National Security Strategy, American Style

The document “National Security Strategy of the United States” along with the “National Security Strategy of the Russian Federation before 2020” was signed by the president of the country. This happened when George Bush Jr. was president in 2006. The American document is the strategy for fighting terrorism on American territory and beyond its borders. However, a lot of other aspects of modern calls and threats are also being considered. A significant part is dedicated to democratic development around the world, economic globalization, as well as nuclear containment and WMD non-proliferation.

From Nixon to Bush, Jr.

The United States started the process of formulating a modern anti-terrorist national security strategy in 1972. At the Olympic games in Munich, the members of a Palestinian group “Black September” took hostage and killed a group of Israeli athletes. In 20 days, American President Richard Nixon gave an order to create a committee on battling terrorism, which was chaired by the secretary of State. A special working group was created within the framework of the committee, which was responsible for questions such as security aboard air vessels and visa reforms.

The American ambassador to Sudan was kidnapped and killed in 1973, after which Washington strengthened cooperation in the sphere of battling terrorism on the international level. Besides this, the U.S. administration decided to never negotiate with terrorists: making concessions and meeting their demands.

The Carter administration made substantial changes to the strategy for fighting extreme groups. He dismissed the committee created by Nixon. The White House delegated the responsibility of coordinating anti-terrorist strategy to the National Security Council, the State Department and the CIA.

During the Reagan era, anti-terrorist activity for the first time became a matter of national importance. It was assessed that in order to defeat the threat of terrorism, America needs to use its diplomatic, economic, legal, military and media might. Numerous organizational structures were created, including the interdepartmental committee, whose members exchanged information and developed new approaches to the solution of the problem of opposing extremists. These structures continued to function under George Bush, Sr.

However, in 1995, Bill Clinton again delegated the responsibility of coordinating anti-terrorist activities to the National Security Counsel. A special group responsible for providing safety from the threat of the terrorist acts was created during his administration.

President Bush Jr. raised the fight against terrorism to a new level. He reorganized the security group for terrorist threats into a committee on anti-terrorist activity within the framework of the National Security Counsel. These organs still provide the solution for problems in fighting radical groups.

Statement of Intentions

The new options of the National Defense Strategy appeared in the White House in 2002 and 2006. The last document was 49 pages and included 10 sections:

– General Strategic Overview.

– Guarantee to protect human rights around the world.

– Strengthening alliances with the goal of defeating global terrorism and averting the threat to the United States and its allies.

– Joint resolution of international conflicts.

– Guaranteeing nuclear containment.

– Creating conditions for global economy through free markets and free trade.

– Assisting in the creation of open societies and the development of democracies.

– Developing cooperation with the centers of global power.

– Reorganization of structures responsible for national security, in accordance with security requirements of the 21st century.

– Using all opportunities for resisting opponents of globalization.

The last version of the “National Security Strategy” signed by President Bush in 2006 does not include the term of the operation. This document was developed by the National Security Council with direct participation of the American head of state. In essence, the strategy is only an enumeration of measures which Washington intends to carry out in the sphere of providing national security. Further directions of the activity of the government in this region are formulated in the document. The White House is obligated to publish “National Security Strategy of the USA” openly and make it available to the public in accordance with Goldwater- Nichols Act about the reorganization of the department of Defense from 1986.

Major Principles

According to the National Security Strategy, major goals of the administration of the United States are protecting the American people, combating terrorism and advancing democracy around the world. As the basis of the document, the White House placed the principle of preventive approach, stating that in ensuring self-defense, the USA is ready to deliver a hit to the enemy even when time and the place of his attacks on America is virtually unknown.

First and foremost, the goal of the military-political leadership of the United States is the defense of the American population from internal and external enemies. The enemies of the United States will not necessarily have great military or economic might. A serious threat to the country can be small groups of fighters. According to the experts of the National Security Council, a collective effort of the entire international community is necessary in order to lead an effective fight against a terrorist threat. The USA must use its entire power in order to head this fight and help those who do not have their own capabilities for the opposition to extremists. America’s enemies are not only terrorist groups but also the states that support them by allowing them to exist in their territories, rendering extremists financial aid or by contributing some other methods to the creation of the terrorist networks.

The analysts in Washington assume that the impulse action of terrorists for obtaining access to weapons of mass destruction is a very serious danger for the USA. It is asserted that obtaining this possibility by fighters can considerably aggravate the situation in the world and even become the reason for a global catastrophe.

The White House considers adhering to the principle of not negotiating with fighters and not fulfilling their demands to be the most important direction of policy regarding national security. Furthermore, those who support the must be included. The USA must in every way possible counteract the activity of terrorist networks, liquidate their leaders, control posts, communications centers and also reveal and destroy the channels of the material and financial supply of terrorists and apply the most rigid sanctions to the persons and the states which render them financial aid.

Special efforts must be directed toward the liquidation of those terrorists groups of an international nature and are attempting to obtain WMDs (weapons of mass destruction). In both strategies, it is indicated that the United States will push the idea of the illegality of terrorism and prevent its propagation by diplomatic means.

Even states with a weak authority, like Afghanistan, also pose a serious threat to the national security of the USA. This is caused by the fact that the favorable conditions for extremists to settle basing are created in their territories. Using this possibility, terrorist cells develop camp for the preparation of new fighters, where the quality of instruction grows substantially. Based on the example of Afghanistan, it is possible to estimate the results of how the USA will fight with those regimes that support terrorism. However, Afghanistan is far from being the only refuge of terrorists. They live and are prepared for attacks on the civilized world in North and South America, in Europe, in Africa, in the Near East and in Asia.

It is impossible to defeat terrorism and assure global security single- handedly. This goal can only be reached with the efforts of the entire global community. The United Nations, the Word Trade Organization, the Organization of American States, NATO and other international organizations will need to play a role as well.

The USA is intended to reform the system of domestic security so that it would cover the government structures on all levels and would contribute to interaction of state and private sectors.

The “National Security Strategy of 2006” closely resembles the 2002 version. It is based on the need to protect freedom, the rule of law and human rights while maintaining America’s role as a leading combatant of global terrorism. Washington considers the active way of fighting with the given threats its main priority. Iran is declared America’s main enemy. America charges Teheran with the spread of nuclear weapons and providing refuge to terrorists. North Korea is also considered the country which presents threat from the point of view of spreading nuclear weapons. This is why the White House proposes to introduce the universal production control of components for WMD (weapons of mass destruction).

In 2006, the document radically changed the position of the USA with respect to the Russian Federation. In 2002, Washington noted some positive changes regarding Russia and named it as an ally in combatting terrorism. The 2002 version emphasized that the United States cannot attain significant positive changes without the support of international allies and partners. But in 2006, Washington expressed very skeptical relations to the development of democracy in the Russian Federation, writing In that the USA “must be ready to act independently if necessary,” in connection with which the department of Information and press of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia stated by the way. In the opinion the White House, “the principal criterion of the development of the relations of the United States with the foreign states will be the correspondence or the nonconformity of the behavior of one or other country or another to the American understanding of democracy and to the needs of fight with the objectionable regimes, as this is seen from Washington.”

Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs also noted that in the latest version, “not one word about partner interaction between our countries, the formation of which both sides dedicated much time and efforts in accordance with the decisions of the presidents of Russia and the USA, about the mutual respect and the calculation in the practical policy of the legitimate interests of each other, about the equality of rights, mutual confidence, to the predictability of behavior, transparency of actions. This, from our point of view, concerns the policy on the post-Soviet space. One cannot fail to understand that without the application of these principles Russian- American relations can become the hostage of subjective judgments,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation said in a statement.