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Author: Linda Robinson
Publisher: RAND Corporation
Published: 2018
Total Pages: 0
ISBN-13: 9780833098399
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →This report examines U.S. decisions related to the development or use of special operations forces. It should assist in future planning and execution by the Army Special Operations Forces, the U.S. Army, and the joint special operations community.
Author: John E. Peters
Publisher: Technical Report (Rand Corpora
Published: 2012
Total Pages: 0
ISBN-13: 9780833060129
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →U.S. Army Special Operations Command sought options for enhancing the contributions of the Special Forces Groups of the U.S. Army National Guard (ARNG). The research was motivated by the sponsor's belief that ARNG might occupy high-value capability niches that could be put to use in future deployments. This study analyzed ARNG Special Forces capabilities as well as the legal and policy guidance that governs ARNG's functioning.
Author: Christopher J. Lamb
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Published: 2019-11-19
Total Pages: 490
ISBN-13: 0231545223
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →In this book, two national-security experts put the exploits of America’s special operation forces in historical and strategic context. David Tucker and Christopher J. Lamb offer an incisive overview of America’s turbulent experience with special operations. Starting with in-depth interviews with special operators, the authors illustrate the diversity of modern special operations forces and the strategic value of their unique attributes. Despite longstanding and growing public fascination with special operators, these forces and their contribution to national security are poorly understood. With this book, Tucker and Lamb dispel common misconceptions and offer a penetrating analysis of how these unique and valuable forces can be employed to even better effect in the future. The book builds toward a comprehensive assessment of the strategic utility of special operations forces, which it then considers in light of the demands of future warfare. This second edition of United States Special Operations Forces, revised throughout to account for lessons learned in the twelve years since its first publication, includes two new case studies, one on High Value Target Teams and another on Village Stability Operations, and two new appendixes charting the evolution of special operation missions and the best literature on all aspects of U.S. special operation forces.
Author: William H. McRaven
Publisher: Presidio Press
Published: 1996-06-01
Total Pages: 433
ISBN-13: 0891416005
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →Vice Adm. William H. McRaven helped to devise the strategy for how to bring down Osama bin Laden, and commanded the courageous U.S. military unit that carried it out on May 1, 2011, ending one of the greatest manhunts in history. In Spec Ops, a well-organized and deeply researched study, McRaven analyzes eight classic special operations. Six are from WWII: the German commando raid on the Belgian fort Eben Emael (1940); the Italian torpedo attack on the Alexandria harbor (1941); the British commando raid on Nazaire, France (1942); the German glider rescue of Benito Mussolini (1943); the British midget-submarine attack on the Tirpitz (1943); and the U.S. Ranger rescue mission at the Cabanatuan POW camp in the Philippines (1945). The two post-WWII examples are the U.S. Army raid on the Son Tay POW camp in North Vietnam (1970) and the Israeli rescue of the skyjacked hostages in Entebbe, Uganda (1976). McRaven—who commands a U.S. Navy SEAL team—pinpoints six essential principles of “spec ops” success: simplicity, security, repetition, surprise, speed and purpose. For each of the case studies, he provides political and military context, a meticulous reconstruction of the mission itself and an analysis of the operation in relation to his six principles. McRaven deems the Son Tay raid “the best modern example of a successful spec op [which] should be considered textbook material for future missions.” His own book is an instructive textbook that will be closely studied by students of the military arts. Maps, photos.
Author: Linda Robinson
Publisher: Council on Foreign Relations Press
Published: 2013-04-01
Total Pages: 50
ISBN-13: 9780876095508
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →U.S. special operations forces are doing more things in more places than ever before. They are now active in some seventy countries and, since 2001, have seen their combined budget nearly quintuple -- a trend that seems likely to continue. As the United States seeks ways to tackle a range of security threats worldwide, shore up the resilience of its friends and allies against terrorist and criminal networks, and minimize need for large-scale military interventions, the importance of special operations forces will grow. Yet, the strategic vision for special operations forces has not kept pace with the growing demands for their skills. Most people -- and, indeed, many policymakers -- associate the special operations forces with secret nighttime raids like the one that targeted Osama bin Laden: tactical operations against a particular individual or group. The abilities of special operations forces, however, extend much further, into military training, information operations, civil affairs, and more. As the United States shifts its focus from war fighting to building and supporting its partners, the author argues, it will become critical to better define these strategic capabilities and ensure that special operations forces have the staffing and funding to succeed. The author further calls on the Pentagon to remove bureaucratic and operational obstacles to cooperation among the special operations forces of each service, and between special and conventional forces. She also recommends that all special operations forces commands work to develop a pipeline of talented, motivated officers with expertise in these issues, and that the role of civilian leadership in budget and operational oversight be reinforced.
Author: James D. Kiras
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2006-07-29
Total Pages: 463
ISBN-13: 1135989885
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →James D. Kiras shows how a number of different special operations, in conjunction with more conventional military actions, achieve and sustain strategic effect(s) over time. In particular, he argues that the root of effective special operations lies in understanding the relationship existing between moral and material attrition at the strategic level. He also presents a theoretical framework for understanding how special operations achieve strategic effects using a unique synthesis of strategic theory and case studies. This study shows how the key to understanding how special operations reside in the concept of strategic attrition and in the moral and material nature of strategy. It also highlights major figures such as Carl von Clausewitz, Hans Delbrück, and Mao Zedong, who understood these complexities and were experts in eroding an enemy’s will to fight. These and other examples provide a superb explanation of the complexities of modern strategy and the place of special operations in a war of attrition. This book will be of great interest to all students and scholars with an interest in special forces and of strategic and military studies in general.
Author: Austin Long
Publisher: Rand Corporation
Published: 2015-07-29
Total Pages: 120
ISBN-13: 0833087592
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →This report summarizes key special operations forces (SOF) partnering practices and presents findings from case studies in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Colombia. It also identifies best practices to benefit development of SOF in Afghanistan and elsewhere.
Author: Leslie Lewis
Publisher: Rand Corporation
Published: 1994
Total Pages: 72
ISBN-13: 9780833015570
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →This report discusses how a structured methodology called Strategy-to-Tasks can help the U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) improve its resource allocation and management process. Analysis of USSOCOM's processes and program requirements suggests that RAND's Strategy-to-Tasks methodology might be able to accomplish the task of linking USSOCOM's programs and resources to national security strategy. Specifically, the methodology meets three critical requirements in USSOCOM's program that do not now exist: (1) a top-to-bottom linkage of Special Operations Forces (SOF) programs; (2) a more disciplined Planning, Programming, and Budgeting System (PPBS) that includes a clearer understanding of the resource issues (the process includes analytical tools and linked databases); and (3) a structured process that involves the components in the resource debate. The study created a baseline taxonomy that provides a traceable audit trail from national security and military strategies through operational concept to force elements. It also fosters operationally oriented statements to the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Secretary of Defense, and Congress about special operations force capabilities.
Author: James D. Kiras
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2006-07-29
Total Pages: 257
ISBN-13: 1135989893
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →This book argues that the root of effective special operations lies in understanding the relationship between moral and material attrition - this is achieved by examining both strategic theory and real-life case studies.
Author: Michael E Krivdo
Publisher: Independently Published
Published: 2019-05-23
Total Pages: 276
ISBN-13: 9781099805257
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →Volume 8 of the Army University Large Scale Combat Operations series. The Competitive Advantage: Special Operations Forces in Large Scale Combat Operations presents twelve historical case studies of special operations forces from World War I through Operation Iraqi Freedom. This volume sheds light upon the emerging roles, missions, and unique capabilities that have forged a path for Army Special Operations Forces today. These case studies set Large Scale Combat Operations in the center and place ARSOF's role in the forefront. If a reader were to take one piece from this volume, it would be the clear understanding of the close synergy that occurs between the Conventional Force and SOF in Large Scale Combat Operations for major wars in the 20th and early 21st century. That synergy should provide a broad azimuth for military planners and practitioners to follow as the Army, SOF, and the Joint Force combine to preserve the peace, defend the Nation, and defeat any adversary.
