The Wolfowitz Doctrine, formally known as the Defense Planning Guidance of 1992 (DPG 1992), is an unofficial name for the initial draft of a U.S. Department of Defense policy document dated February 18, 1992. Drafted primarily by Paul Wolfowitz, then Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, and his deputy Scooter Libby, it represented the first post-Cold War strategic guidance for U.S. military planning from fiscal years 1994 to 1999. The document advocated unilateral action, preemption, and American hegemony in the post-Cold War era, asserting the United States' position as the world's sole superpower following the Soviet Union's dissolution. It emphasized preventing the rise of any potential rivals to U.S. predominance through military strength, unilateral action, and limited alliances when necessary, marking a shift from Cold War multilateralism to assertive unilateralism.

The original draft was leaked to the New York Times in March 1992, sparking widespread controversy and criticism for its perceived imperialist tone. Critics condemned it for promoting American exceptionalism, preemptive military interventions, and the suppression of emerging powers. Due to the backlash, the document was revised and toned down before official release, removing explicit references to unilateralism and hegemony while retaining core ideas of U.S. leadership. Despite the revisions, the Wolfowitz Doctrine became a symbol of neoconservative foreign policy thinking and is credited with influencing later U.S. strategies, including the 2002 National Security Strategy under George W. Bush, which formalized preemption. It has been analyzed as shaping adversarial views, such as Vladimir Putin's perspective on U.S. intentions toward Russia.

The doctrine's legacy includes ongoing debates about U.S. foreign policy, with accusations of fostering endless military engagements and global overreach. It was criticized for envisioning the integration of allies like Germany and Japan into a U.S.-led security system while marginalizing Russia. No formal legal actions arose from the document itself, but its ideas have been linked to controversies in subsequent policies, such as the Iraq War, where Wolfowitz played a key role in advocating invasion based on preemptive threat elimination.