The Strategy of Indirect Approach in the U.S. Foreign Policy
https://doi.org/10.26794/2220-6469-2023-17-3-18-31
Abstract
The essence of the strategy of indirect approach (SIA), the definition and notion of which was introduced into the scientific discourse in the mid‑20th century by the English historian B.G. Liddell Hart, is that the main consideration in it was given not to the military force factors, as it had been previously in history, but to alternative options for subduing a hostile state. Nowadays, according to many American scientists and experts, SIA should be used primarily in the preparation of war, and therefore it has switched from the purely military sphere to other areas of state activity — economy, culture, ideology, etc. Nowadays, one of the types of the SIA of the United States is the so-called proxy war, in which military actions of the allied state are the final stage of gradual inclusion of another country into the zone of American influence through alternative methods.
About the Authors
N. V. LukyanovichRussian Federation
Nikolay V. Lukyanovich — Dr Sci. (Politology), General Director
Moscow
S. N. Silvestrov
Russian Federation
Sergey N. Silvestrov — Doctor of Economics, Professor, Director of the Institute of Economic Policy and Economic Security Problems
Moscow
References
1. Liddell Hart B.H. Strategy: The indirect approach. London: Faber & Faber Ltd.; 1954. 420 p. (Russ. ed.: Liddell Hart B.H. Strategiya nepryamykh deistvii. Moscow: AST; 2017. 510 p.).
2. Clausewitz C. von. Vom Kriege. Pt. 1. Berlin: Ferdinand Dümmler; 1832. 286 p. (Russ. ed. Clausewitz C. O voine. Vol. 1. Moscow: Voenizdat; 1936. 187 p.).
3. Chen J. What are petrodollars? Investopedia. Jul. 19, 2022. URL: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/petrodollars.asp (accessed on 20.04.2023).
4. Nehru J. The discovery of India. London: Meridian Books Ltd.; 1951. 552 p. (Russ. ed.: Nehru J. Otkrytie Indii. Moscow: Politizdat; 1989. 507 p.).
5. Braudel F. La dynamique du capitalisme. Paris: Éditions Arthaud; 1985. 120 p. (Russ. ed.: Braudel F. Dinamika kapitalizma. Smolensk: Poligramma; 1993. 139 p.).
6. Cullinane М. Р., Goodal А. The open door era: United States foreign policy in the twentieth century. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press Ltd; 2017. 224 p. (Critical Insights in American Studies Series). URL: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1521052/1/CullinaneGoodallOpen%20Door%20Era%20-%20220316.pdf (accessed on 30.04.2023).
7. Friedman G. The logic of American strategy and war. Geopolitical Futures. Apr. 18, 2023. URL: https://geopoliticalfutures.com/the-logic-of-american-strategy-and-war/ (accessed on 20.04.2023).
8. Howe W.B. America’s economical dependence on foreign trade. United States Naval Institute Proceedings. 1926;52(284). URL: https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/1926/october/americas-economical-dependence-foreign-trade (дата обращения: 20.04.2023).
9. Corneli А. Sun Tzu and the indirect strategy. Rivista di Studi Politici Internazionali.1987;54(3):419–445.
10. Sun Tzu. The art of war. Transl. from Chin. Moscow, Leningrad: Academy of Sciences Publ.; 1950. 404 p. (In Russ.).
11. Schwartz J. When trying to surprise your opponents backfires: Exposing the weaknesses of the indirect approach. Cornell International Affairs Review. 2017;10(2):1–1. DOI: 10.37513/ciar.v10i2.493
12. Morrow N. Sun Tzu, The art of war (c. 500–300 B.C.). Classics of Strategy and Diplomacy. Nov. 24, 2015. URL: https://classicsofstrategy.com/2015/11/24/ (accessed on 10.05.2023).
13. Nye J.S., Jr. Soft power. The means to success in world politics. New York, NY: PublicAffairs; 2004. 191 p.
14. Cebrowski A.K., Garstka J.H. Network-centric warfare: Its origin and future. United States Naval Institute Proceedings. 1988;124(139). URL: https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/1998/january/network-centric-warfare-its-origin-and-future (accessed on 17.04.2023).
15. Mann S.R. Full text of “Chaos theory and strategic thought”. Internet Archive. URL: https://archive.org/stream/1992Mann/1992+mann_djvu.txt (accessed on 30.05.2023).
16. Prav V. “Controlled chaos” as an instrument of geopolitical warfare and “color revolutions”. Global Research. Mar. 24, 2016. URL: https://www.globalresearch.ca/controlled-chaos-as-a-instrument-of-geopolitical-warfare-and-color-revolutions/5516279 (accessed on 10.04.2023).
17. Kurbalija J. When it comes to invisible geopolitics, emotions matter. Diplo. Sep. 24, 2012. URL: https://www.diplomacy.edu/blog/when-it-comes-invisible-geopolitics-emotions-matter/ (accessed on 10.04.2023).
18. Greene R. The 33 strategies of war. London; New York, NY: Penguin Books; 2007. 512 p. (Russ. ed.: Greene R. 33 strategii voiny. Moscow: Ripol-Сlassic; 2014. 680 p.).
19. Yakovlev N.N. CIA against the USSR. Moscow: Pravda; 1983. 463 p. (In Russ.).
20. Valori Е. G. Psychology and indirect strategy. Modern Diplomacy. Nov. 01, 2019. URL: https://moderndiplomacy.eu/2019/11/01/psychology-and-indirect-strategy/ (accessed on 23.05.2023).
21. Taylor Р.W. Campaign planning for unconventional warfare: Thoughts on a new approach to indirect action. Small Wars Journal. Aug. 11, 2020. URL: https://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/campaign-planning-unconventional-warfare-thoughts-new-approach-indirect-action (дата обращения: 12.04.2023).
22. Ramakrishna К. CO23056 | The indirect strategy moment. S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. Apr. 19, 2023. URL: https://www.rsis.edu.sg/rsis-publication/rsis/the-indirect-strategy-moment/ (accessed on 12.04.2023).
23. Livieratos С. Рulling levers, not triggers: Beyond direct and indirect approaches to irregular warfare. Modern War Institute. Jul. 04, 2021. URL: https://mwi.westpoint.edu/pulling-levers-not-triggers-beyond-direct-and-indirect-approaches-to-irregular-warfare/ (accessed on 10.05.2023).
24. Heuser В., O’Neill Р. Episode 10: The captain who taught generals: Basil Liddell Hart. The Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies. Jan. 03, 2023. URL: https://www.rusi.org/podcasts/talking-strategy/episode-10-captain-who-taught-generals-basil-liddell-hart (дата обращения: 15.05.2023).
25. Chia R.C.H., Holt R. Strategy without design: The silent efficacy of indirect action. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press; 2009. 262 p.
26. Swanson D.U.S. wars and hostile actions: A list. Let’s Try Democracy. URL: https://davidswanson.org/warlist/ (accessed on 11.05.2023).
27. Smedley Butler. War is a racket. URL: https://ratical.org/ratville/CAH/warisaracket.txt
28. Friedman T.L. A manifesto for the fast world. The New York Times Magazine. Mar. 28, 1999. URL: https://www.nytimes.com/1999/03/28/magazine/a-manifesto-for-the-fast-world.html (accessed on 10.03.2022).
29. Hughes K.H. Facing the global competitiveness challenge. Issues in Science and Technology. 2005;21(4):72–78. URL: https://issues.org/hughes-innovation-economic-competitiveness/ (accessed on 10.03.2022).
30. Klein N. The shock doctrine: The rise of disaster capitalism. Toronto, ON: Alfred A. Knopf Canada; 2007. 662 p.
31. Pach C.J., Jr. Dwight D. Eisenhower: Foreign affairs. URL: https://millercenter.org/president/eisenhower/foreign-affairs (accessed on 30.04.2023).
32. Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates’ speech, September 29, 2008. National Defense University (Washington, D.C.). Armchair General L.L.C. Oct. 08, 2008. URL: https://armchairgeneral.com/secretary-of-defense-robert-m-gates-speech-september‑29–2008.htm (accessed on 30.04.2023).
33. Galbraith J.K. The economics of innocent fraud: Truth for our time. Boston, MA: Houghton Miffin Co.; 2004. 62 p. (Russ. ed.: Galbraith J.K. Ekonomika nevinnogo obmana. Pravda nashego vremeni. Moscow: Evropa; 2009. 88 p.).
34. Vorob’ev I.N., Kiselev V.A. The strategy of indirect action in a new form. Voennaya mysl’ = Military Thought. 2006;(9):2–10. (In Russ.).
35. Al-Marashi I. The enduring legacy of Operation Desert Storm. Al Jazeera. Jan. 17, 2016. URL: https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2016/1/17/the-enduring-legacy-of-operation-desert-storm (accessed on 13.05.2023).
36. Sinusoid D. Shock and awe: Iraq war economics. Shortform. Sep. 24, 2021. URL: https://www.shortform.com/blog/shock-and-awe-iraq/ (дата обращения: 27.05.2023).
37. Buncombe А. US army chief says Iraqi troops took bribes to surrender. Independent. May 24, 2003. URL: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/us-army-chief-says-iraqi-troops-took-bribes-to-surrender-105987.html (accessed on 20.04.2023).
38. Novikov V.K. Information weapons are weapons of modern and future wars. Moscow: Goryachaya Liniya — Telekom; 2023. 288 p. (In Russ.).
39. Kopylov A.V. On the issue of criticism of the concept of “network-centric wars” (operations) in the US media. Pentagonus. 2011. URL: http://pentagonus.ru/publ/k_voprosu_o_kritike_koncepcii_quot_setecentricheskikh_vojn_operacij_v_amerikanskikh_smi/19–1–0–1758 (accessed on 30.04.2023). (In Russ.).
40. Maurer Н.J. The influence of thinkers and ideas on history: The case of Alfred Thayer Mahan. Foreign Policy Research Institute. Aug. 11, 2016. URL: https://www.fpri.org/article/2016/08/influence-thinkers-ideas-history-case-alfred-thayer-mahan/ (accessed on 30.04.2023).
41. Gabuev А. What’s really going on between Russia and China. Foreign Affairs. Apr. 12, 2023. URL: https://www.foreignaffairs.com/united-states/whats-really-going-between-russia-and-china (accessed on 28.05.2023).
42. Hampl M. Post-globalization: The West’s strategy options. Geopolitical Intelligence Services AG. Jan. 02, 2023. URL: https://www.gisreportsonline.com/r/west-globalization-china/ (accessed on 10.05.2023).
43. Friedman G. The next phase in the China-US confrontation. Geopolitical Futures. May 23, 2023. URL: https://geopoliticalfutures.com/the-next-phase-in-the-china-us-confrontation/ (accessed on 27.05.2023).
44.
Review
For citations:
Lukyanovich N.V., Silvestrov S.N. The Strategy of Indirect Approach in the U.S. Foreign Policy. The world of new economy. 2023;17(3):18-31. https://doi.org/10.26794/2220-6469-2023-17-3-18-31