Stanley Foundation's Independent Task Force on US Strategies for National Security

The Stanley Foundation's Independent Task Force on US Strategies for National Security "examines the purpose and role of US power in ensuring its own national security while creating a stable, just, and sustainable global system in the 21st century. Led by former assistant secretary of defense Lawrence J. Korb of the US Council on Foreign Relations, the task force consists of about 25 members and has convened for seven half-day sessions from September 2002 through May 2003. The discussions have considered the moral, economic, political, and military role of the United States in shaping the new global security environment."

Task Force Members


 * Lawrence J. Korb, Former Assistant Secretary of Defense; Project Chair
 * Michael Kraig, Program Officer, The Stanley Foundation; Project Organizer
 * Alex Tiersky, Research Associate, Council on Foreign Relations; Project Rapporteur

Members

-- "Counterproliferation and Cooperative Security: The Future of Disarmament, Arms Control, and Nonproliferation." Notes from the Third Meeting of the Stanley Foundation's Independent Task Force on US Strategies for National Security (May 21, 2003)." Chaired by Dr. Larry Korb, The Council on Foreign Relations. Summarized by Dr. Michael Kraig, Program Officer, The Stanley Foundation. Based upon Notes Taken by Rapporteur, Alex Tiersky, Graduate Student, Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University.
 * Gordon Adams, Professor of the Practice of International Affairs and Director of Security Policy Studies Program, The Elliott School of International Affairs, The George Washington University
 * Muthiah Alagappa, Director, East-West Center, Washington
 * Daniel Byman, Professional Staff, Joint Inquiry Into 9/11, Capitol Hill
 * Peter Dombrowski, Associate Professor, Strategic Research Department, Naval War College
 * Thomas Donnelly, Resident Fellow, American Enterprise Institute
 * Evelyn Farkas, Foreign Policy Professional Staff Member, Senate Majority Committee on Armed Services
 * Skip Fischer, Professional Staff Member, Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs, Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
 * Ellen Frost, Visiting Fellow, Institute for International Economics
 * Jerrold Green, Director, International Programs and Development, and Director, Center for Middle East Public Policy, RAND Corporation
 * Peter Hays, Executive Editor, Joint Force Quarterly, National Defense University
 * Jo Husbands, Director, Committee on International Security and Arms Control, National Academy of Sciences
 * Richard Kessler, Staff Director, Subcommittee on International Security, Proliferation and Federal Services, Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs
 * Michael Klare, Director and Five Colleges Professor, Peace and World Security Studies, Hampshire College
 * Ellen Laipson, President and Chief Executive Officer, The Henry L. Stimson Center
 * Edward Levine, Professional Staff Member, Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
 * Anatol Lieven, Senior Associate, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
 * Jane Lute, Executive Vice President, United Nations Foundation
 * Michael McDevitt, Director, Center for Strategic Studies, The CNA Corporation
 * Steven Metz, Director of Research, and Chairman, Regional Strategy and Planning Department, Strategic Studies Institute, Carlisle Barracks, US Army War College
 * Steven Miller, Director, International Security Program, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University
 * James Mulvenon, Political Scientist, RAND Corporation
 * Jonathan Pollack, Professor of Asian and Pacific Studies and Chairman, Strategic Research Department, Naval War College
 * Brad Roberts, Member, Research Staff, Strategy Forces and Resources Division, Institute for Defense Analysis
 * Alina Romanowski, Director, Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies, National Defense University
 * James Smith, Director, USAF Institute for National Security Studies
 * Baker Spring, FM Kirby Research Fellow in National Security Policy, The Heritage Foundation
 * Sam Tangredi, Senior Military Fellow, Institute for National Strategic Studies, National Defense University
 * Judith Yaphe, Senior Fellow, Institute for National and Strategic Studies, National Defense University

"Materials from these and other sessions will form the basis of a hard copy Task Force Report, which will be officially released at policy briefings in New York and Washington, DC in September 2003. The Report will also be fully accessible via the Stanley Foundation reports page and Strategies for National Security home page by late September 2003." --- From the May 21, 2003 Notes:

There "has been a very strong emphasis in major Bush Administration policy announcements and speeches on acquiring unilateral options for dealing with WMD threats. This is evident in the 2002 State of the Union address, the West Point speech; the Nuclear Posture Review of January 2002; the National Security Strategy of September 2002; and the WMD Strategy of December 2002. The worldview of this administration is coherent and tracks well with action. Real policy actions include:


 * a new emphasis on preventive and preemptive options (new weapons including nuclear weapons)
 * a focus on "regime-icide." "Our ultimate threat against these guys is that we can take them out - we've done it twice now, in Kosovo and Iraq."
 * We are now trying to deter acquisition of WMD, rather than use of weapons after acquisition has occurred; the United States has adopted a strategy of dissuasion, in which emerging regional powers are dissauded from even thinking about trying to acquire weapons, because simply acquiring them opens the door to regime decapitation and elimination - something that the Bush Administration hopes will be seen as too risky to attempt.
 * Defenses in general have been given a huge boost in funding. This includes not only missile defense ($9-10 bill/year), but also Homeland Security options such as customs, emergency response, and so on. There is now a tremendous emphasis on protecting ourselves from the bad guys; this also means aggressive diplomacy towards the bad guys.

Where does this leave arms control? There are two priorities evident in the Bush Administration:

--- Task Force Sessions
 * dismantle unwanted arms control legacies from the Cold War, such as the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty (ABM), the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT), the Fissile Material Control Treaty (FMCT), and so on.
 * Development of unilateral options to compensate for arms control's perceived failures.


 * Session 7, May 21-22, 2003: Wrap-Up: Grand Strategy Alternatives.
 * Session 6, May 21-22, 2003: Regional Strategies (Middle East and Asia).
 * Session 5, May 21-22, 2003: Counterproliferation and Hegemony Versus Cooperative Security.
 * Session 4, March 20, 2003: The 'Soft' Side of Grand Strategy: Economics and Democratic Values.
 * Session 3, January 17, 2003: The US Grand Strategy.
 * Session 2, November 20, 2002: The Ins and Outs of the New Bush National Security Strategy.
 * Session 1, September 20, 2002: Toward a Consensus View of the Security Environment.

See Reading Lists (with links to articles), Agenda, and Meeting Notes. --

Contact
The Stanley Foundation 209 Iowa Avenue Muscatine, IA 52761 USA Phone: 563-264-1500 Fax: 563-264-0864

Other Related SourceWatch Resources

 * Bush doctrine
 * Defense Against Weapons of Mass Destruction Act of 1996
 * National Security Strategy of September 2002
 * Pax Americana
 * preemptive war
 * Proactive Preemptive Operations Group
 * Stanley Foundation