Editorial

Now That We've Won World War III

RECENT events in Eastern Europe have created a strange possibility: World War III may be over! For the American military the changes in Europe have created two challenges: how to handle the changing Soviet threat and how to deal with other threats in the world around us. Within these two challenges lies an important point to remember--world peace has not suddenly broken out.

Our first challenge is to remember that the Warsaw Pact military threat still exists. Walls that are torn down rapidly can be rebuilt just as rapidly. The civilian world hears the peaceful rhetoric and assumes that actions will automatically follow. The military cannot afford to be that optimistic. The threat in Europe appears to have significantly diminished in recent months. But we must remember that the MiGs are still ready to fly and the tanks are still pointed west. Their numbers have not yet diminished.

While we remain vigilant, we cannot afford to hide our heads in the sand. We face very real changes in the future, and we must prepare to deal with them. Virtually all of us serving in the military today, from the newest airman basic to our most senior general officers, have lived with the Soviet threat our entire lives, certainly our entire adult lives. It has been a fact of life for the last 40 years that the main threat was war with the Soviets in Europe. We based our military planning and our operational structure around it. The concern over the next European war dominated our thinking during the Korean War. It caused us to view both the Korean and Vietnam wars as aberrations. Now we must rethink the threat. We must not become mired in a doctrine, a strategy, or an organizational structure that has been overcome by world events. The potential removal of a threat in Europe does not mean that there are no other threats in the world. It does mean that we must consider what those threats are and how we can best prepare for them. We must be open-minded as we rethink the threat--and we must use the best minds available.

The questions that we must answer are numerous. They must have honest answers. Those answers must be given without regard to sacred cows or "gold watches." We cannot afford to develop a horse-cavalry mentality, more concerned with preserving traditional turf than preparing for the future. We must begin by asking the most basic questions and building from the answers. The Air Corps pioneers were considered to be among the most innovative and forward-looking of military officers--visionaries who prepared for the future without being tied to the past. We need to approach our present situation with that same positive and open type of thinking.

Insurgency warfare, drug interdiction, increased airlift requirements, and many more issues face us. We cannot simply force our traditional thinking on these new issues. The role of space, of unmanned air vehicles, and of joint operations must not be looked upon as threats to the Air Force but as opportunities to do our job more efficiently. The way we answer these questions will determine how capable our military is to face the challenges in the years to come.

Throughout it all, the job of the Air Force remains to fly and to fight. But we must prepare now for the next war, not the last one. As Gen Sir Archibald Wavell reminds us, "The ideal officer should be afraid of nothing, not even a new idea." MAK

Disclaimer

The conclusions and opinions expressed in this document are those of the author cultivated in the freedom of expression, academic environment of Air University. They do not reflect the official position of the U.S. Government, Department of Defense, the United States Air Force or the Air University.

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