Small Wars Journal

What Will the US Military’s Role be in Coming Years?

Thu, 03/14/2013 - 5:59pm

What Will the US Military’s Role be in Coming Years? By Matthew Schofield, McClatchy Newspapers.

Pirates prowl the high seas. Terrorists flex their muscles in Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia. China gets stronger. Russia grows increasingly inscrutable, and Iran and North Korea remain unpredictable.

Trying to find footing in this shifting landscape of international power plays and intrigues is the American military, which right now appears more focused on how to adjust to mandatory budget cuts because the White House and Congress were unable to reach a deal to stop them.

Perhaps lost in the debate is the bigger question: What role might American power play in the coming years?

Lost, but hardly forgotten. Around the capital, away from the political squabbles, defense experts are focusing on the tasks of U.S. forces in the near future...

Read on.