Differences Between Admiral Stark And Major Wedemeyer

Admiral Stark and Major Wedemeyer shared similar views on the design question of how to change their environment from its existing state to their desired end state. They both strove for victory over totalitarian powers in Europe and the Pacific. Both men advocated an alliance with Great Britain and prosecution of an allied strategy to defeat the Axis powers. Stark envisioned a pursuing an allied strategy with Britain across multiple theaters. Wedemeyer initially planned for war in the European theater and deterrence in the Pacific. Both acknowledged the necessity of Britain’s survival to the achievement of the end state. The differences between their approaches are in scope and focus. Stark proposed an alliance to fight Germany and Japan across multiple theaters. He also analyzed the likely effects on United States security of the western hemisphere. Wedemeyer, due in part to his resource-oriented task, focused on the European theater and how to supply allied needs through Lend Lease. …show more content…
His assertion does not, however, not sufficiently address the disparity of means between the two nations and how that affected their respective strategic approaches. Britain’s strategists favored an indirect approach aligned with Sun Tzu’s principles out of necessity as much as belief in their efficacy. The United States began and ended the war in pursuit of a Clausewitzian decisive victory in Europe. Britain eventually supported this direct approach not because conditions met Sun Tzu’s principle of weakening an enemy but rather because the United States provided the means to force a decisive battle in spite of German