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FOREWORD
The Armed Forces of the United States (US) face challenges more
ambiguous and regionally focused than during the Cold War.
These challenges can no longer be described as a single threat
(the Soviet Union), but rather as multiple risks (one superpower,
with friends and allies, reacting to regional events around the globe).
Military operations other than war (MOOTW) are conducted to deter
war, resolve conflict, promote peace, or support civil authorities.
Therefore, the overall goal of MOOTW is to pursue US national policy
initiatives and to counter potential threats to US national security
interests. However, as the number and frequency of MOOTW
increase, we need to ensure air and space forces are relevant, ready,
and strong. This ensures our ability to win our nation’s wars (the
military’s principal objective if deterrence fails) is not degraded. As
the number and duration of MOOTW increase, commanders
continually assess what effects these types of operations have on
the Air Force’s warfighting readiness and capability and inform
senior leaders when these capabilities may be jeopardized.
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