| ID | 083625 |
| Title Proper | Wrestling with deterrence |
| Other Title Information | Bush administration strategy after 9/11 |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Knopf, Jeffrey W |
| Publication | 2008. |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | After the announcement of the doctrine of preemption in 2002, many observers concluded the George W. Bush administration had abandoned the strategy of deterrence. This is a misconception. This article aims both to clarify the status of deterrence in American strategy since 9/11 and to assess that strategy.
The Bush administration tried simultaneously to make deterrence do both more and less. Specifically, the administration has sought four goals with respect to deterrence: to bolster American credibility; to stretch deterrence to new tasks; to reduce reliance on deterrence; and implement a new approach of 'tailored deterrence'. Although these different impulses appear to be in conflict, within the administration's strategic outlook they made coherent sense. But the Bush administration underestimated the prospects for deterring rogue states and hence overstated the need for preventive action. Indeed, the Bush administration's rhetorical overemphasis on preemption and regime change may have undermined deterrence. Elements of the American response to international terrorism, moreover, were at cross-purposes with the Bush administration's own efforts to use 'deterrence by denial' against terrorism |
| `In' analytical Note | Contemporary Security Policy Vol. 29, No.2; Aug 2008: p229-265 |
| Journal Source | Contemporary Security Policy Vol. 29, No.2; Aug 2008: p229-265 |
| Key Words | Bush Administration ; Deterrence ; Nuclear Deterrence ; Strategy ; United States |