status quo, and one reason they are inclined to support the existing system is because they value their military alliances. Clausewitz, Carl von. General strategy (stratégie générale) is that combination of land and naval power. A second argument posits that the benefits from military primacy flow from geopolitical favoritism: that sovereign states, in return for living under the security umbrella of the military superpower, voluntarily transfer resources to help subsidize the cost of the economy. Edited and translated by Michael Howard and Peter Paret. Paris: Economica, 1999. 4. To be sure, Posen makes clear that he is not advocating isolationism. Leadership Personality Characteristics and Foreign Policy, Mediation via International Organizations, National Liberation, International Law and Wars of. A return to offshore balancing has also been proposed by prominent political scientists Stephen Walt and John Mearsheimer. The majority of the literature explicitly focuses on great powers such as the United States (from World War I onward), Great Britain and France (until World War II), the Spanish Empire, the Soviet Union / Russia, and China during its rise. What will U.S.-China relations look like by 2050? ↩ U.S. security commitments reduce competition in key regions and act as a check against potential rivals. What Is Grand Strategy? "Not only is the United States so far ahead militarily in both quantitative and qualitative terms, but its security guarantees also give it the leverage to prevent allies from giving military technology to potential U.S. rivals. Liddell Hart focuses on the careful husbanding of national resources, since a state that “expends its strength to the point of exhaustion bankrupts its own policy, and future.” Those ideas led Liddell Hart to recommend that Britain should rely on its sea power status to use an “indirect approach,” of economy of force, deterrence, blockade, and high mobility for quick strikes if needed. This implied that grand strategy extended beyond wartime into peacetime and should include the prevention of war. This paper defines grand [16] The United States' security and the absence of threats means that "national defense will seldom justify intervention abroad. Vol. Castex was one of a line of thinkers on the centrality of naval strategy, but, unlike many of his counterparts, he considered it as part of a larger, national strategy. Realism, as a theory of international relations, traces its roots to realism in philosophy and history. He concludes with a concise set of principles that are likely to make grand strategy more fruitful. Grand strategy is therefore related to, but not synonymous with, National Se-curity Strategies, National Military Strategies, Quadrennial Defense Reviews, or De-fense Strategic Guidance. The Legions were stationed in great fortresses"[6], These "fortresses" existed along the perimeter of the Empire, often accompanied by actual walls (for example, Hadrian's Wall). Simply, it involves the decision of choosing the long term plans from the set of available alternatives. 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