Foundations

Key Points

• The strategic process starts with clearly defining political objectives.
• The lack of a coherent security strategy has led us to fight wars we could have avoided and caused us to lose wars we ought to have won.
• A good strategy needs to provide clear expectations about reacting to unforeseen events as they unfold.
• A good strategy reduces uncertainty to some extent and prepares us to respond even when we are surprised.
• A good strategy must be ally-friendly.

How To Think About National Security

• We need to establish realistic and coherent political ends to drive strategy instead of listing countries and issues without genuine priorities.
• Our leaders need to clarify what they will and will not stand for to both allies and foes.
• We must be clear-eyed about the political, social, cultural, historic, ethnic, and religious realities that confront us, without imposing our norms and value onto others.
• Preserving an international order conducive to our interests becomes much more affordable when working with, and through, our allies.