Pentagon Shifts Strategy to Prepare for Combat Operations from US Soil

The Pentagon has issued a new National Defense Strategy that fundamentally transforms how America plans to fight future wars, warning that conflicts may no longer remain overseas as adversaries gain capabilities to strike the United States directly.

Released Friday evening, the strategy elevates homeland defense above all other military missions, reflecting a stark assessment that the geographic buffer that has historically protected America is rapidly disappearing in the face of advanced threats.

“The Joint Force must be ready to deter and, if called upon, to prevail… including the ability to launch decisive operations against targets anywhere — including directly from the U.S. Homeland,” the strategy states. “More direct military threats to the American Homeland have grown in recent years, including nuclear threats as well as a variety of conventional strike and space, cyber, electromagnetic warfare capabilities.”

This shift comes amid growing missile capabilities from America’s primary adversaries. Russia and China both possess intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the continental United States, while North Korea has tested long-range systems that U.S. officials believe can hit American territory. Iran, while not currently believed to have missiles that can reach U.S. soil, remains a significant regional threat.

In response, the Pentagon will prioritize President Donald Trump’s planned Golden Dome missile defense shield, focusing on systems capable of defeating “large missile barrages and other advanced aerial attacks” while hardening military and civilian infrastructure against cyber strikes.

“The United States should never — will never — be left vulnerable to nuclear blackmail,” the strategy emphasizes, calling for continued modernization of America’s nuclear deterrent.

While China has been the Pentagon’s primary focus in recent years, the new strategy signals a subtle but significant shift. Rather than confrontation, it calls for a “stable peace” with Beijing, including expanded military-to-military communications.

“We will also be clear-eyed and realistic about the speed, scale, and quality of China’s historic military buildup,” the document says. “Our goal… is simple: To prevent anyone, including China, from being able to dominate us or our allies.”

The strategy argues that deterrence will rely less on direct confrontation and more on denying China the ability to achieve quick military victories, particularly in the western Pacific, by blocking attempts to dominate U.S. allies or control key maritime routes.

Pentagon planners warn that America could face multiple simultaneous crises, with adversaries potentially coordinating actions or exploiting moments when U.S. attention is divided. This raises the risk that overseas conflicts could quickly impact the homeland.

To manage these complex threats, the Pentagon is pressing allies to dramatically increase defense spending, freeing U.S. forces to focus on homeland defense and the most dangerous threats. The strategy describes Russia as a serious but declining power, suggesting Europe is now capable of taking the lead in its own defense given its collective economic and military potential.

“Russia will remain a persistent but manageable threat to NATO’s eastern members for the foreseeable future,” the document states, noting Moscow continues to modernize “the world’s largest nuclear arsenal.”

The strategy also sharpens the Pentagon’s focus on the Western Hemisphere, treating border security, drug trafficking and access to key terrain as core military missions. It calls for readiness to take decisive action against narco-terrorist groups and to protect strategic locations including the Panama Canal and Greenland.

Regarding Iran, the Pentagon describes a regime weakened by recent U.S. and Israeli military action but still dangerous and unpredictable. “Iran’s regime is weaker and more vulnerable than it has been in decades,” the strategy says, while warning Tehran “has left open the possibility that they will try again to obtain a nuclear weapon.”

The document emphasizes empowering regional allies, particularly Israel and Gulf partners, to deter Iran and respond decisively if American interests are threatened.

To support these strategic shifts, the Pentagon calls for rapidly rebuilding the U.S. defense industrial base, warning that America must be able to produce weapons and equipment at scale to deter—or survive—a prolonged conflict.

China has already pushed back strongly against the U.S. Golden Dome missile defense initiative, accusing Washington of undermining global strategic stability and risking the weaponization of outer space.