January, 2002

US World Strategy

Gen. Ahmed Abdel-Halim

The end of the Cold War caused a drastic change in the new world order and in the international balance of power. Since the Gulf War, the United States has had a prominent role in the world, and this role has fully crystallised since the 11 September attacks against New York and Washington. The United States has since modified its military strategy around the world.

The United States considers Central Asia, and specifically Afghanistan, NATO's main weak spot and hence perceives that the political and economic security of the region should be of the utmost concern to NATO. Any inappropriate developments in the region might change the balance of power against the interests of the United States and the Western coalition. This was the main factor behind the United States' rapid deployment of forces (including CIA divisions). It further encouraged the United States to push for the development of NATO's role in the region to cover the strategic, economic, political and security levels.

In accordance with new US strategic arrangements, the US administration set up a plan to confront the aftermath of 11 September. The plan includes three main stages:

1: Strategic deployment focusing on protecting the security of the United States; boosting war-footing procedures in US military bases worldwide; and strategic deployment of US and allied forces in the fighting arena. The three elements of this stage are considered the backbone of the military operation.

2: Following US and allied retaliatory attacks in the region, missile attacks targeting political and military leaders of the Taliban movement and its infrastructure in addition to some civil targets that support the Taliban. In this stage, the United States was keen to enhance Northern Alliance forces.

3: Strategic attack operations by the Northern Alliance, accompanied by missile attacks to guarantee their success. The objective behind these attacks was not merely to solve the regional crisis, but to protect vital US interests and postpone or remove the possibility of the emergence of a rival power that could occupy the former position of the Soviet Union.