Sustaining and Enhancing the US Military’s Technology Edge
Honorable Michele A. Flournoy and Lt Col Robert P. Lyons III, USAF
The United States can no longer take for granted its decisive technological superiority. The battle to sustain and enhance the US military’s technological superiority has begun.
Why US Nuclear Force Numbers Matter
Keith B. Payne
Effective deterrence is too important to depend on the assumption that the US will face only opponents who are susceptible to minimum deterrent threats.
Nuclear Threat Perceptions
Susan Turner Haynes
China is the only nuclear weapon state under the NPT to continue increasing the size and sophistication of its nuclear arsenal. Understanding why means looking at the threat environment, as China perceives it, and explaining how these perceptions interact to form the basis of China’s nuclear deterrence strategy.
Iran’s Path Dependent Military Doctrine
Erik A. Olson
Iran’s continued focus on missiles is a less-optimal approach to its own security needs or those of its regional allies. However, it does offer opportunities for US cost-imposing strategies against Iran.
Biotech Business Lessons for Defense Acquisition
Col David L. Peeler, Jr., USAF
The desire to innovate and transform defense acquisition is ill-informed regarding the true meaning of innovation and transformation. Lessons from private business sectors would serve DOD interests well.
A Reality Check on a Cyber Force
Col Corey M. Ramsby, USAF and Panayotis A. Yannakogeorgos
It is premature to call for a separate cyberspace armed service, independent of the other services and agencies. There are four key prerequisites required before achieving this goal.
Autonomy and the Future
Wg Cdr Andrew Massie, RAF
Machine intelligence can be exploited to its maximum potential by being free to react to its environment. The irony is that to harness the full potential of autonomy, we have to trust machines and free decision makers.