The U S Army And The Asia Pacific

The United States has key economic and security interests in the Asia-Pacific region. In recent decades, the Asia-Pacific has experienced rapid economic growth, a wave of democratization, and the emergence of a web of regional and sub regional multilateral institutions. All these developments have contributed to enhancing the pace and prosperity of the region. The author highlights the significant and ongoing contribution of the U.S. Army in deterring war, executing smaller-scale contingencies, and shaping the security environment. He advocates a robust, pro-active Army presence for the foreseeable future. Such a presence will ensure the promotion and protection of U.S. national interests in the region.

"Offers an overview of the Army's history in this rapidly changing region. It describes how the Army's involvement began with an expedition to seize Manila from Spain in 1898, which led to a protracted campaign against Philippine insurgents. When Japan attacked in 1941, the Army fought back as part of a joint and multinational team in some of the most far-reaching campaigns in history, after which the Army became responsible for post-conflict operations in Japan, Okinawa, South Korea, and the Philippines. During the Cold War, the Army fought hot wars in Korea and Vietnam. After the Vietnam War, the Army provided regional stability, a shield against aggression, and engagement with allies and partners as the region experienced unprecedented growth. This broad historical perspective reveals some enduring lessons: the vast distances and diversity of terrain and weather, the necessity for joint and multinational operations, and the need for a versatile, adaptive, and agile force"--Publisher's website.

The United States has key economic and security interests in the Asia-Pacific region. In recent decades, the Asia-Pacific has experienced rapid economic growth, a wave of democratization, and the emergence of a web of regional and sub regional multilateral institutions. All these developments have contributed to enhancing the pace and prosperity of the region. The author highlights the significant and ongoing contribution of the U.S. Army in deterring war, executing smaller-scale contingencies, and shaping the security environment. He advocates a robust, pro-active Army presence for the foreseeable future. Such a presence will ensure the promotion and protection of U.S. national interests in the region.

This RAND report examines the U.S. Army role in Southeast Asia. Under current benign conditions, efforts should focus on supporting defense reform, addressing transnational threats, and balancing China. If the outlook deteriorates, the United States should increase security cooperation, conclude new regional basing agreements, expand disaster assistance, and create policies to encourage risk-averse Chinese behavior.

The U.S. Army performs a number of critical missions across the vast Indo-Asia-Pacific region. These include underwriting deterrence, building coalition capability, strengthening institutional capacity among partner defense establishments, maintaining interoperability, promoting military professionalism, building operational access, and conducting humanitarian assistance missions. For many, it may come as a surprise to know that almost all of the many Army activities and events that support these missions outside of Northeast Asia are conducted with U.S. Army forces based in the 50 states, often Alaska and Washington State. The roughly 22,000 U.S. Army Soldiers based in South Korea and Japan are focused largely on deterring North Korea from large-scale aggression, and assuring South Korea and other countries of the steadfastness of Washington's alliance commitment.

As the U.S. military presence in the Middle East winds down, Asia and the Pacific are receiving increased attention from the American national security community. The Obama administration has announced a “rebalancing” of the U.S. military posture in the region, in reaction primarily to the startling improvement in Chinese air and naval capabilities over the last decade or so. This timely study sets out to assess the implications of this shift for the long-established U.S. military presence in Asia and the Pacific. This presence is anchored in a complex basing infrastructure that scholars—and Americans generally—too often take for granted. In remedying this state of affairs, this volume offers a detailed survey and analysis of this infrastructure, its history, the political complications it has frequently given rise to, and its recent and likely future evolution. American seapower requires a robust constellation of bases to support global power projection. Given the rise of China and the emergence of the Asia-Pacific as the center of global economic growth and strategic contention, nowhere is American basing access more important than in this region. Yet manifold political and military challenges, stemming not least of which from rapidly-improving Chinese long-range precision strike capabilities, complicate the future of American access and security here. This book addresses what will be needed to maintain the fundaments of U.S. seapower and force projection in the Asia-Pacific, and where the key trend lines are headed in that regard. This book demonstrates that U.S. Asia-Pacific basing and access is increasingly vital, yet increasingly vulnerable. It demands far more attention than the limited coverage it has received to date, and cannot be taken for granted. More must be done to preserve capabilities and access upon which American and allied security and prosperity depend.

In 2015, Congress tasked the Department of Defense to commission an independent assessment of U.S. military strategy and force posture in the Asia-Pacific, as well as that of U.S. allies and partners, over the next decade. This CSIS study fulfills that congressional requirement. The authors assess U.S. progress to date and recommend initiatives necessary to protect U.S. interests in the Pacific Command area of responsibility through 2025. Four lines of effort are highlighted: (1) Washington needs to continue aligning Asia strategy within the U.S. government and with allies and partners; (2) U.S. leaders should accelerate efforts to strengthen ally and partner capability, capacity, resilience, and interoperability; (3) the United States should sustain and expand U.S. military presence in the Asia-Pacific region; and (4) the United States should accelerate development of innovative capabilities and concepts for U.S. forces.