Weinberger-Powell Doctrine

The Weinberger-Powell Doctrine lays out a series of considerations to be weighed before the deployment of U.S. combat forces abroad. Six criteria were first delineated by the then secretary of defense Caspar W. Weinberger in a 1984 speech to the National Press Club:

At the time of the Persian Gulf War in 1990–1991, Colin Powell, an adviser to Weinberger in 1984 who had subsequently risen to be chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, reinforced Weinberger’s points with a particular focus on having overwhelming U.S. forces to win quick and decisive victories. Powell also added the idea of having a clear exit strategy in mind before beginning a new conflict so as to avoid endless entanglements. The doctrine had major influence during the Reagan, George H. ...