Maritime Coalitions: When is Unity of Command Required

Abstract

Coalitions are a fact of life in modern diplomatic and military endeavors. Nations will seek to join or establish coalitions to maximize collective military power and establish legitimacy for the objectives they seek. Command and Control (C2) of maritime coalitions is a distinct facet of coalition operations based on the nature of naval operations. The concepts of Unity of Command, Unity of Effort and Parallel, Lead Nation, or Integrated coalition command structures are viable across a broad spectrum of maritime coalition operations but do have ideal applications within the Range of Military Operations. This paper will define the different terms associated with C2 in maritime coalitions and explain their application in the context of historic and recent maritime coalitions, paying particular attention to the concept of Unity of Command. The paper will then analyze the application of Unity of Command in the context of the Range of Military Operations and draw conclusions and recommendations for ideal employment of these concepts in forming maritime coalitions.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 10, 2007
Accession Number
ADA470786

Entities

People

  • Gregory J. Gahlinger

Organizations

  • Naval War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • C4I
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Afghanistan Conflict
  • Command And Control
  • Employment
  • Information Exchange
  • Interagency Coordination
  • International Organizations
  • International Relations
  • Joint Military Activities
  • Military Operations
  • National Security
  • Nato
  • Naval Operations
  • Navy
  • Second World War
  • Task Forces
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Joint Military Operations and Doctrine.

Technology Areas

  • Fully Networked C3
  • Fully Networked C3 - Command and Control