Strategy
A Strategy Bridge connects politics and policy-making on one side, with military operations and tactics on the other. (Gray 2010)
National Security Strategy
The National Security Strategy (NSS), for the United States, is a report mandated by Section 603 of the Goldwater-Nichols Department of Defense Reorganization Act of 1986 (Public Law 99-433). The NSS has been transmitted annually since 1987, but frequently reports come in late or not at all. The NSS is to be sent from the President to Congress in order to communicate the executive branch’s national security vision to the legislative branch. The NSS provides discussion on proposed uses of all facets of U.S. power needed to achieve the nation’s security goals. The report is obligated to include a discussion of the United States’ international interests, commitments, objectives, and policies, along with defense capabilities necessary to deter threats and implement U.S. security plans.
National Defense Strategy
The National Defense Strategy (NDS) focuses on the Department of Defense’s role in implementing the President’s National Security Strategy (NSS). It was officially put in place by Congress in Section 941 of the National Defense Authorization Act for FY2017 (Public Law 114-328), and in accordance with the National Security Act of 1947, to replace the Quadrennial Defense Review. There have been a total of four NDS reports, with the first issued in 2005. Prior to FY2017, the NDS was initiated by the Secretaries of Defense to build upon the concepts articulated in the QDRs. The NDS is prepared by the Office of the Secretary of Defense and is to be published every four years. The report outlines how the Department of Defense will contribute to achieving NSS objectives in order to maintain security and prosperity worldwide. The National Defense Strategy is required to discuss the global strategic environment, force posture, and the role of the U.S. in global security.
Service Strategies - air force, navy, army
example – Maritime Security Strategy Environment
Figure 2 provides a summary of the maritime, air, and land environments. Whether conducting peacetime forward presence missions, disaster response, or high-end sea control and power projection operations, the maritime component provides an impressive array of capabilities to the force. The land and air components each bring a complementary set of capabilities. Integration of these into a cohesive package is a shared responsibility of the component commanders. The component commander, not the joint force commander is where “the rubber meets the road” ultimately in organizing and sequencing tactical taskings. The ability to clearly understand the situation and coordinate with all the components will guide the level of effort to each component and factor into the degree of success toward unity of effort for the force as a whole. This ability requires expertise in each individual domain by the respective component commanders, and an expert ability to plan and coordinate efforts within the maze of different commander relationships. The operations process consists of the major C2 activities performed during operations: planning, preparing, executing, and assessing the operation, as shown in Figure 3. The commander drives the operations process through operational command.