Wednesday, September 11, 2013
Tweet[IWS] CRS: INSTANCES OF USE OF UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES ABROAD, 1798-2013 [30 August 2013]
IWS Documented News Service
_______________________________
Institute for Workplace Studies----------------- Professor Samuel B. Bacharach
School of Industrial & Labor Relations-------- Director, Institute for Workplace Studies
Cornell University
16 East 34th Street, 4th floor---------------------- Stuart Basefsky
New York, NY 10016 -------------------------------Director, IWS News Bureau
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Congressional Research Service (CRS)
Instances of Use of United States Armed Forces Abroad, 1798-2013
Barbara Salazar Torreon, Information Research Specialist
August 30, 2013
http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/R42738.pdf
[full-text, 37 pages]
Summary
This report lists hundreds of instances in which the United States has used its Armed Forces
abroad in situations of military conflict or potential conflict or for other than normal peacetime
purposes. It was compiled in part from various older lists and is intended primarily to provide a
rough survey of past U.S. military ventures abroad, without reference to the magnitude of the
given instance noted. The listing often contains references, especially from 1980 forward, to
continuing military deployments, especially U.S. military participation in multinational
operations associated with NATO or the United Nations. Most of these post-1980 instances are
summaries based on presidential reports to Congress related to the War Powers Resolution. A
comprehensive commentary regarding any of the instances listed is not undertaken here.
The instances differ greatly in number of forces, purpose, extent of hostilities, and legal
authorization. Eleven times in its history the United States has formally declared war against
foreign nations. These 11 U.S. war declarations encompassed 5 separate wars: the war with Great
Britain declared in 1812; the war with Mexico declared in 1846; the war with Spain declared in
1898; the First World War, during which the United States declared war with Germany and with
Austria-Hungary during 1917; and World War II, during which the United States declared war
against Japan, Germany, and Italy in 1941, and against Bulgaria, Hungary, and Rumania in 1942.
Some of the instances were extended military engagements that might be considered undeclared
wars. These include the Undeclared Naval War with France from 1798 to 1800; the First Barbary
War from 1801 to 1805; the Second Barbary War of 1815; the Korean War of 1950-1953; the
Vietnam War from 1964 to 1973; the Persian Gulf War of 1991; global actions against foreign
terrorists after the September 11, 2001, attacks on the United States; and the war with Iraq in
2003. With the exception of the Korean War, all of these conflicts received congressional
authorization in some form short of a formal declaration of war. Other, more recent instances
often involve deployment of U.S. military forces as part of a multinational operation associated
with NATO or the United Nations. For additional information, see CRS Report RS21405, U.S.
Periods of War and Dates of Current Conflicts, by Barbara Salazar Torreon.
The majority of the instances listed prior to World War II were brief Marine or Navy actions to
protect U.S. citizens or promote U.S. interests. A number were actions against pirates or bandits.
Covert actions, disaster relief, and routine alliance stationing and training exercises are not
included here, nor are the Civil and Revolutionary Wars and the continual use of U.S. military
units in the exploration, settlement, and pacification of the western part of the United States.
Contents
Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 1
Listing of Notable Deployments of U.S. Military Forces Overseas, 1798-2013 ............................. 2
Sources ........................................................................................................................................... 34
Contacts
Author Contact Information........................................................................................................... 34
Acknowledgments ......................................................................................................................... 34
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