Light Footprints: The Future of American Military Intervention

With “light footprint” military interventions fast becoming a central part of American strategy, Major Fernando Lujan, USA, a Special Forces officer and visiting fellow at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), examines the utility of this approach and recommends adoption of a new strategic framework to guide it in Light Footprints: The Future of American Military Intervention. In this study, the author argues that to effectively deal with emerging threats in places like Mali, Yemen, Uganda or Libya, civilian and military leaders at all levels should understand not only the strategic uses and limitations of light footprints, but also the ways that the current defense bureaucracy can undermine their success.