Page 46 - Navy Journal 219

Navy Journal 2019

The Strategic Guidance above shows how clear, concise and thoughtful it
can be. It also gives an essence of military directives.

Military Directives and the Limiting Line. In light of strategic
guidance, the operational level planners determine the broad operational outline.
The ‘Limiting Line’ or restrictions must be clearly understood while determining
the extent of operations. For example, in Korean War, the Allied Force strategic
4
directive was “To drive the North Koreans back to 38th parallel”. But General
MacArthur crossed the River ‘Yalu’ (China-Korea border) “to isolate North
Korea from Communism”. The deviation from the strategic directive could
involve China in the probable third World War and the fear of Soviet nuclear
5
6
attack in Europe was also not unlikely. Hence, it is pertinent to feel the pulse of
the strategic guidance and not to go beyond.
Operational Challenges
Mission Analysis. After receiving the Strategic Guidance, military
commanders in operational level make Mission Analysis or Mission Estimate to
determine the operational challenges and examine the acceptability and
7
feasibility of the plan. (Table 1).
Table 1: Military Mission Analysis: Ends, Ways and Means
ENDS WAYS MEANS

What military or political and social How can we achieve it or what With what resources/ Forces/
conditions (objectives) we want in the actions can produce that Military Components can we
operational area to achieve the condition or End State? achieve those objectives?
strategic goal?

Mission Analysis is a scrutiny of fighting ability, mobility, logistics, strength and
vulnerabilities through which the operational level examines the mission
feasibility. It tries to find what the strategic level wants vis a vis what the
operational and tactical level can do. If the ‘Mission Analysis’ is ignored, the
result can be fatal.

4. Ibid.
5. The US Naval War College: Strategy and War, November 2007 – February 2008, p b - 43
6. The US Joint Services Publication 3-0.
7. The US Joint Services Publication 3-0.

38