Page 53 - Navy Journal 219
P. 53

Revisiting Campaign ...


                  b. Inter Services’ synergy needs to be tested through joint training and
                  exercises to enhance operational  efficiency.  Multinational  doctrinal
                  alignment  should be fostered to keep pace with modern armed forces
                  operating in regional domain.
                  c. Campaign planning tools should be examined and understood in light of
                  levels of war. War Gaming and various Command Post exercises should
                  be used to educate Officers in this regard. Digital War Gaming Centers
                  and Command hubs are recommended for Armed Forces to enhance the
                  operational efficiency.
                  d. Military  training  institutions  should continue  to enrich training
                  packages by augmenting various forums, seminars and workshops.
                  e. Military training should not be cocooned within the operational field
                  only but should also develop close military-media  and civil-military
                  interface.  Social Command Centers to institutionally  integrate  various
                  national stakeholders are thereby encouraged.
            Conclusion

                  Levels of war are interconnected. In any conflict spectrum, the strategic
            level decides, the operational level plans and the tactical level fights. In earlier
            days, Kings were also the military  planners where the operational  level  was
            virtually inactive and hibernated. Thanks to Clausewitz, Liddell Hard and other
            strategists for excavating the existence and significance of the operational level
            in a campaign. The campaign plan commences once the strategic level of the
            state  determines  the  purpose of war and issues the  strategic  guidance.  The
            military operational level acts as the connector between the levels translates the
            strategic desire into operational design, plans the campaign and mobilizes the
            elements  of war. The  Operational  level  also  examines  the  feasibility  and
            acceptability of the plan - what we want at the end of war (End), how we should
            achieve it (Ways) and using what forces and resources (Means).
                  While dealing with the campaign planning tools, we should remember
            that Centre of Gravity (CG) is the hub of all power which we need to identify
            rightly. CG can vary in different levels of war, nature of conflict and theatre. At
            operational level, military Line of Operation(LOOP) has to aim to eliminate the
            operational CG of the enemy so that we can achieve the military end state to



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