Conventional Coercion Across the Spectrum of Operations: The Utility of U.S. Military Forces in the Emerging Security Environment
The raison d'etre for any military force is to deter an adversary from acting inimically to the nation's interests or, if the adversary is undeterred, to coerce him into ceasing, or in some cases reversing, the inimical actions. After carefully defining terms and reviewing the literature on coercion, this report delves into a study of the utility of military power as a coercive instrument of deterrence and compellence. The authors then analyze cases (both U.S. and foreign, successes and failures) that provide insights into conventional coercion at all levels of conflict. They conclude by stressing that the essential nature of coercion remains unchanged and that only a thorough understanding of the nation's adversaries, and of our own will and capabilities, will yield a successful coercive strategy.
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Document Details
- Copyright: RAND Corporation
- Availability: Available
- Format: Paperback
- Pages: 152
- List Price: $24.00
- Price: $19.20
- ISBN/EAN: 0-8330-3220-8
- Document Number: MR-1494-A
- Year: 2003
- Series: Monograph Reports
Contents
The research described in this report was performed under the auspices of RAND's Arroyo Center.
This report is part of the RAND Corporation monograph report series. The monograph/report was a product of the RAND Corporation from 1993 to 2003. RAND monograph/reports presented major research findings that addressed the challenges facing the public and private sectors. They included executive summaries, technical documentation, and synthesis pieces.
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