The World in 2016: Perspectives on Regional Security
Fifth Biennial Captain James T. Bush Seminar Presented by the
Naples Council on World Affairs
and the National War College
February 19, 2016
9:00 am-3:30 pm, Naples Hilton Hotel
In July 2015, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Martin Dempsey, issued the latest edition of the National Military Strategy of the United States. In his Forward to the document, General Dempsey declared that today’s global security environment was “the most unpredictable I have seen in 40 years of service.” Indeed analysts have noted that this document differs significantly from the nation’s military strategy of four years ago. In 2011, the U.S. military envisioned a strategy of transition, away from the wars of the previous decade to an era of stability. The 2015 National Military Strategy is concerned with “multiple, simultaneous security challenges from traditional state actors and trans-regional networks of sub-state groups—all taking advantage of rapid technological change.”
According to the 2015 Strategy, future conflicts will come more rapidly, last longer, take place on a technically challenging battlefield, and have increasing implications for the U.S. homeland. Notably, the document points to specific threats to U.S. national security that challenge the American military. The purpose of our program today is to examine how the U.S. military is contributing to national security by examining these threats and challenges in greater detail.
Program
9:00 Welcome and Introductions:
- Mimi Gregory, Vice President, Programs, NCWA
- Colonel Gene Russell, (USA-Ret) Director, NWC Alumni Association
- Robert Haffa, Director, NCWA
9:15 Russia and security challenges to the West: How are Russia’s military actions undermining regional security through direct intervention and proxy forces? Colonel Scott Dullea.
Colonel Dullea is a Foreign Area Officer who has served as the Central Asia branch chief in G5, U.S. Army Central (ARCENT); as the Chief of the Office of Defense Cooperation at the United States Embassy in Vienna, Austria; and as the Black Sea/Caucasus Team Leader and Georgia Country Director in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (Policy). Since April 2014, he has served as Director for Russia on the National Security Council.
10:05 Coffee Break
10:15 NATO/Europe’s response to Russian challenges and Mid-East turmoil: How is NATO/Europe responding to regional security challenges?Ms. Jennifer Walsh.
Ms. Walsh joined the National War College faculty in July 2014 as the representative for the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy. Ms. Walsh served as the Principal Director for Afghanistan, Pakistan and Central Asia from February 2013 through July 2014. Ms. Walsh entered federal government service in 1996 in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD).
11:05 China’s military rise in the Western Pacific: What are the implications of China’s military rise for US allies and friends in the Western pacific? Dr. Phillip C. Saunders.
Dr. Saunders is Director of the Center for the Study of Chinese Military Affairs and a Distinguished Research Fellow at National Defense University’s Institute for National Strategic Studies. Dr. Saunders previously worked at the Monterey Institute of International Studies, where he was Director of the East Asia Nonproliferation Program from 1999-2003, and served as an officer in the U.S. Air Force from 1989-1994.
12:00 Lunch is served
12:45 Luncheon speaker: The political and economic impact of oil and energy flows: How does the supply and demand for various energy sources affect regional security? Dr. Theresa Sabonis-Helf.
Dr. Theresa Sabonis-Helf is a Professor of National Security Strategy at the National War College in Washington DC, where she has taught since 2001. She is also an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University in the Science, Technology and International Affairs Program. She has served on Admiral James Stavridis’ EUCOM Advisory Panel, and as a member of the NATO Defense College’s Academic Advisory Board.
1:35 Strategic lessons of Iraq and Afghanistan: What lessons has the United States learned from these conflicts, and what are the implications for future US counter-insurgency objectives and strategies? Dr. Joseph J. Collins.
Dr. Collins was appointed Director of the Center for Complex Operations, INSS, National Defense University in July 2014, after a decade on the National War College faculty as Professor of National Security Strategy. Prior to that teaching assignment, Dr. Collins served for three years as the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Stability Operations, the Pentagon’s senior civilian official for peacekeeping, humanitarian assistance, and stabilization and reconstruction operations.
2:25 Coffee Break
2:35 US and Allied counter-insurgency strategies and the terrorist threat: How can the US “degrade and destroy” violent extremist organizations such as al Qaida and ISIS undermining trans-regional security in the Middle East? Dr. Bradley McCallister.
Dr. McCallister is an Assistant Professor of National Security Studies at the National War College and a specialist in insurgency, terrorism, and state responses to internal violence. Prior to joining the Faculty at NWC, Dr. McAllister was an intelligence officer focusing on insurgency and counterinsurgency. In addition Dr. McAllister spent 6 months as a liaison between the Intelligence Community and the National Security Council where he briefed Multilateral Affairs, Human Rights, War Crimes, and Gender Issues to White House Staff.
3:25 Moderator summary, Robert Haffa
The Naples Council on World Affairs thanks Patricia J. Bush for her continued support of the James T. Bush Seminars with the National War College.
Captain James T. Bush, in whose honor this seminar is named, commanded the USS Simon Bolivar, a Nuclear Submarine, during his distinguished U.S. Navy career. He was President of the Naples Council on World Affairs, 2000-2001.
