A future conflict between great powers would likely put the U.S. homeland at risk, either through kinetic or non-kinetic means, including psychological and cyber warfare, according to the nation’s most senior enlisted officer.
This means that the stakes of the next war will be much higher than those the United States faced during the Global War on Terror, said Ramon Colon-Lopez, the senior enlisted adviser to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (SEAC).
“The nature of the enemy that we can potentially face in the near future is different than what we’ve become accustomed to fighting over 20 years,” SEAC Colon-Lopez said during an Aug. 1 talk with the Air and Space Forces Association.
“Counterinsurgency is much different than dealing with a foe that has nuclear powers. The stakes are higher.”
SEAC Colon-Lopez said that in the event of war between great powers—such as between the United States and China or Russia—all Americans would be considered “outside the wire” or in danger of being targeted by other means.
To that end, he said, securing American citizens—particularly the family of service members who might be targeted—ought to be of top priority when making strategic decisions that could escalate to conflict.
Read more: US Homeland Would Be at Risk in Great Power War
