Sir BH Liddell Hart stated that “The role of grand strategy – superior strategy – is to coordinate and direct all the resources of a nation, or group of nations, towards achieving of the political object…” These resources are generally known as “instruments of national power” and include the instruments of diplomatic, informational, military and economic (DIME) power. America's grand strategy should be incorporated into national security strategy, which includes the development, application, and coordination of the instruments of national power to achieve objectives that contribute to national security. The President is primarily responsible for national security policy and the management of foreign relations. However, for national security decisions, it also works with and considers a range of executive and non-executive actors, members of Congress, while keeping abreast of special interests and public opinion. This process can be extremely challenging due to, among others, complex bureaucratic, psychological and cultural factors. Proper understanding of these complex factors and integration of all instruments of national power will lead to more effective decision-making. Considering these factors along with the instruments of national power (DIME), this paper will first evaluate the national security decision-making process for selecting options during the 2010 surge in Afghanistan; then it will evaluate and compare the management of Iran's nuclear program from 2009 to 2013 with the Afghanistan wave. Furthermore, this paper will analyze the effectiveness of national security decision making in advancing the national strategy in both cases. Shortly after winning in 2008...... middle of paper......, but regulate its use so as to avoid harm to the future state of peace – to its security and prosperity.”.Works CitedDepartment of Defense . Joint Publication 1-02: Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms. Washington DC: Department of Defense, 2010.CBS NEWS. December 18, 2013. http://www.cbsnews.com/news/iran-to-rejoin-nuclear-negotiations-after-walk-out/ (accessed December 19, 2013). Countdown to withdrawal. November 30, 2013. http://countdowntodrawdown.org/counter.php (accessed December 19, 2013).Hart, B.H. Lidell. Strategy. London: Faber & Faber, 1967. Sanger, David E. Compare and Hide. New York: Broadway Paperback, 2012.Wasserman. “Instructional Period 6314: Debate on State Challenges to U.S. National Security.” Montgomery: Air University Press, 2013.Woodward, Bob. Obama's war. New York: Simon @ Schuster, 2010.