ABSTRACT
This study began with two premises about the course of world politics in the years to come. First, after September 11, the United States has decided to engage its dominant military and economic power in ambitious international projects. These include counter-terror combat missions in Afghanistan and Iraq, training missions in the Philippines, Colombia and several countries in North Africa, and forward deployments to Central Asia. They also include leadership in the maritime Proliferation Security Initiative and substantial budget increases apart from war expenses in order to maintain a large lead in defense capabilities with emphasis on force projection.
