Nonlethal Technologies

The United States has been involved in a series of recent operations where non-lethal technologies might have provided useful alternatives for policymakers and U.S. forces. The continuing involvement of the United States in peace-enforcement and peacemaking activities, and the ongoing humanitarian and security crisis in Kosovo (for example), cry out for a determination of whether and how non-lethal technologies might provide a possible third option between economic sanctions and military force to achieve U.S. strategic objectives. Non-Lethal Technologies, which updates the 1995 Independent Task Force on non-lethal weapons, provides that determination and finds that non-lethal weapons can potentially contribute to the capability of U.S. military forces across the entire range of engagement types, from observer forces, to peacekeeping, to large-scale military engagements. For non-lethal weapons to become an effective third option, military leaders must have a sound assessment of the expectations and potential of non-lethal weapons, and diplomats and negotiators must be familiar with the new U.S. military capability and the range of confrontations in which it can be used. The report applauds the accomplishments of the Defense Department's Executive Agent for non-lethal weapons and his day-to-day operating arm (the Joint Non-Lethal Weapons Directorate), and supports the Directorate's continuing endeavors in the tactical arena, recommending that its responsibilities expand to include payloads for strategic-range delivery of non-lethal weapons and related capabilities for information operations.