News

In the News

Interview with Jim Thomas: Challenging the Conventional Wisdom on US Traditional Alliances from Protectorates to Partnerships

June 10, 2011 Small Wars Journal

America’s alliances are quite real, but they differ from a number of historical alliances in that the preponderance of military power was invested in the US military. The fragility of post-war economies in Europe and Northeast Asia limited what those states could do for their own defense, and led to their dependence on the US military to provide for their security. Consequently, they became to all intents and purposes protectorates of the US; that is, they became dependent on the US for their protection from the Soviet Union. What is troubling is that even in the aftermath of their economic recoveries and the dissolution of the Soviet empire, these states have not increased defense spending, but have in fact further reduced such spending and become even more dependent on the US to protect their interests, especially out of area.

In the News

Panetta’s Excellent Pentagon Adventure: Cut Cash, Rewrite Strategy

June 8, 2011 Wired Magazine

CIA Director Leon Panetta knows what his overriding task will be as President Obama’s next defense secretary: cutting the defense budget down to size. No one needs to wait for his Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday to hear about that. But defense analysts are itching to hear how Panetta will adjust U.S. defense strategy to make the impending budget cuts make sense/…/

In the News

Resourcing the AirSea Battle Concept

June 6, 2011 Defense Magazine

China’s rapidly improving military capability and its increasingly aggressive effort to keep U.S. military forces out of striking range are raising concerns about America’s future ability to protect its vital interest and its allies in Northeast Asia.

In the News

Military Personnel, Retirees Could Face Cuts

June 4, 2011 News Herald

President Obama announced earlier this year the need for about $400 billion in military-related budget cuts over the next decade.

In the News

Gates Seeks Big Changes to Military Pay, Pensions

June 4, 2011 The Virginian-Pilot

In his waning days as secretary of defense, Robert Gates is proposing historic changes to what he calls a "rigid, one-size-fits-all approach" to military pay and retirement benefits/.../

Press Releases

CSBA Releases New Report on the Maturation of the Precision-Strike Regime

June 3, 2011

Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments is pleased to release The Maturing Revolution in Military Affairs. The report, authored by Center Senior Fellow Barry Watts, considers the maturation of the precision-strike regime and five of the most consequential fundamental changes in the conduct of war by 2040-2050.

Focused Force: China’s Military Challenge and Australia’s Response

China’s ambitions, assertiveness, and massive military expansion have stimulated a major shift in Australia’s defense policy. From the AUKUS partnership to new allied posture arrangements to the acquisition of long-range strike capabilities, Australia is carrying out a series of ambitious initiatives to strengthen deterrence. Canberra has further called on the Australian Defence Force (ADF) to become a “focused force” designed to deal with the highest-order dangers. As Australia undergoes this strategic reorientation, it confronts weighty investment and divestment decisions that could have lasting consequences for force structure and posture.

Putting It All Together: The 2025 Defense Budget Request, Alternative Budget Proposals, and NATO Spending

With a new administration and new Congress entering office, experts from across the political spectrum have introduced competing proposals for future U.S. defense budgets. The most noteworthy aspect of these proposals is the extraordinary degree to which they differ. One issue driving the differences is NATO military spending. Much attention has centered on NATO members devoting at least 2 percent of their GDP to defense. Despite this attention, research has rarely projected the additional funding and forces that could be generated if all NATO countries met the 2 percent of GDP benchmark—or a higher target.

Understanding NATO’s Concept for Deterrence and Defense of the Euro-Atlantic Area

May 20, 2024 Katherine E. Dahlstrand, Sean Monaghan, Sara Bjerg Moller

NATO, the largest and most powerful military alliance in history, turned seventy-five in April. In July, the leaders of NATO will return to the city where its founding document, the Washington Treaty, was signed in 1949. Most people have heard of NATO. Fewer know its most important document is the Strategic Concept, which is updated every decade or so, and sets the Alliance’s strategy. An even smaller group know about NATO’s “Concept for Deterrence and Defence of the Euro-Atlantic Area.”

More of the Same? The Future of the Russian Military And Its Ability to Change

Assessing the type of threat that Russia is likely to pose in the aftermath of the war in Ukraine is a critical challenge for the United States and its allies. What will the Russian military look like in the future? Some argue that the Russian military will remain a significant threat – and perhaps become a very different and even more serious one. This argument holds that the Russian military will reconstitute in a relatively short time frame and may reform according to lessons learned during the war in Ukraine. Others argue that the Russian military will pose a far less formidable conventional threat going forward. Not only has the war against Ukraine exposed fundamental weaknesses in the Russian military, the argument goes, but Moscow’s ability to address those weaknesses will be limited by available manpower, sanctions, and export controls.

An Ongoing and Necessary Renaissance: NATO’s Nuclear Posture

January 25, 2024 Eric Edelman, Franklin C. Miller

President Putin’s nuclear saber-rattling while the war in Ukraine has raged, along with lurid nuclear threats by Russian officials and propagandists, have once again focused attention on NATO’s nuclear mission. As the alliance approaches a summit in Washington later this summer, it is an appropriate time to review its nuclear posture.

Focused Force: China’s Military Challenge and Australia’s Response

Putting It All Together: The 2025 Defense Budget Request, Alternative Budget Proposals, and NATO Spending

More of the Same? The Future of the Russian Military And Its Ability to Change

Strengthening the Phalanx: Layered, Comprehensive, and Distributed Air and Missile Defense in the Indo-Pacific

Inconsistent Congress: Analysis of the 2024 Defense Budget Request

Evaluate Like We Operate: Why DOD Should Evaluate Weapons Systems as Networked Force Packages, Not Individual Platforms

Extending Deterrence by Detection: The Case for Integrating Unmanned Aircraft Systems Into the Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness

Beyond Precision: Maintaining America’s Strike Advantage in Great Power Conflict

The Decisive Decade: United States–China Competition in Defense Innovation and Defense Industrial Policy in and Beyond the 2020s

Speeding Toward Instability? Hypersonic Weapons and the Risks of Nuclear Use

Featured Event

Report Release Webinar: Strengthening the Phalanx: Layered, Comprehensive, and Distributed Air and Missile Defense in the Indo-Pacific

Interview with Jim Thomas: Challenging the Conventional Wisdom on US Traditional Alliances from Protectorates to Partnerships

Panetta’s Excellent Pentagon Adventure: Cut Cash, Rewrite Strategy

Resourcing the AirSea Battle Concept

Military Personnel, Retirees Could Face Cuts

Gates Seeks Big Changes to Military Pay, Pensions

CSBA Releases New Report on the Maturation of the Precision-Strike Regime

Latest Publications

Focused Force: China’s Military Challenge and Australia’s Response

Putting It All Together: The 2025 Defense Budget Request, Alternative Budget Proposals, and NATO Spending

Understanding NATO’s Concept for Deterrence and Defense of the Euro-Atlantic Area

More of the Same? The Future of the Russian Military And Its Ability to Change

2023 Annual Report

An Ongoing and Necessary Renaissance: NATO’s Nuclear Posture