The authors assess trends in how U.S. allies and partners view the evolving competition with China and Russia and identify opportunities that the United States and the Department of the Air Force (DAF) can leverage for security cooperation (SC). Ensuring that DAF organizations incorporate these countries' perspectives into planning can help the DAF more effectively direct its SC activities and resources in an era of strategic competition.

Insights on U.S. Ally and Partner Views of Strategic Competition

Implications for the Department of the Air Force

Jennifer D. P. Moroney, Cristina L. Garafola, Beth Grill, David E. Thaler, Andrew Radin, Alison K. Hottes, Irina A. Chindea, Ashley L. Rhoades, Jeffrey W. Hornung, Stephen Webber, et al.

ResearchPublished Sep 13, 2024

The authors assess trends in how U.S. allies and partners view the evolving competition with China and Russia and identify opportunities that the United States and the Department of the Air Force (DAF) can leverage for cooperation and coalition-building. Although many countries share U.S. concerns, their perspectives of the threat posed by China and Russia vary depending on their region, history, economy, and other factors. Current U.S. and DAF security cooperation (SC) planning efforts focus on how countries can align their policies, priorities, and investments with those of the United States. Ensuring that DAF organizations also incorporate these countries' perspectives into planning can help the DAF more effectively direct its SC activities and resources in an era of strategic competition. This research was completed in September 2022. It has not been subsequently revised.

Key Findings

  • Appreciating that allies and partners have changing and dynamic views is important to SC planning.
  • Attracting (and retaining) allies and partners is an ongoing task to pursue with all partners, not only with nascent ones.
  • Embracing more-creative SC approaches can help the DAF to attract and retain allies and partners.
  • Knowing when to cut losses (temporarily) can help the DAF prioritize SC resources and possibly avoid potential backfire in extreme cases.

Order a Print Copy

Format
Paperback
Page count
46 pages
List Price
$21.50
Buy link
Add to Cart

Topics

Document Details

  • Copyright: RAND Corporation
  • Availability: Available
  • Year: 2024
  • Print Format: Paperback
  • Paperback Pages: 46
  • Paperback Price: $21.50
  • Paperback ISBN/EAN: 1-9774-1402-8
  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.7249/RRA1737-1
  • Document Number: RR-A1737-1

Citation

RAND Style Manual
Moroney, Jennifer D. P., Cristina L. Garafola, Beth Grill, David E. Thaler, Andrew Radin, Alison K. Hottes, Irina A. Chindea, Ashley L. Rhoades, Jeffrey W. Hornung, Stephen Webber, Maggie Habib, Kotryna Jukneviciute, and Melissa Bauman, Insights on U.S. Ally and Partner Views of Strategic Competition: Implications for the Department of the Air Force, RAND Corporation, RR-A1737-1, 2024. As of October 10, 2024: https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA1737-1.html
Chicago Manual of Style
Moroney, Jennifer D. P., Cristina L. Garafola, Beth Grill, David E. Thaler, Andrew Radin, Alison K. Hottes, Irina A. Chindea, Ashley L. Rhoades, Jeffrey W. Hornung, Stephen Webber, Maggie Habib, Kotryna Jukneviciute, and Melissa Bauman, Insights on U.S. Ally and Partner Views of Strategic Competition: Implications for the Department of the Air Force. Santa Monica, CA: RAND Corporation, 2024. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA1737-1.html. Also available in print form.
BibTeX RIS

Research conducted by

The research reported here was commissioned by the Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force, International Affairs, and conducted within the Strategy and Doctrine Program of RAND Project AIR FORCE.

This publication is part of the RAND research report series. Research reports present research findings and objective analysis that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors. All RAND research reports undergo rigorous peer review to ensure high standards for research quality and objectivity.

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.