The Next Defense Strategy

The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) today announced the launch of a new project, The Next Defense Strategy, led by the CNAS Defense Program.

Regardless of who wins the next U.S. presidential election, by statute the Department of Defense (DoD) must deliver a new National Defense Strategy (NDS) to Congress in 2022. And CNAS is here to help. From July to December 2020, CNAS will release new papers every week on the tough issues the next NDS should tackle. The goal of this project is to provide intellectual capital to the drafters of the 2022 NDS, focusing specifically on unfinished business from the past several defense strategies and areas where change is necessary but difficult.

“We are very excited to launch this series,” said CNAS Senior Fellow and Defense Program Director Susanna V. Blume. “We have over 30 authors participating in the project, ranging from established defense experts like former Deputy Secretary of Defense Robert O. Work, to a host of new up-and-comers in the field, and everything in between.”

The series’ first paper “Sharpening the U.S. Military’s Edge: Critical Steps for the Next Administration,” authored by Michèle A. Flournoy and Gabrielle Chefitz, focuses on the erosion of the U.S. military technological advantage vis-à-vis great power competitors such as China. The authors argue that the next administration must take bigger, bolder steps to accelerate the development and adoption of new military capabilities and operational concepts in order to preserve the U.S. military’s edge and underwrite the United States’ ability to deter great power conflict.

“The Department of Defense faces a momentous challenge in tackling the demands of great power competition and deterring conflict,” said Michèle Flournoy, CEO of WestExec Advisors and member of the CNAS Board of Directors. “The CNAS Next Defense Strategy project will help lay the groundwork for the next administration to chart a future that protects U.S. citizens, interests, and allies and maintains America’s military-technological edge over authoritarian great power rivals.”

For more information or to schedule an interview with CNAS experts, please contact Cole Stevens at cstevens@cnas.org or call 202-695-8166.