Facing the Hydra

As the global war on terrorism continues, members of Congress and media pundits are starting to say that American military forces are being stretched too thin by far-flung commitments. While Bush administration officials dispute this, they have expressed desires to reduce peacekeeping commitments and reexamine the number of overseas stations and deployments. Dr. Conrad Crane analyzes the impact of the war on terrorism and the requirements of the 2001 Quadrennial Defense Review on the many essential missions conducted by the U.S. Armed Forces. Focusing primarily on the Army, he highlights the requirements associated with combat operations against terrorists, accelerating transformation and the new emphasis on homeland security and force protection. At the same time, he points out that the Army and the other Services must remain involved worldwide in day-to-day assurance, dissuasion, and deterrence activities; execution of peace operations and other smaller-scale contingencies...