A Perspective on Strategy

Thankfully, most of my military career was spent in direct and organizational leadership. Out of 24 years, all but five were spent working at the Brigade level and below. I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way!

However, to spend a career in the military one must continually seek positions of increased responsibility and challenges. Such was the case when the Army sent me to Senior Service College from 2014-2015.

I am extremely grateful for the opportunity to have studied National Security Strategy at one of our nation’s finest institutions, the National War College. Many of my classmates are currently serving in the highest levels of the military and government!

There was one of my academic assignments that I think serves as a unique example of how the school shapes our future strategic leaders to think outside of the box. The assignment, which came early in the academic year, asked us to develop a national security strategy…. from a Russian perspective!

Quick disclaimer! The following excerpt is from an academic work produced by a fledgling student of National Security Strategy attempting to analyze a complex problem….in 2014! Nevertheless, I thought given the current world situation, some of the opinion expressed might be of interest. Again, this is written from a theoretical Russian perspective!

Russia’s rightful place as a global leader in the world order steadily waned over the past 20 years and recent events indicate there are those who seek our continual decline.  This singular fact must permeate every strategy and application of Russian national power as we look to regain Russia’s role as a preeminent superpower within the next two decades. Recent strategic missteps by our competitors and a fluid global economy presents unique opportunities to advance our core national interests across the globe.  In order to successfully achieve our ultimate goal of regaining superpower status we must analyze the net effects of threats, opportunities and objectives as they impact our vital national interests in order to develop a coherent national security strategy.

Russia’s primary and most vital national interest remains the physical security of our citizens, our expansive borders, and our economic infrastructure.  Recent threats to this most critical national interest include overt attempts by Western powers to pull Russian Border States into their spheres of influence thereby limiting our economic opportunities and potentially placing foreign forces at our doorstep. 

Although the West seeks to increase their influence in Eastern Europe, they are currently overextended and weary of foreign affairs after 13 years of entanglement in the Middle East.  This presents an excellent opportunity for a relatively unhindered Russia over the next five years to execute an aggressive strategy that through political or other means will reconsolidate influence in key Border States including the Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Estonia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Mongolia, and Belarus with the goal of building a Russian led security alliance. 

Hand in hand with our vital interest of physical security is our second core interest to achieve economic prosperity.  It is no secret that Russia’s economy is sustained primarily on profits gained from the export of hydrocarbon fuels and that much of our economic infrastructure is controlled by oligarchs.  This presents a tremendous threat to our very sovereignty as potential adversaries could increase production in order to fix global prices on Russia’s primary commodities and bankrupt our nation.

Now is the time to develop a national strategy that demands sweeping economic reform.  Reforms must include diversifying our economy to increase the 37% of GDP currently in industry to 60% within the next 20 years and transition from a predominantly internal consumer-based economy to truly an export economy.  Milestone goals for this effort will entail renewed government regulation, extensive investment in infrastructure, and a concerted effort to court foreign business to make Russia a premier choice for foreign investment. 

In order to stimulate economic prosperity and provide for the security of the motherland, Russia’s national security strategy must also address our third core interest of promoting Russian ideals at home and abroad.  We are no longer in a global struggle between ideals of communism and capitalism but rather a competition between the West’s brand of liberal Democracy and Russia’s unique form of governance.  Russia faces an immediate threat of the West winning this struggle which could relegate Russia to 2^nd order status for the foreseeable future. 

Russia must take advantage of the opportunity that presents itself in the United States current political divisiveness and the new brand of communism emerging in China.  Russia’s 5% unemployment as well as 11% poverty rates are better than the United States, proof of our growing middle class, and exemplify to developing nations that Russia’s style of governance is developing and working.  Most importantly we must promote our Russian ideals and Eurasian identity that uphold many core values that people across the world are desperately seeking in their own societies.   

Russia’s number one goal should be to regain status as a global superpower, and this can only be achieved with a carefully developed security strategy that takes into consideration the threats, opportunities, and objectives as they relate to our three vital national interests.  By developing ways to guarantee our physical security, promote economic prosperity, and spread Russian ideals globally we can achieve our primary goal. 

Next week I’ll take a look at one of my favorite topics, missile defense!

The views, opinions and biases expressed in this blog are the authors and do not reflect those of the U.S. Army or Department of Defense.

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