Following the persian gulf war, many authors focused on the im pressive array of hightechnology weapons that allowed the u. Yet when applying the theoretical notion of an rma to reality, each nations. Reflections on the revolution in military affairs stephen j. Keeping pace with the revolution in military affairs william nolte in operation iraqi freedom, the world witnessed a progress report on the revolution in military affairs rma. History is replete with examples of revolutions in military affairs, or rmas, the name for changes in warfare wrought by a combination of technological breakthroughs, organizational adaptations, and doctrinal innovations that lead to new and more effective methods of conducting military operations.
Rmas importance is likely to grow over the coming decades of great power competition and proxy wars across eurasia and its neighbors. The burke chair at csis has prepared a working paper that suggests the u. Revolution in military affairs, rma, information war. The next revolution in military affairs hoover institution. A revolution in military affairs a revolution in military affairs rma is a concept that explains how advancements in technology, organization, and strategy have changed the nature of warfare. The military concept of revolution in military affairs rma is a theory about the future of warfare, often connected to technological and organizational recommendations for change in the united states military and others especially tied to modern information, communications, and space technology, rma is often linked to current discussions under the label of transformation and total systems. Another sort might be the conversion from wooden sail. Posted on federation of american scientists web site. Chapter five another view of the revolution in military affairs. Defense and the national interest, 03 november 2007. The official us doctrine now explicitly states that ending tyranny on earth is the national security objective for which these new forces will be used.
The soviet military thinkers rst asked questions about the revolution in military affairs rma during the midsixties, with respect to the impact of nuclear weapons and intercontinental ballistic missiles icbms. The real revolution in military affairs center for. Geopolitics, the revolution in military affairs and the bush. The rma combines new technology, organization and doctrine to employ. Can india create the next revolution in military affairs. A revolution in military affairs rma is a concept that explains how advancements in technology, organization, and strategy have changed the nature of warfare.
The term revolution in military affairs rma became a buzzword in the course of the 1990s. The history section as it stands is thus misleading. Department of defenses office of net assessment in the 1980s and was expanded to include improvements in. Pdf on jul 1, 2015, hansjorg kreowski and others published revolution in military affairs not without information and communication technology find, read and cite all the research you. The revolution in military affairs rma is an american concept that frames a debate about the restructuring of. Thompson abstract the revolution in military affairs rma became a common term in military and defence circles in the early 1990s when the gulf war seemed to indicate a dramatic shift in the nature of modern warfare. The sdi project was based on the premise that new remote spacebased satellite technologies could be deployed to intercept and destroy nuclear ballistic attacks against the us. Discussions of the revolution in military affairs rma, the militarytechnical.
Military revolutions, evolution, and international. Recognizing and understanding revolutionary change in warfare. The current revolution in military affairs rma is taking. Critics assert that new zealand has a low capacity to absorb the revolution in military affairs. In the military, postmodernism refers to the new operational scenario framed by the revolution in military affairs moskos, williams, segal, 2000. Mar 14, 2012 the concept of dramatic change in the profession of arms was developed by soviet military theorists and labeled militarytechnical revolutions. The dynamics of military revolution bridges a major gap in the emerging literature on revolutions in military affairs. This published version of the 1992 ona mtr paper contains reflections by marshall and krepinevich. Strategic rather than operational or tactical about deterrence rather than warfightingdeterrence became central high level of strategic interdependence nuclear weapons widely held to be responsible for. This volume challenges conventional wisdom not by claiming that informations impact on military operations is not positive or transformative but by claiming its. Historical lessons applied to the current technical. The military concept of revolution in military affairs rma is a militarytheoretical hypothesis. An informationbased revolution in military affairs 83 tion, usually the computerization, of the information gathering and distributing process has permitted military headquarters to keep pace with the expanded volume of data. For many of these purposes, the idea of an rma may be just as important as detailed content since its primary use is as a motivating.
Revolutionary shi s in military doctrine and organization are assumed to have occurred at a common starting point. Scholars, soldiers, and defense analysts from throughout the nation and europe gathered to consider the vitally important impact that rapid technological advances have on strategy, operations, training and force structure. Mazarr argues that the current revolution in military affairs is part of a larger. Keeping pace with the revolution in military affairs. Discussions of the revolution in military affairs rma, the militarytechnical revolution mtr, and information age warfare. Third generation civilmilitary relations and the new. In april 1994, the army war college and the strategic studies. Militarstrategisk doktrin militarystrategic doctrine, msd. This years theme was the revolution in military affairs. Dec 06, 2017 the burke chair at csis has prepared a working paper that suggests the u. A holistic view of the revolution in military affairs rma akshay joshi.
The debates with regards to the concept of military revolutions mr or revolutions in military affairs rma are largely an issue of semantics. In fact, 174 antoine bousquet it is precisely this intimate relation between war and technoscienti. The information revolution in the civilian world is driving rapid advances in military technologies, most notably in computers, telecommunications, sensors, and precisionguided munitions. The revolution in military affairs geopolitical futures. They believed that the employment of nuclear weapons would change the course. Broadly stated, rma claims that in certain periods of the history of humankind, there were new military doctrines, strategies. Affairs rmas was developed to distinguish military innovations that affected the operational level of warfare, which required significant technical, organizational, and conceptual changes, from military revolutions and their broader strategic, political, and social consequences. Aug 05, 2014 the real revolution in military affairs. The designation global was linked to the capabilities of the new military technologies of the revolution in military affairs in official documents that codified the bush doctrine. A vast literature on the revolution in military affairs or rma cites the important indeed, dominant role of information technology in enabling a new military revolution. Defense planners subsequently embraced the term revolution in military affairs rma in the 1990s. Steven metz, james kievit, strategy and the revolution in military affairs. Military revolutions and revolutions in military affairs.
Black who concluded that a consideration of the warfare of the period suggests that military adaption is a more appropriate term than revolution european warfare, 14941660 warfare and history and mr raymond concludes the military revolution debate, like any other form. A revolution in military affairs rma is a major change in the nature of warfare brought about by the innovative application of new technologies which, combined with dramatic changes in military doctrine and operational and organisational concepts, fundamentally alters the. The maturing revolution in military affairs center for strategic and. Revolutions in military affairs weapons and warfare. The revolution in military affairs and conflict short of war introduction. The nuclear revolution in military affairs a technologydriven rma new doctrine and strategy new organization military new service elites civilian additional technological developments. Geopolitics, the revolution in military affairs and the. The revolution in military affairs has become a way to describe the crushing american military superiority in the postcold war world. A revolution in military affairs rma is a major change in the nature of warfare brought about by the innovative application of new technologies which, combined with dramatic changes in military doctrine and operational and organisational concepts, fundamentally alters the character and conduct of military operations.
It doesnt seem all that long since the united states was considering how advancements in military technology would allow it to use advances in longrange precision weapons, intelligence sensors, and command and control capabilities to dominate conventional wars. Another view of the revolution in military affairs. The maturing revolution in military affairs 3 military affairs for militarytechnical revolution to emphasize his sense that while technological advances were making this particular mtr possible, the revolution itself would only be realized when new operational concepts had been developed and, in many cases, new military. An example of an rma might be the universal change across warfare driven, for instance, by the development of the airplane or atomic bomb.
Another view of the revolution in military affairs 103 even amid the poverty of budgetary resources for defense needs. Pdf click to increase image size click to decrease image size. Revolution in military affairs rma was the most widely used, and abused, acronym in the u. Revolution in military affairs and outer space article pdf available in international conference knowledgebased organization 231 january 2017 with 590 reads how we measure reads. Accurate descriptions of change or intellectual constructs. Unable to agree if they represent cataclysmic and revolutionary events, or. Arms control in an age of strategic and military revolution full text.
The performance of us forces in the major combat phase of the operation in iraq demonstrated the ability of institutions functioning within standard bureaucratic. Every april the army war colleges strategic studies institute. Revolution in military affairs why computer professionals should be concerned we will discuss the essential and disconcerting role of information and communication technology ict. The military concept of revolution in military affairs rma is a military theoretical hypothesis, about the future of warfare, often connected to technological and organizational recommendations for change in the militaries of the united states and other countries. In the late 1970s soviet military analysts, led by marshal n. The revolution in military affairs army university press. A retrospective on the socalled revolution in military affairs, 2000. As the russian military struggles with a host of issues raised by the collapse of the soviet union, the socioeconomic and political transformation within russia. A revolution in military affairs rma occurs when a nations military seizes an opportunity to transform its strategy, military doctrine, training, education, organization, equipment, operations and tactics to achieve decisive military results in fundamentally new ways. A theory on firstmover advantage abstract what determines the length of firstmover advantage in military innovation.
The authors concede that the revolution in military affairs holds great promise for conventional, combinedarms warfare, but conclude that its potential value in conflict short of war, whether. It suggests that two very different phenomena have been at work over the past centuries. Thinking of revolution in military affairs rma towards a common understanding of rma henrik olsen nordal master of philosophy thesis in peace and conflict studies. Blitzkrieg has been termed a revolution in military affairs or rmaa fundamental change in the nature of warfare that the. Chapter four an informationbased revolution in military affairs. The military concept of revolution in military affairs rma is a militarytheoretical hypothesis, about the future of warfare, often connected to technological and organizational recommendations for change in the militaries of the united states and other countries. This had much to do with the fall of the iron curtain, the stunning. A revolution in military affairs is under way that holds the potential to dramatically change the character of warfare over the next two to three decades. But analysts quickly found an exclusively technological focus too limiting and the mtr evolved into the more holistic concept of revolutions in military affairs. Ogarkov, began to write of an emerging revolution in the nature of warfare. This paper revisits the debate that raged in american defense circles in the 1990s over whether a revolution in military affairs was imminent in the early parts of the 21st century. Historical lessons applied to the current technical revolution in military affairs by benjamin huebschman major benjamin d. Pdf military revolutions and revolutions in military.
The limits of foresight in the preworld war ii revolution in military affairs rma full text. Overall, is the rma as process a generally applicable tool or suited only to specific issues. In each of these cases, revolutionary change in the conduct of war. The revolution in military affairs and asian security. Scholars, soldiers, and defense analysts from throughout the nation and europe gathered to consider the vitally important impact that rapid technological advances have. The military postmodern era has brought, according to moskos et al. The revolution in military affairs may not be about technology, but it will ride on technologyto a great degree on technical developments in information transmission, storage, and management. This essay argues, first, that there are two revolutions in military affairs. The revolution in civilmilitary affairs center for.
The revolution in military affairs victoria university. This is largely, and not coincidentally, the same technology on which any prospective revolution in. The military concept of revolution in military affairs rma is a theory about the future of warfare, often connected to technological and organizational recommendations for change in the united states military and others. The concept of dramatic change in the profession of arms was developed by soviet military theorists and labeled militarytechnical revolutions. A retrospective on the socalled revolution in military. The revolution in military affairs jeffrey mckitrick, et al. In all of this, it is a mistake to focus exclusively on new weapons hardware. Assuming that the revolution exists as described, the current transition post1990 is defined by the development and use of precisionguided munitions pgm, standoff weapons. By jason kelly 58 china must actively seek to promote the revolution in military a.
Such a view for the period 14941559, was recently endorsed by j. A military revolution or revolution in military affairs. This is largely, and not coincidentally, the same technology on which any prospective revolution in intelligence affairs will depend. In adopting revolutions in military affairs, some first movers benefit from a lengthy advantage while others suffer from a brief advantage. In the earlier case, the problem was tactical, operational and strategic in military terms the varied difficulties of winning world war one but also social, political. The revolution in military affairs and conflict short of war. The notion of a revolution in military affairs has created a sensation in recent years, as it could create a new phase in the way wars are conducted. Revolution in military affairs rma however one chooses to define it is a complex phenomenon. Distinguishes more limited revolutions in military affairs from more sweepingly significant military revolutions and suggests some ways to think about whether the current rma complex will in historical perspective.