DIA Releases Will To Fight Guidance

JOINT BASE ANACOSTIA-BOLLING — The Defense Intelligence Agency released Analyzing Will to Fight, created to assist the intelligence community with assessing combatant “will to fight” across the conflict spectrum, on September 30, 2026.

Military capabilities analysis at DIA asks analysts to answer the key intelligence question: “What mission(s) can the force accomplish in a given set of circumstances?” Analyzing Will to Fight addresses intangible elements in military capabilities analysis, including leadership, military culture and innovation. The 2026 edition is the second iteration of DIA’s unclassified analytic guidance on the topic. The framework enables analysts to assess deliberately whether will to fight is a principal driver of an actor’s ability to achieve objectives, in consideration together with other military capabilities factors.

The guidance emphasizes adherence to Intelligence Community Directive 203 Analytic Standards by focusing on well-reasoned arguments and incorporating observable evidence. The framework applies from peacetime to armed conflict and can support the development of both snapshot assessments and future-oriented analysis.

While this guidance is designed to support intelligence community analysis, Analyzing Will to Fight is part of DIA’s ongoing series of unclassified, foundational overviews designed to help the public achieve a deeper understanding of key challenges and functional threats to U.S. national security.

*Information within this report is considered current as of September 2026.

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