CHANGE AND STATUS-QUO - US DEFENSE POLICY APPROACHING THE 21ST-CENTURY

The United States is the world's totally dominant military power, and the revolution in military affairs (RMA), with the introduction of new sophisticated information technologies, also has the potential for ra dically expanding U.S. military superiority. But as this article demon strates, U.S. defence policy is at the same time beleaguered with seve ral underlying structural problems. First, the widespread American pol itical reluctance against international military engagements threatens to undermine the U.S. international military role. Second, unless the growing mismatch between the use of resources on current operations a nd on necessary modernisation is corrected, it will seriously affect t he long-term U.S. military capability. In addition the U.S. defence po licy process contains several fundamental political-military-bureaucra tic barriers against necessary changes in U.S. military doctrine and s trategy.