That straightforward statement is the core of my vision of 21st-century naval power. It describes who we are and what we do. It encompasses our broad missions of sea control, power projection, presence, and deterrence, and it says how we will use naval forces to meet the requirements of our National Security Strategy and National Military Strategy, while we continue to perform enduring operations such as sanctions enforcement and strategic sealift. But it does more than that. That is a bold promise and a greater task than any other navy has ever undertaken.
War is a messy endeavor with unpredictable outcomes.
A big part of being more effective is being able to fight smarter. The first point means that the focus of whatever we do has to be our ability to win any conflict, anytime, anywhere. We cannot sacrifice today's readiness to invest in tomorrow's promises. We must be able to answer the call both tomorrow and today. The second point says that there is no simple, absolute technological answer to all our warfare problems.