National Security Adviser James Jones has distributed guidance on the National Security Council's processes in a memorandum entitled, "The 21st Century Interagency Process." It can be downloaded here (hat tip to foreignpolicy.com).
As we all know, the 21st Century announces itself as one in which there are great challenges to the symmetric world of the 20th century. Matters pertaining to national and international security are broader and mOre diverse than anyone thought possible just a few years ago. The United States must navigate an environment in which traditional organizations and means of response to global challenges may be inadequate or deficient. Indeed, the ability of the Nation to successfully compete in global issues is being tested in ways that were unimaginable until recently.
To succeed, the United States must integrate its ability to employ all-elements of national power in a cohesive manner. In order to deal with the world as it is, rather than how we wish it were, the National Security Council must be transformed to meet the realities of the new century.
Values embedded in this guidance are: strategic view, agility, transparency and predictability. As the world's problems, and America's national security issues, tend to involve many disciplines (diplomacy, military, economic policy, culture), these processes will definitely be tested in the years to come.
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