With the American withdrawal from Iraq and the imminent drawdown of the majority of American and NATO ground forces from Afghanistan, the U.S. is bringing to a close the longest and most intensive period of combat in our history. Coupled with the challenges of the budget crisis and political dysfunction in Washington, D.C., this is also a time of tough and consequential choices for the defense budget.
This volume includes the principal essays and policy papers prepared for the Aspen Strategy Group’s discussions in Aspen. We hope they will help readers here in the U.S. and around the world reflect on the hard choices and difficult trade-offs we must make in the years ahead to maintain the quality and effectiveness of the U.S. military.
