Editing Rumsfeld Doctrine

{{Short description|American military doctrine}}
{{Refimprove|date=November 2006}}
The "'''Rumsfeld Doctrine'''", named after former [[United States Secretary of Defense]] [[Donald Rumsfeld]], is a phrase coined by journalists<ref name="csmonitor">{{cite web|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0921/p09s02-coop.html|title=Failings of the Rumsfeld doctrine|website=www.csmonitor.com|date=September 21, 2006|access-date=July 21, 2020}}</ref> concerned with the perceived transformation of the [[United States Armed Forces|U.S. military]]. It would be considered Rumsfeld's own take on RMA ([[revolution in military affairs]]). It seeks to increase force readiness and decrease the amount of supply required to maintain forces, by reducing the number in a theater. This is done mainly by using LAVs ([[Armored car (military)|Light Armored Vehicles]]) to scout for enemies who are then destroyed via [[airstrike]]s. The basic tenets of this military strategy are:

* High-technology combat systems;
* Reliance on air forces;
* Small, nimble ground forces.

The early phases of the wars in [[War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)|Afghanistan]] and [[Iraq War|Iraq]] are considered the two closest implementations of this doctrine.<ref name="csmonitor"/>

==Response==
Opponents argue that the doctrine entails a heavy reliance on airstrikes to replace a lack of ground forces. Beginning with [[Saddam Hussein]], there were at least 50 airstrikes aimed at decapitating the Iraqi government. Not a single one was successful. However, there were extensive civilian casualties.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.hrw.org/reports/2003/usa1203/|title=Off Target: The Conduct of the War and Civilian Casualties in Iraq (Human Rights Watch Report, December 2003)|journal=Human Rights Watch|date=11 December 2003 |last1=Docherty |first1=Bonnie }}</ref> This was coined the "[[shock and awe]]" military campaign.<ref name="sorties">"[http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/report/2003/uscentaf_oif_report_30apr2003.pdf Operation Iraqi Freedom - By the Numbers]", [[USCENTAF]], April 30, 2003, 15.</ref>

Opponents also claim that without ground troops to secure the border, top [[Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party – Iraq Region|Ba'athist]] regime members fled the country with vast Iraqi funds and foreign [[Iraqi insurgency (2003–2011)|insurgents]] moved into the country. There were not enough troops to defend the Iraqi border from foreign-backed insurgents.<ref name="sorties">"[http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/report/2003/uscentaf_oif_report_30apr2003.pdf Operation Iraqi Freedom - By the Numbers]", [[USCENTAF]], April 30, 2003, 15.</ref>

They also claim that without sufficient troops the country could not be pacified. Without sufficient troops to guard Iraqi military infrastructure, large amounts of munitions were looted. This has led to the current problem of insurgents and their improvised explosive devices ([[Improvised explosive device|IEDs]]). [[Thomas Friedman]] of''[[The New York Times]]'' has referred to the Rumsfeld Doctrine as one of "just enough troops to lose".<ref name=Friedman>{{cite news |title=Iraq: Politics or Policy? |first=Thomas |last=Friedman|author-link=Thomas L. Friedman |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/03/opinion/03friedman.html?_r=1 |newspaper=The New York Times |date=3 October 2004 |access-date=28 September 2009}}</ref>

That said, the war plan for the Iraq War led to a quick and decisive victory over one of the region's largest and best equipped military forces. Using tactics honed from those used during the [[Gulf War]], the [[NATO bombing of Yugoslavia|Balkans]], and Afghanistan, the U.S.-led coalition's integrated forces strategy overwhelmed the Iraqi defenses using rapid deployment and engagement of military "power" rather than overwhelming them with overwhelming forces, or overwhelming numbers.<ref>{{cite book|last=Cordesman|first=Anthony|title=Iraq War: Strategy, Tactics and Military Lessons|year=2004|location=New York, NY|isbn=0892064323|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/iraqwarstrategyt00cord}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Bush Doctrine]]
* [[Network-centric warfare]]
* [[Powell Doctrine]]
* [[Revolution in military affairs]]
* [[Shock and awe]]
* [[Weinberger Doctrine]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20040420011003/http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/04_17/b3880048.htm  Bruce Nussbaum Criticism of Rumsfeld Doctrine]
* [http://www.oft.osd.mil/library/library_files/article_44_WSJ-on%2520Rumsfeld%2520Doctrine.doc  Greg Jaffe Take on the Rumsfeld Doctrine]{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}

{{Foreign relations of the United States |expanded=DPC}}

[[Category:Foreign policy doctrines of the United States]]
[[Category:Foreign policy of the George W. Bush administration]]
[[Category:Donald Rumsfeld]]