ABSTRACT
James Jay Carafano, a military historian, uses the occupation of Austria from 1945 to 1955 as an example of how not to conduct post-conflict operations. He asks how well the American military were prepared for their occupational tasks; he touches on measures taken to master the chaos of the first months; he discusses the relationship between the tactical and military government units. He endeavors to determine the degree of deliberate calculation with which the Western powers decided to oppose the Soviet Union in Austria. Carafano’s narrative is based on the major thesis that “security concerns, as interpreted and expressed by professional military officers, played an inordinately significant role in determining the course of affairs. Rather, he adheres to an interpretation that stresses the central role of national security as the most effective concept with which to understand the United States’ foreign policy during the Cold War.
