Adapting Service Doctrine to a New World Order

Military doctrine can be defined simply as what we believe about the best way to conduct military affairs.1 Doctrine falls somewhere between war theory, at the more abstract end of the spectrum, and tactics at the more precise end. Air Force General Curtis Lemay said, “At the heart of warfare lies doctrine.”2 It is, or should be, foundational to decisions on procurement, roles and missions, operational planning, military training, and deployment of forces. Colonel Harry Summers, U.S. Army (Ret.), compares doctrine to an architect’s blueprints, and states that “like a blueprint, if the doctrine is flawed, the result can be the collapse and destruction of the entire edifice.”3 All of the armed services’ manuals of basic doctrine acknowledge this pivotal role.