Course materials

1. Produce a Strategic Point Paper for the EUCOM Commander to use in
congressional
Produce a Strategic Point Paper for the EUCOM Commander to use in congressional
testimony.As a member of a notional Joint Planning Group (JPG) of the U.S. European
Command (EUCOM J5), your JPG has completed an update of the Strategic Estimate* for the
Baltic Region to get the Commander up to speed on the situation in the region regarding
Kaliningrad and provide the basis for a commander’s estimate, and if necessary,
development of plans. Following the successful briefing of the Strategic Estimate (where it
was approved), the Combatant Commander learned that he would have to travel to
Washington to join the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at congressional hearings on the
situation in the Baltic region regarding Kaliningrad. You have been tasked to prepare a
Point Paper for the Combatant Commander to use in testimony before congressional
committees and in meetings in Washington regarding Kaliningrad. The intent is to provide
analysis of the Strategic Estimate regarding Kaliningrad.SCENARIO AND SPECIFIC
INSTRUCTIONSIt is December 2021. You are an Action Officer (AO) and a member of a
EUCOM J5 (ECJ5) Joint Planning Group (JPG). As directed by the Chief of Staff through the J5,
your JPG has completed an update of the Strategic Estimate (see C299 slides provided) for
the Baltic Region to get the Commander up to speed on the situation in the region regarding
Kaliningrad and provide the basis for a commander’s estimate and, if necessary,
development of plans.Following the successful briefing of the Strategic Estimate (where it
was approved), the Combatant Commander learned that he would have to travel to
Washington to join the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at congressional hearings on the
situation in the Baltic region regarding Kaliningrad. The Combatant Commander will depart
for Washington sometime in the next few days.You have been tasked to prepare a paper for
the Combatant Commander to use in testimony before congressional committees and in
meetings in Washington regarding Kaliningrad. The intent is to provide analysis of the
Strategic Estimate regarding Kaliningrad, not to regurgitate content.Paper Requirements:•
Format must be followed and cannot be adjusted.• Thesis and key topic should be in the
introduction (that is a form of BLUF).• The recommendation should be the first item in the
second section (also a way to use BLUF).• The secret to brevity is to write short clear
statements in the active voice and focusing on the key topic. Must use Active Voice and no
passive.• The paper will not exceed three pages Single Spaced.• The focus is Kaliningrad and
is designed to provide maximum information in a manner that is easily absorbed.• use no

2. more than two pages to summarize the Strategic Estimate.• This is a narrative summary,
not a cut and paste.• Within this paper, you must include key points from each section of the
Strategic Estimate: Introduction, Strategic Environment, Strategic Direction, Strategic and
Operational Challenges, Potential Opportunities, and Assessment of Risks.• Use complete,
concise sentences and cover sub-points clearly and concisely. Do not use bullet points. Use
the headings below to delineate each section of the paper.• Cite source using end notes and
Turabian format.• The intent is to provide analysis of the Strategic Estimate regarding
Kaliningrad, not to regurgitate content.• Can utilize other resources.Other Items Attached:•
Strategic Estimate Slides• Format For Paper• Example for Foot Notes• Example Paper•
Readings / ResourcesReadings/Resources Attached:• Guide to Strategic Estimate
Development, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, US Army Command and General Staff College,
Department of Joint, Interagency and Multinational Operations, (15 pages)• JP 5-0, Joint
Planning, 01 December 2020, Washington, DC: GPO, pages II-9, paragraph 9d, “Strategic
Estimate” and Appendix B: Strategic Estimate (3 pages). Located in the Blackboard Master
Library• US European Command’s 2020 Posture Statement to the Senate Armed Services.
Located in the C206 lesson folder in Blackboard.• “US European Command’s 2020 Posture
Statement to the Senate Armed Services Committee,” GEN Tod D. Wolters (USAF), 25 Feb
2020 (18 pages). Located in the C206 lesson area in Blackboard..• “Interim National
Security Strategic Guidance,” March 2021. Located in the C205 lesson area in Blackboard.•
“Summary of the 2018 National Defense Strategy of the United States of America,” January
2018. Located in the C205 lesson area in Blackboard.• Chapter 8: Russia’s Kaliningrad
Exclave: Discontinuity as a Threat to Sovereignty, in Borderlines and Borderlands, by
Alexander C Diener and Joshua Hagen, pages 121-136 (13 pages). Located in the C299
lesson folder in Blackboard.• “Russia’s strategic game changer in the Baltic,” (2 pages).
Available: http://www.orfonline.org/expert-speaks/russias-strategic-game-changer-in-the-
baltic/ (accessed 25 October 2021).