Summary of the Irregular Warfare Annex To the National Defense Strategy

The United States is engaged in global competition to advance U.S. interests and gain enduring strategic advantage. The Department’s approach to irregular warfare must evolve to address the full spectrum of competition and conflict against potential state adversaries, while sustaining campaigns against select nonstate actors. This summary of the Irregular Warfare Annex to the 2018 National Defense Strategy (NDS) provides a plan to institutionalize irregular warfare (IW) as an enduring core competency for the entire Joint Force. This plan is grounded in the lessons of recent conflict.