Military Operations other than War: Coming in from the Cold

Abstract

The end of the Cold War has prompted many changes in the American military. Substantial reductions in military personnel, infrastructure and budgets are just a few. No areas of change, however, are more dramatic than in Military Operations Other Than War (MOOTW). These operations have passed from back-page filler stories to front-page controversies that elicit contentious debate from the halls of Congress to the kitchen table. Has the nature of MOOTW changed fundamentally with the end of the Cold War? If so, in what ways has it changed and what do these changes portend for the United States’ military forces and their civilian leadership? This chapter will provide a study of Cold War and post-Cold War MOOTW, and an analysis of the changes in these operations created by the end of the Cold War.