September 14, 2016
Leaving the “Gray Zone”: The U.S. Need to Fight Aggression Below Conventional War
The Commander-in-Chief Forum featuring Secretary Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump’s thoughts on national security missed an opportunity to engage the candidates on the gray zone tactics China and Russia are using to advance their agendas. Gray zone tactics represent asymmetric actions of many forms that do not trigger a robust adversarial response while still generating strategic gains. These states have acquired territory and expanded their influence, both politically and the physical range of their advanced weaponry, using “salami slicing” in recent years. Deterring these tactics requires comprehensive strategies. Gray zone tactics will be one of the most daunting policy challenges facing the next President of the United States. The next President, regardless of party, must have a plan.
To read the full op-ed, visit the Small Wars Journal website.
More from CNAS
-
Remote work at the Defense Department after the virus
Video
Susanna Blume, Senior Fellow and Director of the Defense Program at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), discusses the future of telework at the Defense Department a...
By Susanna V. Blume
-
It’s Time to Rethink our Wargames
Commentary
National security practitioners held several high-profile pandemic wargames and exercises in the years prior to the outbreak of COVID-19. Often, these games eerily predicted e...
By Chris Dougherty
-
Sharper: America's National Security Workforce
Commentary
The greatest source of strength in American national security is the people who lead and serve within its institutions. The ongoing U.S. response to the global coronavirus out...
By Emma Moore, Chris Estep & Cole Stevens
-
Let Them Work From Home
Commentary
Earlier this week Defense One reported that senior military service branch representatives requested a one-month delay in the submission of their annual budgets, arguing that ...
By Susanna V. Blume
