Civil Military Relations

Research conducted by: RAND National Security Research Division; RAND Project AIR FORCE; RAND Arroyo Center

All Items (79)

COMMENTARY

The Next War — May 3, 2012

To prepare for the interventions to come in the next decade, the United States must adapt the lessons from its experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan and use them to generate a new, more realistic, and feasible doctrine, write Radha Iyengar and Douglas A. Ollivant.

NEWS RELEASE

New Counterinsurgency Assessment Methods Are Needed to Better Inform Policymakers — May 3, 2012

The U.S. Department of Defense will receive more detailed, transparent and credible assessments of its counterinsurgency campaigns by replacing its top-down approach with a bottom-up method driven by contextual, narrative reporting provided by commanders on the ground.

REPORT

New Counterinsurgency Assessment Methods Are Needed to Better Inform Policymakers — May 3, 2012

The U.S. Department of Defense will receive more detailed, transparent, and credible assessments of its counterinsurgency campaigns by replacing its top-down approach with a bottom-up method driven by contextual, narrative reporting provided by commanders on the ground.

RESEARCH BRIEF

Improving Counterinsurgency Campaign Assessment: The Importance of Transparency in the Fog of War — Apr 13, 2012

Current processes used by the U.S. military do not provide accurate assessments of counterinsurgency campaigns. A new process that adds transparency and context to assessments would make them more credible and useful at all levels of decisionmaking.

COMMENTARY

Should the U.S. Leave Afghanistan Now? History Favors More Time — Apr 3, 2012

The Afghans will have better prospects for defeating their insurgency with continued improvement, of course, and the United States can contribute to that improvement while American forces remain, writes Christopher Paul.

COMMENTARY

Bringing Libya Under Control — Feb 24, 2012

While NATO countries and allies like Jordan and Qatar have started to train and equip the security forces, there is more that outsiders can do to help, writes Frederic Wehrey.

REPORT

Characterizing and Exploring the Implications of Maritime Irregular Warfare — Feb 20, 2012

Although irregular warfare includes a range of activities in which naval forces have played an integral role, there has been little examination of the characteristics or potential of such operations in maritime environments. Current notions of irregular warfare would benefit from increased recognition of potential maritime contributions.

REPORT

Considerations for the Civilian Expeditionary Workforce: Preparing to Operate Amidst Private Security Contractors — Feb 14, 2012

The U.S. Department of Defense Civilian Expeditionary Workforce (CEW) was established to deploy in support of combat and noncombat operations. Meanwhile, deployments of private military and security contractors have reached unprecedented levels in recent years. Building on prior RAND research on private security contractors in Operation Iraqi Freedom, this paper examines how these contractors may affect the CEW in ongoing operations.

COMMENTARY

US Control of Contractors in Iraq Is Vital — Feb 1, 2012

With U.S. troops out of Iraq, the U.S. presence there will fall to 5,000 private security contractors....The experience with private security contractors during the war was fraught with challenges that pose risks now, writes Molly Dunigan.

REPORT

Coalition Forces During Stability Operations: Band of Brothers or Dysfunctional Family? — Nov 23, 2011

As challenging as coalition warfare is during conventional conflicts, the difficulties are compounded in number and character when the contingency is instead a stability operation. The absence of a threat that puts survival interests at risk translates into weaker commitment and more-restrictive caveats on how a participant's capabilities are employed.

COMMENTARY

Iran's Growing State of Civil Disobedience — Sep 8, 2011

A typical Iranian has many reasons to disobey the government, whether he or she is young, an ethnic minority, a poor teacher or laborer, or a struggling student, writes Alireza Nader.

COMMENTARY

Commanding Democracy in Egypt: The Military's Attempt to Manage the Future — Aug 25, 2011

The SCAF's attempts to curtail dissent and the democratic process have fueled doubts about its true intentions. Will the military fulfill its promise to support democracy? Or will it seek to replace Mubarak's rule with its own or that of a friendly autocrat? write Jeffrey Martini and Julie Taylor.

REPORT

Getting Better at Strategic Communication — Jul 12, 2011

If "strategic communication" as a term is too vague or becomes politically untenable, abandon it. Just do not allow the underlying effort to coordinate government impact on the information environment to be lost too.

REPORT

How Does the Conflict in Afghanistan Compare to Counterinsurgencies of the Past 30 Years? — Jun 28, 2011

An analysis of 30 insurgencies worldwide between 1978 and 2008 determined what factors were ultimately correlated with success or defeat. Comparing Afghanistan in early 2011 against this scorecard results in an uncertain outcome for the conflict there, but the findings may help provide additional guidance as operations continue.

REPORT

Preserving Range and Airspace Access for the Air Force Mission: Striving for a Strategic Vantage Point — May 17, 2011

Air Force range managers are responsible for scheduling the ranges and infrastructures units need for critical, realistic testing and training, sometimes on short notice. They must also supply associated requirements, which requires information and understanding. To aid this, the authors offer an example method that marries the Center Scheduling Enterprise with an update of an existing RAND tool (provided on CD).

COMMENTARY

Can You Hear Libya Now? — Mar 4, 2011

The U.S. and its allies could help Libyans communicate with the outside world by deploying cellphone base stations on aircraft or tethered balloons, write Dan Gonzales and Sarah Harting.

COMMENTARY

Libya's Terra Incognita: Who and What Will Follow Qaddafi? — Feb 28, 2011

The new, post-Qaddafi era is likely to be marked by the emergence of long-suppressed domestic groups jostling for supremacy in what is sure to be a chaotic political scene, writes Frederic Wehrey.

COMMENTARY

Egypt Faces Rough, Unchartered Road — Feb 22, 2011

The most favorable outcome achievable in Egypt might be what we see in Iraq, but without the violence, writes Harold Brown.

REPORT

Sustaining Key Skills in the UK Military Aircraft Industry — Feb 6, 2011

The UK Ministry of Defence's Fixed Wing Sector Strategy Board commissioned RAND Europe to assist in the development of a strategy and sustainment plan for the military fixed wing sector.

RESEARCH BRIEF

Sustaining Key Skills in the United Kingdom's Military Aircraft Industry — Jan 31, 2011

The UK currently has the industrial skills needed to develop, produce and maintain its military aircraft, but predicted future demand for design engineering activity is insufficient to sustain a number of key skills beyond the 2010-2019 decade.

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