Presidential Control of Force
The Korean War and the Cuban Missile Crisis
ResearchPublished 1967
An analysis of the rationale and necessity for presidential direction and control of limited military conflicts, as demonstrated by the Korean experience and the Cuban missile crisis. The Korean War emphasized that it is the President's responsibility not merely to indicate the objectives to be pursued in conflict, but to set a limited ceiling on the acceptable costs and risks. He must retain tight control over all decisions and developments, including the military strategy and tactics employed by the theater commander. The Cuban missile crisis showed that a small and carefully applied amount of force can suffice to secure an objective under certain conditions.
Topics
Document Details
- Copyright: RAND Corporation
- Availability: Available
- Year: 1967
- Print Format: Paperback
- Paperback Pages: 24
- Paperback Price: $20.00
- Document Number: P-3627
Citation
RAND Style Manual
Chicago Manual of Style
George, Alexander L., Presidential Control of Force: The Korean War and the Cuban Missile Crisis, RAND Corporation, P-3627, 1967. As of September 12, 2024: https://www.rand.org/pubs/papers/P3627.html
George, Alexander L., Presidential Control of Force: The Korean War and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 1967. https://www.rand.org/pubs/papers/P3627.html. Also available in print form.
This publication is part of the RAND paper series. The paper series was a product of RAND from 1948 to 2003 that captured speeches, memorials, and derivative research, usually prepared on authors' own time and meant to be the scholarly or scientific contribution of individual authors to their professional fields. Papers were less formal than reports and did not require rigorous peer review.
This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law. This representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of this publication online is prohibited; linking directly to this product page is encouraged. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of its research documents for commercial purposes. For information on reprint and reuse permissions, please visit www.rand.org/pubs/permissions.
RAND is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. RAND's publications do not necessarily reflect the opinions of its research clients and sponsors.