Understanding Contemporary Strategy

By Thomas M. Kane, David J. Lonsdale

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About the Book

This new co-authored textbook explains and describes the key intellectual debates around military strategy in the early twenty-first century. The book emphasizes the connections between military operations and broader issues of national policy, and focuses on how current issues such as terrorism, insurgency, nuclear proliferation, information technology and American superiority in conventional military power challenge – and reaffirm – assumptions about modern warfare established during the global conflicts of the twentieth century.

Although the book recounts numerous historical developments, the book as a whole will follow a thematic system of organisation. Each topic is introduced simply enough for newcomers to the field, and the book will provide a survey of other recent works in the field for further study. This book’s treatment of fundamental strategic concepts will also make it useful for students of military history, and for those interested in the more theoretical side of strategic studies. It will also include pedagogical features such as boxed summaries, summary points and further reading, to help students orient themselves without oversimplifying the main body of the text.

Table of Contents

1. What is Strategy? An Introduction 2. Twentieth Century Land Warfare 3. Emerging Military Technology: Evolution or Revolution? 4. Insurgency 5. Once and Future Terrorism 6. Nuclear Weapons in the Twenty-First Century 7. War at Sea 8. Strategic Air Warfare 9. War in Space 10. The Intelligence Services 11. Why People Fight 12. Grand Strategy in the Twenty-First Century 13. Conclusion. Select Bibliography