Humanitarian Actions and the U.S. Military
This is an excerpt from the paper...
The end of the Cold War ushered in a new strategic era for the United States. As a consequence, the roles and missions of the United States armed forces have been revised, or at least, are in a transition period where new roles and missions are being assessed (9:1). One of the most controversial of the roles and missions being considered and, in some instances, implemented for the United States armed forces in this transition period is the conduct of Military Operations Other Than War, or MOOTW (4:1). MOOTW is not a new concept for United States armed forces, as the Berlin Airlift in the 1948-1949 period will attest (4:1). The framework of MOOTW in the contemporary period, however, includes such activities as peacekeeping, peacemaking, and humanitarian operations that, in the view of some analysts, detract from the primary roles and missions of the United States armed forces (7:2).This paper assesses the policies providing for the use of United States armed forces in peacekeeping, peacemaking, and humanitarian operations. The position of this writer is that the use of United States armed forces in such roles should be a last resort, as opposed to a first choice. This position is developed and justified through a presentation of background information on the topic, a discussion of the issues involved, and evaluation of policies, and a statement of conclusions. The end of the Cold War also marked an end to the bipolar ch
. . .
ed States ground forces entered Kosovo as peacekeepers with the end of the successful peacemaking air campaign. There currently is no end in sight for the participation of United States ground forces as peacekeepers in Kosovo. If one accepts the Administration contention than an ongoing conflict in Kosovo would eventually embroil the United States in a much larger conflict, then one could fairly state that the national security of the United States has been enhanced by the peacemaking operation in Kosovo and is being enhanced by the peacekeeping operation in Kosovo. Colonel David Fastabend noted however, that, while "combat and non-combat is an alluring was to categorize" operations, the "strategic distinction between war and OOTW is problematic at the tactical level" (6:84). This contention implies that, on the ground, a peacekeeping effort may in fact be a small war. Further, such an operation can only be successful where the peacekeepers possess arms superiority to the combatants in the area (5:22).
The Role of International Organizations on United States Armed Forces Participation in MOOTW Efforts
It is somewhat misleading to state that MOOTW efforts involving United States armed forces have occurred under the auspices
. . .
Some common words found in the essay are:
Engagement Enlargement, China Russia, United Nations, Kosovo United, Berlin Airlift, Cold War, Clinton Administration, ANALYSIS Five, armed forces, united armed forces, united armed, Iraq Bosnia, Northern Iraq, mootw efforts, national security, peacekeeping peacemaking, forces mootw, armed forces mootw, roles missions, human rights, peacekeeping operation, peacekeeping effort, peacekeeping peacemaking humanitarian, participation mootw efforts, armed forces participation,
Approximate Word count = 4719
Approximate Pages = 19 (250 words per page)
More Essays on Humanitarian Actions and the U.S. Military
|
Customer Service
to Over
32,000 Professionally Written Papers!!!
