James Joyner has a provocative column at the New Atlanticist that argues that World War II was the last major war the United States won from the Clausewitz’s notion of winning political objectives:
As we approach the tenth anniversary of the American invasion of Iraq on March 20, it’s worth reflecting on the fact that it has been nearly seventy years since America’s last successful major war.
. . .
In Vietnam, America’s chief war aim was to prevent a communist takeover of South Vietnam. We failed in that objective. To be sure, they retained technical sovereignty upon the departure of U.S. forces. But their fall was inevitable, coming less than two years later.
In Korea, the initial war aim was to repel North Korean forces back across the 38th Parallel, restoring the status quo ante. This was quickly achieved and expanded from saving South Korea to unifying the peninsula and ridding it of the Communists. The ultimate armistice resulted in the achievement of the initial war aims. Considering that getting back to that point took an additional two and a half years of better fighting and incurred the bulk of U.S. killed in action during this period, it’s difficult to regard it other than as a failure.
As noted recently in this space, the United States quickly achieved its declared war aims in Afghanistan, toppling the Taliban regime to punish it for its role in the 9/11 attacks and destroying al Qaeda bases and communications facilities. The subsequent eleven years—during which all but a handful of the 2,187 and counting American dead have been lost—the mission has been devoted to nebulous goals regarding the Afghan political, cultural, and economic systems. They will not be achieved come the handover next year.
. . .
The bottom line in all four cases, then, was that American war aims were unachievable given the available resources. It’s arguable that, in all but Vietnam, we achieved our realistic objectives quickly and at little cost—and then snatched defeat from the jaws of victory by moving the goalposts.
Read it all here. (For purposes of clarity, Joyner discounts the Gulf War and not a major war and the Cold War as not really a war despite the fact that both were victories. It seems to me that both can also be viewed as “wins” precisely because the U.S. had achievable objectives that were achieved.) What do you think?
Charles A. Blanchard
General Counsel
United States Air Force