| Summary/Abstract |
Recent literature in strategic studies has argued for or against the idea that the world is entering an era of new types of conflict. Yet neither side of the debate appears to have considered the primary source of the character of war, which is strategy. Strategy's two main relationships (that between military power and political consequences, and that between interacting adversaries) contribute significantly toward determining the character of any war. Strategy is the basis both for understanding present wars and anticipating future wars. Although useful for defense planners and historians, for practicing strategists, “the character of war” lacks analytical value.
|