The National Military Strategy (NMS) is issued by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff as a deliverable to the secretary of defense briefly outlining the strategic aims of the armed services.
The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS), in consultation with the other members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), the commanders of the Unified Combatant Commands (CCMDs), the joint staff and the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD), prepares the National Military Strategy in accordance with U.S. Code, Section 153, which requires that not later than February 15 of each even-numbered year, the chairman submits to the Senate Committee on Armed Services and the House Committee on Armed Services a comprehensive examination of the national military strategy.
After describing the security environment in which military forces will operate, the NMS report must specify the "ends, ways, and means" of the strategy.
Furthermore, the NMS report must describe the adequacy of capabilities—the "means"—required to achieve objectives within an acceptable level of military and strategic risk.
The NMS report also includes an assessment of the nature and magnitude of the strategic and military risks associated with successfully executing the missions called for under the strategy.
[5] In 2020, the White House determined that during the War on terror, defense contractors filled employee shortages with foreign-born staff.