Theater Engagement Planning: The Role for Economics

摘要

From ancient Rome to modern Nigeria, armed forces have dominated governments and thus dominated economic policy. As a favorable international economic environment is a core strategic objective of the United States, it makes sense to engage militaries in a constructive dialogue about economic policy, whether or not they physically control the seat of power. Since it is often problematic for civilian diplomats to engage on economic policy with military officers, it makes sense for economic engagement to be conducted, at least in part, through military-to-military channels. This paper suggests a pragmatic approach based on the Theater Engagement Planning process and coordination across agencies using a high level mechanism such as an IWG.