Sep 22, 2025

Joel Wuthnow's and Phillip Saunders’s China’s Quest for Military Supremacy is a sharp, deeply researched examination of the People’s Liberation Army’s transformation into a modern force with regional ambitions and global implications. The book reveals how China’s military advances are tempered by internal structural weaknesses, political constraints, and a deliberate focus on deterring US intervention—especially over Taiwan. Balanced and insightful, it’s essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the shifting dynamics of power in Asia.

Sep 22, 2025

Upstart: How China Became a Great Power, by Oriana Skylar Mastro, tracks China’s transition from a minor regional influence in the 1990s to a global power. The author developed and used the Upstart Strategy, which examines emulation, exploitation, and entrepreneurship, to offer predictive modeling that political and military leaders can use to anticipate China’s future trajectory. Reviewer Kelly Ihme applauds the specific and actionable recommendations for America and its allies.

Sep 17, 2025

The threat posed by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is a neglected and under-prioritized problem across the US government, requiring a dramatic change of approach. Most proposals for Goldwater-Nichols reform focus on geography, either increasing or decreasing the number of geographic commands. Based on our personal experience as Joint military planners at strategic-level headquarters, we argue that the change needs to go further, focusing on global national security problems instead of geography. This article’s analysis and conclusions will provoke conversation across the national security enterprise about how the United States competes with multiple global threats.

Sep 16, 2025

Welcome to the Autumn 2025 issue of Parameters. We open with two In Focus commentaries. The first, “A Case for Military Proportionality: Disabling Nuclear Plants” by Henry Sokolski, offers practical ways in which military planners can disable civilian targets, such as nuclear infrastructure, without undermining operational goals, alliance cohesion, or long-term political objectives. Our second commentary, “The Consequences of Declining Patriotism in the United States” by Neil N. Snyder, presents findings from a national survey showing a decline in patriotism, especially among Generation Z nonveterans. His article highlights a growing civil-military values gap with implications for recruitment and national cohesion.