Read the most recent CSIS research on U.S. military force structure.
Military forces consist not just of the services, but also special operations forces, civilians, contractors, and non-DOD agencies. In his final white paper in a series on U.S. forces, CSIS’s Mark Cancian analyzes recent changes to these other national security elements.
Squeezed between the demands of great power conflict and day-to-day operations, the Air Force moves to a high-low mix of capabilities. In the fifth white paper in a series on U.S. forces, CSIS’s Mark Cancian analyzes the Air Force’s modernization and force structure plans.
The Army struggles to grow its force structure as it takes steps towards modernization for great power conflict. In the fourth white paper in his series on U.S. forces, CSIS’s Mark Cancian analyzes the Army’s plans and challenges for growth and modernization.
The Marine Corps is developing capabilities for great power conflict after decades of counterinsurgency. In the third white paper in a series on U.S. forces, CSIS’s Mark Cancian analyzes the Marine Corps’ force structure, strategic reorientation, and long-term challenges.
The U.S. Navy is gearing up for great power conflict even as it struggles to meet day-to-day operational demands. In the second white paper in his series on the U.S. forces, CSIS’s Mark Cancian analyzes the Navy’s force structure, proposed changes, and long-term challenges.
This first white paper in Mark Cancian’s military forces series analyzes the strategy and budget context for building forces in FY 2020, criticisms of the strategy, budget and resulting force plans, and risks for sustaining force levels in the future.
The overall theme of this year’s military forces report is the struggle to align forces and strategy, unrelenting operational demands, and legacy programs whose smooth operations and strong constituencies inhibit rapid change.
The 2019 Artificial Intelligence Strategy recognizes that leveraging AI means investing in the AI ecosystem: the people, computing infrastructure, data, and policies necessary to support any organization’s deployment of AI technology.
For most of the nuclear age, enhanced strategic situational awareness has been viewed as beneficial to crisis stability. Today, existing and emerging technology offers the prospect of insight into adversary actions and activities with unprecedented speed and precision. But can there be too much of a good thing?
In 2018, President Trump requested the creation of the U.S. Space Force. Since then three competing visions for its structure have been crafted: one from the Department of Defense and two from the U.S. House and Senate. This brief compares these three legislative proposals to create a new military service for space.