Readings

Fear vs. Hope: America and Global Security by Gordon Adams. Foreign Service Journal, June 2005, pp. 58-65.
To be truly secure, America needs to change the way it looks at the rest of the world--and pay attention to some larger underlying trends.

Integrated Power: A National Security Strategy for the 21st Century by Lawrence J. Korb and Robert O. Boorstin, (Center for American Progress, June 2005)
"Integrated power" discards traditional concepts of hard and soft power and uses them as essential partners and not alternatives. It is also: a strategy that consciously uses the unifying forces of globalization to defeat the forces of fragmentation; a strategy that says the United States best increases its power when it integrates its actions with those of its allies; a strategy that says we cannot continue to divorce defense policy from energy policy, homeland security, development assistance or diplomacy; and a strategy that matches resources to priorities.

"New American Strategies for Security and Peace" by Zbigniew Brzezinski. (Speech to Center for American Progress, October 28, 2003)
War on terrorism defines the central preoccupation of the United States in the world today, and it reflects a rather narrow and extremist vision of foreign policy of the world’s first superpower, of a great democracy, with genuinely idealistic traditions. For the first time our commitment to idealism worldwide is challenged by a sense of security vulnerability. We have to be very careful in that setting not to become preoccupied only with ourselves and subordinate everything else in the world to an exaggerated sense of insecurity. Rather, the United States should: emphasize the enduring nature of the alliance relationship and strive to expand the zone of peace and prosperity in the world; deal with that part of the world which is a zone of conflict and try to transform it into a zone of peace; and make a strategic commitment to deal with nuclear proliferation.

For more see:

• The Choice: Domination or Leadership by Zbigniew Brzezinski. (Basic, 2004)
• "Books of the Times; Brzezinski Offers His Vision As an Alternative on Security" by G. John Ikenberry. (New York Times, March 30, 2004)

"Six Steps to a Safer America: National Security and the 2005 Budget" by Lawrence J. Korb. (Center for American Progress, 2004)
To deal with the threats we face, the United States needs a realistic, effective and sustainable national security strategy and a defense budget that reinforces our strategic goals. Our strategy is based on these principles: focus on the primary threat to the security of the United States, terrorist with a global reach; ensure that our armed forces are strong enough to carry out their missions; use every weapon in our arsenal – diplomatic, economic, technological and military; work with allies and international institutions to best advance our national interests; promote an integrated international and domestic strategy.

"U.S. Power and Strategy After Iraq" by Joseph S. Nye, Jr. Foreign Affairs; Jul/Aug2003, Vol. 82 Issue 4, p60.
U.S. military power is essential to global stability and is a critical part of the response to global terrorism. The willingness of other countries to cooperate in dealing with transnational issues such as terrorism depends on their own interest and the U.S. The U.S. should incline toward multilateralism whenever possible as a way to legitimize its power and gain broad acceptance of its strategy and foreign policies. To implement the strategy successfully, therefore, the U.S. will need to pay attention more to soft power and multilateral cooperation than unilateralism.

For more see:

• Soft Power: The Means to Success in World Politics by Joseph S., Nye, Jr. (Public Affairs 2004)

"An American Security Policy: Challenge, Opportunity, Commitment" by the National Security Advisory Group to Senator Tom Daschle, William J. Perry, Chair. (July 2003)
Six papers evaluating American security programs and recommending how to improve them to reduce the likelihood of nuclear bombs being used in regional wars and in terror attacks on American cities. Topics: the loose nukes crisis in North Korea; proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; winning the war on terrorism and strengthening homeland security; post-conflict reconstruction in Iraq; strengthening U.S. security through alliances and partnerships; national security spending and priorities.

A New National Security Strategy In An Age of Terrorists, Tyrants, and Weapons of Mass Destruction by Lawrence J. Korb. Council on Foreign Relations Council Policy Initiative; 2003.
There are three approaches to developing a new security strategy to safeguard the United States, each of which would lead the country in a different direction. These choices call for leveraging American dominance with preventive military action, creating stability by using American military superiority for deterrence and containment, and working toward a more cooperative, rule-based international system backed by American power that is used in genuine concert with U.S. friends and allies.

Links

Center for American Progress
www.americanprogress.org

Foreign Policy Leadership Council
www.fpleadership.org

International Alert’s Gender and Peacebuilding Programme and Women Waging Peace (joint Toolkit on Women, Peace and Security)
www.international-alert.org
www.womenbuildingpeace.org

Partnership for a Secure America
www.psaonline.org

The Next Generation Project: Creating Better Global Institutions for America
www.americanassembly.org

Truman National Security Project
http://www.trumanproject.org