National Defense Strategy of the United States: Sharpening the American Military's Competitive EdgeThis unclassified synopsis of the classified 2018 National Defense Strategy articulates our strategy to compete, deter, and win in this environment. The reemergence of long-term strategic competition, rapid dispersion of technologies, and new concepts of warfare and competition that span the entire spectrum of conflict require a Joint Force structured to match this reality. Today, we are emerging from a period of strategic atrophy, aware that our competitive military advantage has been eroding. We are facing increased global disorder, characterized by decline in the long-standing rules-based international order -- creating a security environment more complex and volatile than any we have experienced in recent memory. Inter-state strategic competition, not terrorism, is now the primary concern in U.S. national security... This increasingly complex security environment is defined by rapid technological change, challenges from adversaries in every operating domain, and the impact on current readiness from the longest continuous stretch of armed conflict in our Nation’s history. In this environment, there can be no complacency -- we must make difficult choices and prioritize what is most important to field a lethal, resilient, and rapidly adapting Joint Force. America’s military has no preordained right to victory on the battlefield. Department of DefenseDoD_5e8dcfdc-5d6a-11df-839d-400e7a64ea2aThe Department of Defense's enduring mission is to provide combat-credible military forces needed to deter war and protect the security of our nation. Should deterrence fail, the Joint Force is prepared to win. Reinforcing America's traditional tools of diplomacy, the Department provides military options to ensure the President and our diplomats negotiate from a position of strength.President of the United StatesJim MattisSecretary of DefenseChinaChina is a strategic competitor using predatory economics to intimidate its neighbors while militarizing features in the South China Sea.RussiaRussia has violated the borders of nearby nations and pursues veto power over the economic, diplomatic, and security decisions of its neighbors.North KoreaAs well, North Korea's outlaw actions and reckless rhetoric continue despite United Nation's censure and sanctions.IranIran continues to sow violence and remains the most significant challenge to Middle East stability.ISISDespite the defeat of ISIS's physical caliphate, threats to stability remain as terrorist groups with long reach continue to murder the innocent and threaten peace more broadly.Peace through strength._c220f9c4-191f-11e8-b052-6c57c1e6fde7To provide combat-credible military forces needed to deter war and protect the security of our nation._c220fb18-191f-11e8-b052-6c57c1e6fde7InnovationA more lethal, resilient, and rapidly innovating Joint Force, combined with a robust constellation of allies and partners, will sustain American influence and ensure favorable balances of power that safeguard the free and open international order.ResilienceFreedomOpennessAlliancesCollectively, our force posture, alliance and partnership architecture, and Department modernization will provide the capabilities and agility required to prevail in conflict and preserve peace through strength.PartnershipsStrengthPeaceInfluenceThe costs of not implementing this strategy are clear. Failure to meet our defense objectives will result in decreasing U.S. global influence, eroding cohesion among allies and partners, and reduced access to markets that will contribute to a decline in our prosperity and standard of living.CohesionProsperityInvestmentWithout sustained and predictable investment to restore readiness and modernize our military to make it fit for our time, we will rapidly lose our military advantage, resulting in a Joint Force that has legacy systems irrelevant to the defense of our people. ReadinessModernizationForceBuild a More Lethal Force_c220fbb8-191f-11e8-b052-6c57c1e6fde71The surest way to prevent war is to be prepared to win one. Doing so requires a competitive approach to force development and a consistent, multiyear investment to restore warfighting readiness and field a lethal force. The size of our force matters. The Nation must field sufficient, capable forces to defeat enemies and achieve sustainable outcomes that protect the American people and our vital interests. Our aim is a Joint Force that possesses decisive advantages for any likely conflict, while remaining proficient across the entire spectrum of conflict. PreparednessPrioritize preparedness for war. _c220fc4e-191f-11e8-b052-6c57c1e6fde71.1Achieving peace through strength requires the Joint Force to deter conflict through preparedness for war. During normal day-to-day operations, the Joint Force will sustainably compete to: deter aggression in three key regions -- the Indo-Pacific, Europe, and Middle East; degrade terrorist and WMD threats; and defend U.S. interests from challenges below the level of armed conflict. In wartime, the fully mobilized Joint Force will be capable of: defeating aggression by a major power; deterring opportunistic aggression elsewhere; and disrupting imminent terrorist and WMD threats. During peace or in war, the Joint Force will deter nuclear and non-nuclear strategic attacks and defend the homeland. To support these missions, the Joint Force must gain and maintain information superiority; and develop, strengthen, and sustain U.S. security relationshipsCapabilitiesModernize key capabilities. _c220fce4-191f-11e8-b052-6c57c1e6fde71.2We cannot expect success fighting tomorrow's conflicts with yesterday's weapons or equipment. To address the scope and pace of our competitors' and adversaries' ambitions and capabilities, we must invest in modernization of key capabilities through sustained, predictable budgets. Our backlog of deferred readiness, procurement, and modernization requirements has grown in the last decade and a half and can no longer be ignored. We will make targeted, disciplined increases in personnel and platforms to meet key capability and capacity needs. The 2018 National Defense Strategy underpins our planned fiscal year 2019-2023 budgets, accelerating our modernization programs and devoting additional resources in a sustained effort to solidify our competitive advantage.NuclearModernize the nuclear triad._c220fd84-191f-11e8-b052-6c57c1e6fde71.2.1Nuclear forces. The Department will modernize the nuclear triad—including nuclear command, control, and communications, and supporting infrastructure. Modernization of the nuclear force includes developing options to counter competitors’ coercive strategies, predicated on the threatened use of nuclear or strategic non-nuclear attacksSpace & CyberspaceInvest in space capabilities, cyber defense, resilience, and the continued integration of cyber capabilities._c220fe1a-191f-11e8-b052-6c57c1e6fde71.2.2Space and cyberspace as warfighting domains. The Department will prioritize investments in resilience, reconstitution, and operations to assure our space capabilities. We will also invest in cyber defense, resilience, and the continued integration of cyber capabilities into the full spectrum of military operations. C4ISRDevelop resilient, survivable, federated networks and information ecosystems._c220fec4-191f-11e8-b052-6c57c1e6fde71.2.3Command, control, communications, computers and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (C4ISR). Investments will prioritize developing resilient, survivable, federated networks and information ecosystems from the tactical level up to strategic planning. Investments will also prioritize capabilities to gain and exploit information, deny competitors those same advantages, and enable us to provide attribution while defending against and holding accountable state or non-state actors during cyberattacks.Missile DefensesFocus on layered missile defenses and disruptive capabilities._c220ff5a-191f-11e8-b052-6c57c1e6fde71.2.4Missile defense. Investments will focus on layered missile defenses and disruptive capabilities for both theater missile threats and North Korean ballistic missile threats.Contested EnvironmentsBe capable of striking targets inside adversary air and missile defense networks._c220fffa-191f-11e8-b052-6c57c1e6fde71.2.5Joint lethality in contested environments. The Joint Force must be able to strike diverse targets inside adversary air and missile defense networks to destroy mobile power-projection platforms. This will include capabilities to enhance close combat lethality in complex terrain.Forward ForcesPrioritize ground, air, sea, and space forces that can deploy, survive, operate, maneuver, and regenerate in all domains._c22100b8-191f-11e8-b052-6c57c1e6fde71.2.6Forward force maneuver and posture resilience. Investments will prioritize ground, air, sea, and space forces that can deploy, survive, operate, maneuver, and regenerate in all domains while under attack. Transitioning from large, centralized, unhardened infrastructure to smaller, dispersed, resilient, adaptive basing that include active and passive defenses will also be prioritized. Autonomous SystemsInvest in military application of autonomy, artificial intelligence, and machine learning._c2210158-191f-11e8-b052-6c57c1e6fde71.2.7Advanced autonomous systems. The Department will invest broadly in military application of autonomy, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, including rapid application of commercial breakthroughs, to gain competitive military advantages. LogisticsPrioritize prepositioned forward stocks and munitions, strategic mobility assets, partner and allied support._c2210202-191f-11e8-b052-6c57c1e6fde71.2.8Resilient and agile logistics. Investments will prioritize prepositioned forward stocks and munitions, strategic mobility assets, partner and allied support, as well as non-commercially dependent distributed logistics and maintenance to ensure logistics sustainment while under persistent multi-domain attack. Operational ConceptsEvolve innovative operational concepts. _c22102e8-191f-11e8-b052-6c57c1e6fde71.3Modernization is not defined solely by hardware; it requires change in the ways we organize and employ forces.New TechnologiesAnticipate the implications of new technologies on the battlefield._2aa50b06-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde71.3.1We must anticipate the implications of new technologies on the battlefield, rigorously define the military problems anticipated in future conflict, and foster a culture of experimentation and calculated risk-taking.Military ProblemsDefine the military problems anticipated in future conflicts._2aa50e1c-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde71.3.2Experimentation & Risk-TakingFoster a culture of experimentation and calculated risk-taking._2aa50f8e-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde71.3.3Operational Concepts & TechologiesAnticipate how competitors and adversaries will employ new operational concepts and technologies._2aa510a6-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde71.3.4We must anticipate how competitors and adversaries will employ new operational concepts and technologies to attempt to defeat us, while developing operational concepts to sharpen our competitive advantages and enhance our lethality.Advantages & LethalityDevelop operational concepts to sharpen our competitive advantages and enhance our lethality._2aa511d2-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde71.3.5Force Posture & EmploymentDevelop a lethal, agile, and resilient force posture and employment._2aa512f4-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde71.4Force posture and employment must be adaptable to account for the uncertainty that exists in the changing global strategic environment. Much of our force employment models and posture date to the immediate post-Cold War era, when our military advantage was unchallenged and the primary threats were rogue regimes. Force EmploymentMaintain the capacity and capabilities for major combat, while providing options for proactive and scalable employment of the Joint Force._2aa5140c-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde71.4.1Dynamic Force Employment. Dynamic Force Employment will prioritize maintaining the capacity and capabilities for major combat, while providing options for proactive and scalable employment of the Joint Force. A modernized Global Operating Model of combat-credible, flexible theater postures will enhance our ability to compete and provide freedom of maneuver during conflict, providing national decision-makers with better military options. The global strategic environment demands increased strategic flexibility and freedom of action. The Dynamic Force Employment concept will change the way the Department uses the Joint Force to provide proactive and scalable options for priority missions. Dynamic Force Employment will more flexibly use ready forces to shape proactively the strategic environment while maintaining readiness to respond to contingencies and ensure long-term warfighting readiness. Operating ModelPosture and employ the Joint Force to achieve competition and wartime missions._2aa51538-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde71.4.2Global Operating Model. The Global Operating Model describes how the Joint Force will be postured and employed to achieve its competition and wartime missions. Foundational capabilities include: nuclear; cyber; space; C4ISR; strategic mobility, and counter WMD proliferation. It comprises four layers: contact, blunt, surge, and homeland. These are, respectively, designed to help us compete more effectively below the level of armed conflict; delay, degrade, or deny adversary aggression; surge war-winning forces and manage conflict escalation; and defend the U.S. homeland.Workforce TalentRecruit, develop, and retain a high-quality military and civilian workforce._2aa516c8-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde71.5Cultivate workforce talent. Recruiting, developing, and retaining a high-quality military and civilian workforce is essential for warfighting success. Cultivating a lethal, agile force requires more than just new technologies and posture changes; it depends on the ability of our warfighters and the Department workforce to integrate new capabilities, adapt warfighting approaches, and change business practices to achieve mission success. The creativity and talent of the American warfighter is our greatest enduring strength, and one we do not take for granted.Military EducationEmphasize intellectual leadership and military professionalism in the art and science of warfighting._2aa517f4-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde71.5.1Professional Military Education (PME). PME has stagnated, focused more on the accomplishment of mandatory credit at the expense of lethality and ingenuity. We will emphasize intellectual leadership and military professionalism in the art and science of warfighting, deepening our knowledge of history while embracing new technology and techniques to counter competitors. PME will emphasize independence of action in warfighting concepts to lessen the impact of degraded/lost communications in combat. PME is to be used as a strategic asset to build trust and interoperability across the Joint Forces and with allied and partner forces. Talent ManagementDevelop leaders who are competent in national-level decision-making._2aa5193e-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde71.5.2Developing leaders who are competent in national-level decision-making requires broad revision of talent management among the Armed Services, including fellowships, civilian education, and assignments that increase understanding of interagency decision-making processes, as well as alliances and coalitions.Civilian ExpertiseEmphasize new skills and complement our current workforce._2aa51a6a-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde71.5.3Information ExpertsData ScientistsComputer ProgrammersBasic Science ResearchersEngineersCivilian workforce expertise. A modern, agile, information-advantaged Department requires a motivated, diverse, and highly skilled civilian workforce. We will emphasize new skills and complement our current workforce with information experts, data scientists, computer programmers, and basic science researchers and engineers -- to use information, not simply manage it. The Department will also continue to explore streamlined, non-traditional pathways to bring critical skills into service, expanding access to outside expertise, and devising new public-private partnerships to work with small companies, start-ups, and universities. Alliances & PartnersStrengthen Alliances and Attract New Partners_2aa51b96-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde72Mutually beneficial alliances and partnerships are crucial to our strategy, providing a durable, asymmetric strategic advantage that no competitor or rival can match. This approach has served the United States well, in peace and war, for the past 75 years. Our allies and partners came to our aid after the terrorist attacks on 9/11, and have contributed to every major U.S.-led military engagement since. Every day, our allies and partners join us in defending freedom, deterring war, and maintaining the rules which underwrite a free and open international order. By working together with allies and partners we amass the greatest possible strength for the long-term advancement of our interests, maintaining favorable balances of power that deter aggression and support the stability that generates economic growth. When we pool resources and share responsibility for our common defense, our security burden becomes lighter. Our allies and partners provide complementary capabilities and forces along with unique perspectives, regional relationships, and information that improve our understanding of the environment and expand our options. Allies and partners also provide access to critical regions, supporting a widespread basing and logistics system that underpins the Department’s global reach.NetworkStrengthen and evolve our alliances and partnerships into an extended network._2aa51ce0-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde72.1We will strengthen and evolve our alliances and partnerships into an extended network capable of deterring or decisively acting to meet the shared challenges of our time. We will focus on three elements for achieving a capable alliance and partnership network: Respect, Responsibility, Priorities & AccountabilityUphold a foundation of mutual respect, responsibility, priorities, and accountability._2aa51e20-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde72.1.1Our alliances and coalitions are built on free will and shared responsibilities. While we will unapologetically represent America's values and belief in democracy, we will not seek to impose our way of life by force. We will uphold our commitments and we expect allies and partners to contribute an equitable share to our mutually beneficial collective security, including effective investment in modernizing their defense capabilities. We have shared responsibilities for resisting authoritarian trends, contesting radical ideologies, and serving as bulwarks against instability. Consultation & PlanningExpand regional consultative mechanisms and collaborative planning._2aa51f56-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde72.1.2We will develop new partnerships around shared interests to reinforce regional coalitions and security cooperation. We will provide allies and partners with a clear and consistent message to encourage alliance and coalition commitment, greater defense cooperation, and military investment.InteroperabilityDeepen interoperability._2aa520b4-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde72.1.3Each ally and partner is unique. Combined forces able to act together coherently and effectively to achieve military objectives requires interoperability. Interoperability is a priority for operational concepts, modular force elements, communications, information sharing, and equipment. In consultation with Congress and the Department of State, the Department of Defense will prioritize requests for U.S. military equipment sales, accelerating foreign partner modernization and ability to integrate with U.S. forces. We will train to high-end combat missions in our alliance, bilateral, and multinational exercises. Coalitions & PartnershipsContinue to prioritize enduring coalitions and long-term security partnerships._2aa521f4-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde72.2Enduring coalitions and long-term security partnerships, underpinned by our bedrock alliances and reinforced by our allies’ own webs of security relationships, remain a priority:Indo-Pacific RegionExpand Indo-Pacific alliances and partnerships._2aa52348-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde72.2.1Indo-Pacific RegionA free and open Indo-Pacific region provides prosperity and security for all. We will strengthen our alliances and partnerships in the Indo-Pacific to a networked security architecture capable of deterring aggression, maintaining stability, and ensuring free access to common domains. With key countries in the region, we will bring together bilateral and multilateral security relationships to preserve the free and open international system. NATOFortify the Trans-Atlantic NATO Alliance._2aa524ce-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde72.2.2EuropeNATOA strong and free Europe, bound by shared principles of democracy, national sovereignty, and commitment to Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty is vital to our security. The alliance will deter Russian adventurism, defeat terrorists who seek to murder innocents, and address the arc of instability building on NATO's periphery. At the same time, NATO must adapt to remain relevant and fit for our time -- in purpose, capability, and responsive decision-making. We expect European allies to fulfill their commitments to increase defense and modernization spending to bolster the alliance in the face of our shared security concerns.Middle EastForm enduring coalitions in the Middle East._2aa52622-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde72.2.3Middle EastAfghanistanIraqSyriaIranForm enduring coalitions in the Middle East. We will foster a stable and secure Middle East that denies safe havens for terrorists, is not dominated by any power hostile to the United States, and that contributes to stable global energy markets and secure trade routes. We will develop enduring coalitions to consolidate gains we have made in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and elsewhere, to support the lasting defeat of terrorists as we sever their sources of strength and counterbalance Iran. Western HemisphereSustain advantages in the Western Hemisphere._2aa5276c-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde72.2.4Western HemisphereThe U.S. derives immense benefit from a stable, peaceful hemisphere that reduces security threats to the homeland. Supporting the U.S. interagency lead, the Department will deepen its relations with regional countries that contribute military capabilities to shared regional and global security challenges. AfricaSupport relationships to address significant terrorist threats in Africa._2aa528f2-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde72.2.5AfricaWe will bolster existing bilateral and multilateral partnerships and develop new relationships to address significant terrorist threats that threaten U.S. interests and contribute to challenges in Europe and the Middle East. We will focus on working by, with, and through local partners and the European Union to degrade terrorists; build the capability required to counter violent extremism, human trafficking, trans-national criminal activity, and illegal arms trade with limited outside assistance; and limit the malign influence of non-African powers.Performance & AffordabilityReform the Department for Greater Performance and Affordability_2aa52a46-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde73The current bureaucratic approach, centered on exacting thoroughness and minimizing risk above all else, is proving to be increasingly unresponsive. We must transition to a culture of performance where results and accountability matter. We will put in place a management system where leadership can harness opportunities and ensure effective stewardship of taxpayer resources. We have a responsibility to gain full value from every taxpayer dollar spent on defense, thereby earning the trust of Congress and the American people.RelevanceDeliver performance at the speed of relevance._2aa52b9a-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde73.1Success no longer goes to the country that develops a new technology first, but rather to the one that better integrates it and adapts its way of fighting. Current processes are not responsive to need; the Department is over-optimized for exceptional performance at the expense of providing timely decisions, policies, and capabilities to the warfighter. Our response will be to prioritize speed of delivery, continuous adaptation, and frequent modular upgrades. We must not accept cumbersome approval chains, wasteful applications of resources in uncompetitive space, or overly risk-averse thinking that impedes change. Delivering performance means we will shed outdated management practices and structures while integrating insights from business innovationInnovationOrganize for innovation._2aa52d16-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde73.2The Department’s management structure and processes are not written in stone, they are a means to an end -- empowering the warfighter with the knowledge, equipment and support systems to fight and win. Department leaders will adapt their organizational structures to best support the Joint Force. If current structures hinder substantial increases in lethality or performance, it is expected that Service Secretaries and Agency heads will consolidate, eliminate, or restructure as needed. The Department's leadership is committed to changes in authorities, granting of waivers, and securing external support for streamlining processes and organizations.Budget DisciplineDrive budget discipline and affordability to achieve solvency._2aa52e7e-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde73.3Better management begins with effective financial stewardship. The Department will continue its plan to achieve full auditability of all its operations, improving its financial processes, systems, and tools to understand, manage, and improve cost. We will continue to leverage the scale of our operations to drive greater efficiency in procurement of materiel and services while pursuing opportunities to consolidate and streamline contracts in areas such as logistics, information technology, and support services. We will also continue efforts to reduce management overhead and the size of headquarters staff. We will reduce or eliminate duplicative organizations and systems for managing human resources, finance, health services, travel, and supplies. The Department will also work to reduce excess property and infrastructure, providing Congress with options for a Base Realignment and Closure.StreamliningStreamline rapid, iterative approaches from development to fielding._2aa52fdc-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde73.4A rapid, iterative approach to capability development will reduce costs, technological obsolescence, and acquisition risk. The department will realign incentive and reporting structures to increase speed of delivery, enable design trade-offs in the requirements process, expand the role of war fighters and intelligence analysis throughout the acquisition process, and utilize non-traditional suppliers. Prototyping and experimentation should be used prior to defining requirements and commercial off-the-shelf systems. Platform electronics and software must be designed for routine replacement instead of static configurations that last more than a decade. This approach, a major departure from previous practices and culture, will allow the Department to more quickly respond to changes in the security environment and make it harder for competitors to offset our systems.Innovation BaseHarness and protect the National Security Innovation Base._2aa531a8-19a3-11e8-80f2-f44abfe6fde73.5The Department's technological advantage depends on healthy and secure national security innovation base that includes both traditional and nontraditional defense partners. The department, with the support of Congress, will provide the defense industry with sufficient predictability to inform their long-term investments in critical skills, infrastructure, and research and development. We will continue to streamline processes so that new entrants and small-scale vendors can provide cutting-edge technologies. We will also cultivate international partnerships to leverage and protect partner investments in military capabilities.2018-01-012018-12-312018-02-24https://www.defense.gov/Portals/1/Documents/pubs/2018-National-Defense-Strategy-Summary.pdfOwenAmburOwen.Ambur@verizon.net