Avoiding Coping with Surprise in Great Power Conflicts
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COVER PHOTO UNITED STATES NAVAL INSTITUTE FEBRUARY 2018 1616 Rhode Island Avenue NW Washington, DC 20036 202 887 0200 | www.csis.org Avoiding Coping with Surprise in Great Power Conflicts AUTHOR Mark F. Cancian A Report of the CSIS INTERNATIONAL SECURITY PROGRAM Blank FEBRUARY 2018 Avoiding Coping with Surprise in Great Power Conflicts AUTHOR Mark F. Cancian A Report of the CSIS INTERNATIONAL SECURITY PROGRAM About CSIS For over 50 years, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) has worked to develop solutions to the world’s greatest policy challenges. Today, CSIS scholars are providing strategic insights and bipartisan policy solutions to help decisionmakers chart a course toward a better world. CSIS is a nonprofit organization headquartered in Washington, D.C. The Center’s 220 fulltime staff and large network of affiliated scholars conduct research and analysis and develop policy initiatives that look into the future and anticipate change. Founded at the height of the Cold War by David M. Abshire and Admiral Arleigh Burke, CSIS was dedicated to finding ways to sustain American prominence and prosperity as a force for good in the world. Since 1962, CSIS has become one of the world’s preeminent international institutions focused on defense and security; regional stability; and transnational challenges ranging from energy and climate to global health and economic integration. Thomas J. Pritzker was named chairman of the CSIS Board of Trustees in November 2015. Former U.S. deputy secretary of defense John J. Hamre has served as the Center’s president and chief executive officer since 2000. CSIS does not take specific policy positions. Accordingly, all views, positions, and conclusions expressed in this publication should be understood to be solely those of the author. © 2018 by the Center for Strategic and International Studies. All rights reserved. Center for Strategic and International Studies 1616 Rhode Island Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 202-887-0200 | www.csis.org Contents Acknowledgments .................................................................................................................................... VI Executive summary ................................................................................................................................. VII Why think about surprise now? ........................................................................................................ VII What is surprise? ................................................................................................................................. VIII Some surprise is inevitable ................................................................................................................ VIII It’s more than surprise attack ........................................................................................................... VIII So, what to do? ................................................................................................................................... XIV Chapter 1: Why Think about Surprise Now?......................................................................................... 1 Return of great power competition: Back to the future ................................................................ 1 The long peace ...................................................................................................................................... 6 Changes in warfighting......................................................................................................................... 7 Hubris ....................................................................................................................................................... 9 Chapter 2: Approaching the Problem ................................................................................................. 11 What is “surprise”? ............................................................................................................................... 11 Why surprise matters .......................................................................................................................... 12 Coping with surprise now .................................................................................................................. 12 Great power conflicts, conventional conflicts, and first battles ................................................. 13 Using vignettes ..................................................................................................................................... 14 Helping policymakers ......................................................................................................................... 15 Types of surprise: strategic, technological, doctrinal, diplomatic/political .............................. 16 Not a net assessment.......................................................................................................................... 16 Chapter 3: The Inevitability of Surprise ............................................................................................... 18 The debate about surprise ................................................................................................................. 18 Why surprise is inevitable ................................................................................................................... 20 The Inherent difficulty of predicting the future ............................................................................. 24 Human weakness ................................................................................................................................ 25 Vulnerability of status quo powers ................................................................................................... 26 Known and unknown .......................................................................................................................... 27 Chapter 4: Strategic Surprise................................................................................................................. 30 Shock produces a rich literature but uncertain progress ............................................................ 30 | III Areas of current vulnerability ............................................................................................................ 34 Chapter 5: Technological Surprise ....................................................................................................... 37 Surprise from an adversary’s technology ........................................................................................ 37 Surprise from failure in our own technology: “a stab in the back” ............................................. 42 Areas of current vulnerability ............................................................................................................ 45 Chapter 6: Doctrinal Surprise ................................................................................................................ 53 Many paths to doctrinal surprise ...................................................................................................... 53 When our own doctrine fails: best laid plans that go astray ....................................................... 61 Areas of current vulnerability ............................................................................................................ 65 Chapter 7: Political/Diplomatic Surprise ............................................................................................. 72 Diplomacy—Beware the realists ....................................................................................................... 73 Politics ................................................................................................................................................... 75 Areas of current vulnerability ............................................................................................................ 77 Chapter 8: What to Do? Preparing for and Managing Surprise ...................................................... 79 General principles ................................................................................................................................ 80 Anticipation ........................................................................................................................................... 82 Resilience .............................................................................................................................................. 91 Adaptation ............................................................................................................................................. 97 Appendix: Vignettes .............................................................................................................................. 103 Strategic Surprise ................................................................................................................................... 104 Vignette #1: Russian Blitz in the Baltics ........................................................................................ 104 Vignette #2: China Invades Taiwan ............................................................................................... 106 Vignette #3: China Attacks Vietnam .............................................................................................. 108 Technological Surprise ........................................................................................................................