Overview

*This book is in the Rapid Communications in Conflict and Security (RCCS) Series (General Editor: Geoffrey R.H. Burn). The Office of Net Assessment (ONA) was responsible for carrying out three programs in the Department of Defense from November 1973 until the collapse of the Soviet Union. Net assessments utilize a multidisciplinary approach to defense analysis to capture the dynamics of national or coalition military strengths and weaknesses for comparison with the capabilities of competitors and adversaries. In this book, essays by experts including a number of individuals who have served in or worked for the ONA in the past, such as Andrew Marshall (Director of the United States Department of Defense's Office of Net Assessment, 1973-2015) and Andrew May (Associate Director of the United States Department of Defense's Office of Net Assessment) offer critical insights on the relative military power of the United States vis-�-vis potential adversaries over time. This book is an invaluable resource for scholars and students in international relations, political science, and conflict and security.

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9781621965398

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Reviews

Net Assessment and Military Strategy is a thoughtful recounting of how net assessments became an important part of the national security strategy process. A compelling read for all aspiring and practicing strategists, this volume describes the discipline of net assessment from the perspective of practioners, including an opening chapter by Andrew Marshall. Great power competition demands a clear headed understanding of how national security strategy is shaped...Net Assessment and Military Strategy is an important tool in developing that understanding. --General Paul J. Selva, USAF (ret.), 10th Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff This volume is a fitting tribute to the memory of Andy Marshall, one of the most innovative and influential strategic thinkers of the post-war era. The authors, all of whom worked closely with Marshall during his long career, explain the origins, application, impact, and continuing relevance of his key insights and analytic concepts. Essential reading for anyone interested in the history of the Cold War and, even more important, for the next generation of American strategists. --Aaron L. Friedberg, Professor of Politics and International Affairs at Princeton University I do not know of any existing books that provide such depth or detail on net assessment as a field of inquiry. The book makes a strong case for the relevance of net assessment as a practice/methodology and convincingly argues that net assessment has been a critical tool of US defense strategy when used well. It is a thoughtful blend of historical chapters, reflections on the meaning and process of net assessments, and methodological chapters, bookended by insightful essays by Andrew Marshall and Andrew May. Students in PME institutions and strategic studies/war studies programs will get a great deal out of this book. --Hal Brands, Henry A. Kissinger Distinguished Professor of Global Affairs, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and scholar, American Enterprise Institute This is the best overview on net assessment, and there would be lasting value--and I believe, a lasting market--for this book. --Eliot A. Cohen, Dean, SAIS, Johns Hopkins University

Author Information

"THOMAS G. MAHNKEN is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments and a Senior Research Professor in the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies. Previously, he served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Policy Planning and held the Jerome Levy Chair at the Naval War College. Dr. Mahnken's publications include Competitive Strategies for the 21st Century and The Gathering Pacific Storm: Emerging US-China Strategic Competition in Defense Technological and Industrial Development. ANDREW W. MARSHALL served as the Director of the Office of Net Assessment within the Office of the Secretary of Defense from 1973 to 2015. Prior to being appointed to the National Security Council Staff during the Nixon administration, he was employed in the Economics Department at the RAND Corporation. He was honored as one of the ""Top 100 Global Thinkers"" by Foreign Policy magazine in 2012."

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