Leveraging Global Capabilities in Support of Joint Warfighters
Abstract
The events of the past few years have confirmed that threats to our nation's security and interests have become more diffuse, unpredictable, and challenging than ever before. The ongoing Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) and contintued unrest and instability in multiple locations around the world illustrate and instability in multiple locations around the world illustrate the complexity of our times. The future is also uncertain. Due to the nature of the new strategic reality, our nation and Army will likely be involved in a protracted war, a point stressed frequently by General Peter J. Schoomaker, chief of staff, Army. While it is clear that uncertainty will remain for the near future, a number of implications for our Army have become apparent regarding the future operational environment: (1) Increrased likelihood of operations in "complex" terrain; (2) Difficulty in identifying adversaries from combatants; (3) Blurring of conventional, unconventional, and terror operations; (4) Sophisticated asymmetric enemy capabilities; (5) Peer and near-peer thrats in select niche areas; (6) Threats from weapons of mass destruction; (7) 360 threat across the depth of the battlespace; and (8) Strategic effects of tactical operations. Because the Army will operate as part of the Joint Force, our forces must be prepared to provide support to joint warfighters in a similar environment since they too will be affected by these same implications. These challenges will also require additional technologies, new concepts of employment, and interdependent capabilities from each of the Services. As noted by Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, "We need to change not only the capabilities at our disposal, but also how we think about war. All the high-tech weapons in the world will not transform the U.S. armed forces unless we also transform the way we think, the way we train, the way we exercise, and the way we fight."
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2005
- Accession Number
- ADA524637
Entities
People
- Larry J. Dodgen
Organizations
- United States Army Space and Missile Defense Command