David E. Thaler

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Senior Defense Research Analyst
Washington Office

Education

M.I.A. in international security policy/Middle East, Columbia University; B.A. in international relations, The George Washington University

Overview

Biography

David Thaler is a senior defense analyst at the RAND Corporation. He has led or participated in studies related to building partner capacity; foreign policy and military implications of developments in Iran, Iraq, and the broader Middle East and Iranian domestic politics; military capabilities for counterinsurgency and counterterrorism (irregular warfare); and the strategies-to-tasks framework for force planning. He was detailed from RAND to the Air Staff from 1993 to 1995 and again from 2003 to 2004, and supported U.S. Air Force efforts to prepare for and execute the Quadrennial Defense Reviews. He has also conducted research on first-strike stability, aircraft maintenance, and military readiness. Thaler received his M.I.A. (master of international affairs) in international security policy and the Middle East from Columbia University.

Research Focus

Recent Projects

  • U.S. Air Force capabilities for building partner capacity and irregular warfare
  • Strategic challenges posed by Iran
  • Iranian leadership dynamics
  • Future relationships with Iraq and Afghanistan
  • Muslim world after 9/11

Selected Publications

Richard Mesic, David E. Thaler, David Ochmanek, Leon Goodson, Courses of Action for Enhancing U.S. Air Force, RAND Corporation (MG-913), 2010

David E. Thaler, Alireza Nader, Shahram Chubin, Jerrold D. Green, Charlotte Lynch, Frederic Wehrey, Mullahs, Guards, and Bonyads: An Exploration of Iranian Leadership Dynamics, RAND Corporation (MG-878), 2010

Frederic Wehrey, David E. Thaler, Nora Bensahel et al., Dangerous But Not Omnipotent: Exploring the Reach and Limitations of Iranian Power in the Middle East, RAND Corporation (MG-781), 2009

David E. Thaler, Theodore Karasik, Dalia Dassa Kaye et al., Future U.S. Security Relationships with Iraq and Afghanistan: U.S. Air Force Roles, RAND Corporation (MG-681), 2008

Angel M. Rabasa, Cheryl Benard, Peter Chalk, C. Christine Fair, Theodore Karasik, Rollie Lal, Ian Lesser, David Thaler, The Muslim World After 9/11, RAND Corporation (MG-246), 2004

Publications

The Next Supreme Leader: Succession in the Islamic Republic of Iran - 2011

Courses of Action for Enhancing U.S. Air Force "Irregular Warfare" Capabilities: A Functional Solutions Analysis - 2010

Mullahs, Guards, and Bonyads: An Exploration of Iranian Leadership Dynamics - 2010

RAND Review: Vol. 34, No. 1, Spring 2010 - 2010

A New U.S. Policy Paradigm Toward Iran - 2009

Dangerous But Not Omnipotent: Exploring the Reach and Limitations of Iranian Power in the Middle East - 2009

Flexibility and Sensitivity to Local Concerns Are Crucial to Long-Term U.S. Security Relationships with Iraq and Afghanistan - 2008

Future U.S. Security Relationships with Iraq and Afghanistan: U.S. Air Force Roles - 2008

RAND Review: Vol. 32, No. 3, Fall 2008 - 2008

The Muslim World After 9/11 - 2004

U.S. Strategy in the Muslim World After 9/11 - 2004

Assessing Unit Readiness: Case Study of an Air Force Mobility Wing - 2002

Setting Requirements for Maintenance Manpower in the U.S. Air Force - 2002

Strategic Appraisal: United States Air and Space Power in the 21st Century - 2002

Assessing Unit Readiness: Case Study of an Air Force Fighter Wing - 2000

Improving Anti-Drug Budgeting - 2000

Air Force Operations Overseas in Peacetime: OPTEMPO and Force Structure Implications - 1998

How Advances in Information and Firepower Can Transform Warfare - 1998

To Find, and Not to Yield: How Advances in Information and Firepower Can Transform Theater Warfare - 1998

Perspectives on Theater Air Campaign Planning - 1995

Planning for Theater Air Campaigns - 1995

A New Concept for Streamlining Up-Front Planning - 1993

Back to First Principles: U.S. Strategic Forces in the Emerging Environment - 1993

Strategies to Tasks: A Framework for Linking Means and Ends - 1993

First-Strike Stability and Strategic Defenses: Part II of a Methodology for Evaluating Strategic Forces - 1990

First-Strike Stability: A Methodology for Evaluating Strategic Forces - 1989

A Calculus of First-Strike Stability : (A Criterion for Evaluating Strategic Forces) - 1988