Small Wars Journal

03/24/2021 News & Commentary – National Security

Wed, 03/24/2021 - 9:37am

News & commentary by Dave Maxwell. Edited and published by Daniel Riggs.

1. ‘Land Forces Are Hard To Kill’: Army Chief Unveils Pacific Strategy

2.  Russia, China and the United States: First Shots

3. Opinion | China Doesn’t Respect Us Anymore — for Good Reason

4. China exploits US-Philippine strategic weakness

5. Army revamping how it positions, maneuvers global force as it faces an assertive China

6. China, Russia, North Korea, Iran build ties as U.N. friends feud with U.S.

7. US sounds support for Philippines in dispute over loitering Chinese fishing vessels

8. Blinken and Sullivan stand up to China — will Biden back them up?

9. Asian American Lives and Livelihoods Don't Just Deserve Our Qualified Support

10. More Than a Few Good Women: Improving Hemispheric Security by Advancing Gender Inclusivity in Military and Police

11. America Is Overtaking China in Vaccine Diplomacy

12. Strike squad of just 100 Brit Marines smashed 1,500 US troops in war games drill

13. Veteran Navy SEAL eyes 2022 U.S. Senate run in Georgia

14. China Lashes Out at U.S. Allies in Bid to Thwart Biden Strategy

15. How the U.S. Should Respond to China's Belt and Road

16. Expand, Consolidate, Centralize: Organizational Reform in the Next National Security Strategy

17. When It Comes to Strategy, People Are Everything

18. Introducing the Irregular Warfare Initiative

19. Prosecutors allege Oath Keepers leader and Proud Boys coordinated before Capitol attack

 

1. ‘Land Forces Are Hard To Kill’: Army Chief Unveils Pacific Strategy

breakingdefense.com · by Sydney J. Freedberg Jr.

Maybe they will survive but I expect the CSA will receive a lot of incoming fire over this idea that ground forces are survivable in INDOPACOM.

The 39 page CSA paper on Army Multi-Domain Transformation: Ready to Win in Competition and Conflict can be downloaded here.

What strikes me from the graphic below showing the 2 star Multi Domain Task Force is that there are no ground maneuver forces (e.g., infantry or armor).

 

2. Russia, China and the United States: First Shots

geopoliticalfutures.com · By George Friedman · March 23, 2021

Excerpts: “Could a Russo-Chinese alliance launch a naval assault in the east and a ground attack in the west simultaneously? Perhaps. But doing so, while politically shocking, would not weaken either front because it would be engaging naval forces not needed in the west and ground forces not needed in the east. It may also fail. If it succeeded, it would trigger existential (nuclear) choices or create unshakeable anti-Russia and anti-China alliances.

The more logical and less risky move is for China to reach a political and economic agreement with the United States, and for Russia to do the same, at least with Europe. But to do this, each must be convinced that the U.S. is not interested in a settlement. Showing a lack of interest is the foundation of any bargaining position. The best read is that the U.S. knows that bargaining is coming and is therefore posing as hostile to it. The Chinese have called the Americans’ bet. The Russians shortly will. At any rate now is the time for insults and threats, before we get down to business that may fail regardless of all this.”

 

3. Opinion | China Doesn’t Respect Us Anymore — for Good Reason

The New York Times · by Thomas L. Friedman · March 23, 2021

Excerpt:  “Whenever I point this out, critics on the far right or far left ridiculously respond, “Oh, so you love China.” Actually, I am not interested in China. I care about America. My goal is to frighten us out of our complacency by getting more Americans to understand that China can be really evil AND really focused on educating its people and building its infrastructure and adopting best practices in business and science and promoting government bureaucrats on merit — all at the same time. Condemning China for the former will have zero impact if we’re not its equal in all of the latter.”

 

4. China exploits US-Philippine strategic weakness

asiatimes.com · by Richard Javad Heydarian · March 24, 2021

Which should not be a surprise. But is it only because the interim strategic guidance did not mention the Philippines as an ally?

 

5.  Army revamping how it positions, maneuvers global force as it faces an assertive China

Stars and Stripes · by Wyatt Olsen · March 24, 2021

 

6. China, Russia, North Korea, Iran build ties as U.N. friends feud with U.S.

Newsweek · by Tom O'Connor · March 23, 2021

The teams are lining up on each side of the playing field getting ready for the big game.

Excerpt: “Among the primary tenets of the group are the "non-interference in the internal affairs of States, peaceful settlement of disputes, and to refrain from the use or threat of use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any State, as enshrined in the UN Charter."

The Biden administration, for its part, has also been busy shoring up its alliances and partnerships. Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin conducted an Asia tour ahead of the Alaska talks with China, and both have also spoken out in support of the Cold War-era NATO military coalition, comprised today of 30 countries.

Blinken met Tuesday with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg and, among other major issues, discussed "concern over Russia and China's malign activity and disinformation efforts."

"We will stand resolutely against Russian aggression and other actions that try to undermine our Alliance, and I think that that approach is exactly where NATO is as well," Blinken said. "And similarly, we have to and we will, I believe, make sure that NATO is also focused on some of the challenges that China poses to the rules-based international order, that is part of the 2030 vision as well."

 

7. US sounds support for Philippines in dispute over loitering Chinese fishing vessels

Stars and Stripes · by Seth Robson · March 24, 2021

 

8. Blinken and Sullivan stand up to China — will Biden back them up?

The Hill · by Joseph Bosco · March 23, 2021

I am pretty sure they were doing so with the President's backing already.

 

9. Asian American Lives and Livelihoods Don't Just Deserve Our Qualified Support

rand.org · by Douglas Yeung, Peter Nguyen, and Regina A. Shih

Excerpts:Many who would stand with the Asian American community, including President Biden, have spoken up to offer their support. But too often this amounts to just words, particularly when they invoke a separate justification for that support. Transactional arguments reinforce the notion that Asian Americans are not independently worthy of support absent some self-interested motive. Truly meaningful support would affirm our inherent value and humanity, freeing us from playing a part in someone else's movie.

If Asian Americans are to be truly seen as a diverse community rather than a monolith, as both a long-standing and constantly-refreshed part of the American story, support for our lives and livelihoods must be unconditional. This requires taking action that is specifically meant to benefit Asian Americans—no matter our population size, not just along the way of benefiting someone else.”

 

10. More Than a Few Good Women: Improving Hemispheric Security by Advancing Gender Inclusivity in Military and Police

cfr.org · by Paul J. Angelo

Conclusion: “Building lasting solutions to these challenges begins by acknowledging the unique and consequential contributions of women to the provision of security. In the United States, following President Joe Biden’s announcement of General Richardson’s nomination, a conservative television commentator derided the supposed feminization of the U.S. military. His comments inspired quick and far-ranging rebuke, including from the Pentagon’s most senior leaders who unanimously extolled the importance and necessity of women in uniform. The countries of Latin America and the Caribbean would be wise to follow this example as they endeavor to get a handle on the scourge of violent crime that has beset the region. Women’s security is human security, and it is well past time that women have full and equal participation in protecting their communities and countries.”

 

11. America Is Overtaking China in Vaccine Diplomacy

Bloomberg · by Hal Brands · March 23, 2021

Excerpts:Let’s not take this line of argument too far. A country that has suffered 540,000 deaths (and counting) from Covid-19 can hardly crow about brilliant performance. The pandemic has laid bare some deeply disturbing things about American polarization and political dysfunction. But it also reminds us that U.S., whether in global wars or a global pandemic, has traditionally been a second-half team: It starts slowly and then pours it on through a mix of ingenuity and sheer resources.

The pandemic demonstrates that the combination of private-sector innovation and occasionally enlightened government policy can still produce amazing results. Not least, it shows that first impressions are often misleading: Histories of World War II written in February 1942 wouldn’t have been very favorable to the U.S.

Covid-19 still has some nasty surprises, perhaps in the form of deadly mutations, in store for America and the world. But from here on out, it’s less likely to reveal crippling U.S. weaknesses than to advertise the country’s still-imposing strengths.”

 

12. Strike squad of just 100 Brit Marines smashed 1,500 US troops in war games drill

The Sun · by Jerome Starkey · March 19, 2021

Hmmm,...

Excerpts:

“The £400million drill in California had to be cut short because the British victory was so swift and unexpected.

Chief of the Defence Staff, General Sir Nick Carter, told The Sun yesterday: “This has overturned the principles of war. Mass is no longer the asset it once was — it is all about effect. If you concentrate your force, you are vulnerable.

“On the modern battlefield you want maximum dispersion to give your opponent maximum doubt.

 

13. Veteran Navy SEAL eyes 2022 U.S. Senate run in Georgia

ajc.com · by Greg Bluestein

 

14.  China Lashes Out at U.S. Allies in Bid to Thwart Biden Strategy

Bloomberg · by Bloomberg News · March 23, 2021

This should be an indicator that we are on the right track with our focus on allies. It is a threat to the PRC.

 

15. How the U.S. Should Respond to China's Belt and Road

cfr.org  by Jacob J. Lew, Gary Roughead, Jennifer Hillmanm and David Sacks

The 190 page report can be downloaded here.

 

16. Expand, Consolidate, Centralize: Organizational Reform in the Next National Security Strategy

thestrategybridge.org · March 24, 2021

Can an NSS do all of this? Pretty ambitious.

Conclusion: “Still, U.S. officials can do more, and they should propose more reforms in the next National Security Strategy. They should solidify the initial steps taken by the Biden administration and make these new members statutory for all future administrations. The U.S. should look at ways to deepen coordination and cooperation with non-governmental organizations and businesses. The administration should further centralize national security planning wherever possible, regardless if such changes require either an expansion of power, personnel, or resources at the National Security Council. History shows that organizational reform remains critical to the strategic success of a country in the face of unprecedented challenges. The architects of the next National Security Strategy should learn this now, rather than later.”

 

17. When It Comes to Strategy, People Are Everything

warontherocks.com · by Morgan Plummer · March 24, 2021

Personnel is policy and strategy too!

Conclusion: “If the United States doesn’t “get there first,” how will it react and adapt to that new reality? If the United States can’t “buy not build” everything that it needs, how will it fill the capability gaps that will, inevitably, remain? Will there ever be a system of business processes that allows the United States to “get there fast” enough in an age of digital revolution? Although each technology-based theory currently employed is necessary, they do not assure future victory because they largely ignore the precious commodity most underutilized by the Department of Defense: human capital. A human capital-focused strategy for defense modernization is not just additive — it serves as a hedge against the strategic uncertainty innate to all the others. All other theories assume the strategic flexibility of a talent pool that the Defense Department has named, the National Security Innovation Base, but is still failing to meaningfully access. Sacrificing vital investments in people, the fountainhead of American innovation and creativity, for improved processes or to exclusively fund technological wonders that will be outdated almost immediately after development, is a critical error. In the past, the United States employed technology as the mantric answer to all questions related to maintaining superiority in an increasingly multi-polar world. In an age where ideas and technologies go global at the press of a button, the department’s old incantations are insufficient. At best, technology, by itself, is an outdated and incomplete answer to a barely understood question. A national defense strategy focused on people, both inside and outside the Department of Defense, doesn’t just complete the answer to our great national questions. It is the answer.”

 

18. Introducing the Irregular Warfare Initiative

mwi.usma.edu · by Jacob N. Shapiro · March 24, 2021

Outstanding initiative.

 

19. Prosecutors allege Oath Keepers leader and Proud Boys coordinated before Capitol attack

CNN · by Katelyn Polantz

Sigh....

 

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“The fundamental reason for human rights being trampled in North Korea lies in the ‘Dear Leader Absolutism’ dictatorship.  There can be no human rights for the people in North Korea where the greatest morality and absolute law is giving one’s mind and body to the Dear Leader; and living as a slave who obeys completely and unconditionally the Dear Leader - it is the only life permitted the North Korean People.”

- Hwang Jang Yop (father of north Korean Juche ideology), 2 DEC 99

 

"We will maintain the proficiency of special operations forces to focus on crisis response and priority counterterrorism and unconventional warfare missions."

-2021 Interim National Security Strategic Guidance 

 

"Nothing contributes so much to tranquilize the mind as a steady purpose--a point on which the soul may fix its intellectual eye."

- Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, in "Frankenstein" (1818)

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