Rather than to state policy, the role of National Defense University is to stimulate discussion and research among both policymakers and analysts. While Strategic Assessment is not an official government publication, we trust that it will inform and influence policymakers and academics alike. Each previous volume has had a specific theme. Market democracies form the core of the U.S. international strength. Transitional states will determine the nature of the international system.
Troubled states generate many new security concerns.
The most likely conflicts in the emerging system are the least dangerous to U.S. security. Proliferation of weapons of mass destruction is increasingly a current rather than a future concern. The U.S. domestic focus is limiting our national security capabilities. Information technology is displacing heavy industry as the source of national power. International organizations are assuming an important legitimizing role, despite their limited capabilities.