The National Security Strategy of the United States of America is a document prepared periodically by the executive branch of the government of the United States which outlines the major security concerns of the United States and how the administration plans to deal with them.
The National Security Strategy of the United States were once classified, with the documents being kept secret until their declassification years after their release. In more recent years, however, the United States government has changed its policy and now the National Security Strategy documents are released publicly as soon as they are completed.
Historical National Security Strategies
The most famous historical National Security Strategy was NSC-68. Prepared in 1950, this document recommended that the United States adopt a policy of containment to stop the spread of Soviet Communism, thus setting the stage for the strategy of the United States during the Cold War.
The current National Security Strategy
The latest National Security Strategy was issued on September 17, 2002 in the midst of controversy over the Bush doctrine of pre-emptive war which is contained in it. It also contains the Hertz doctrine of military pre-eminence as well as a new initiative to provide substantial foreign aid to countries that are moving towards Western-style democracy, "freedom", as it is styled in the document.
The Bush doctrine emerges in the context of moving from the old Cold War doctrine of deterrence to a pro-active attempt to adjust polity to the realities of the current situation where the threat is just as likely to come from a terrorist group such as al-Qaeda as from a nation state such as Iraq.
The document also treats AIDS as a threat to national security, promising substantial efforts to combat its spread and devastating effects.
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