In today's dynamic and complicated environment of Joint Theater Missile Defense (JTMD) current doctrine provides ambiguous guidance to Theater Commanders in Chief (CINC) or Joint Force Commanders (JFC) in the proper establishment of JTMD priorities for theater assets. Currently there is no doctrinal system established, to provide Theater Commanders the guidance essential to properly employ of those JTMD assets to counter an ever-growing missile threat. The proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) and the ability to deliver those weapons through Theater Missiles (TM) has only served to heighten the importance of coordinating limited theater assets to counter current and future threats. The proper employment of limited assets, established on sound principles and doctrine, is essential for the success of JTMD in today's environment. This paper explores needed changes in the current active defense doctrine as pertaining to prioritization of critical theater assets for defense against TMs. The proposed changes would establish a standard protocol; based on a systematic approach, to assign limited JTMD systems to protect specifically identified critical theater assets. The proposed changes are based on the potential for serious restrictions on availability of future systems, due to budget constraints and technological setbacks. For those reasons, planners will have the requirement to judiciously employ those limited JTMD assets to counter a growing threat.
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