Pdf military revolutions and revolutions in military. The revolution in military affairs geopolitical futures. 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. Third generation civilmilitary relations and the new. In fact, 174 antoine bousquet it is precisely this intimate relation between war and technoscienti. Such a view for the period 14941559, was recently endorsed by j.
The military postmodern era has brought, according to moskos et al. 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. The next revolution in military affairs hoover institution. 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. The military concept of revolution in military affairs rma is a militarytheoretical hypothesis. Broadly stated, rma claims that in certain periods of the history of humankind, there were new military doctrines, strategies.
Ogarkov, began to write of an emerging revolution in the nature of warfare. 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. 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. This is largely, and not coincidentally, the same technology on which any prospective revolution in intelligence affairs will depend. 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. Dec 06, 2017 the burke chair at csis has prepared a working paper that suggests the u. The revolution in military affairs jeffrey mckitrick, et al. Geopolitics, the revolution in military affairs and the bush.
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. The revolution in military affairs and asian security. Critics assert that new zealand has a low capacity to absorb the revolution in military affairs. 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. Recognizing and understanding revolutionary change in warfare. This volume challenges conventional wisdom not by claiming that informations impact on military operations is not positive or transformative but by claiming its. 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. In the military, postmodernism refers to the new operational scenario framed by the revolution in military affairs moskos, williams, segal, 2000. Arms control in an age of strategic and military revolution full text. This years theme was the revolution in military affairs. A retrospective on the socalled revolution in military. Military revolutions and revolutions in military affairs. 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. 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.
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. Chapter five another view of the revolution in military affairs. The rma combines new technology, organization and doctrine to employ. The dynamics of military revolution bridges a major gap in the emerging literature on revolutions in military affairs. Steven metz, james kievit, strategy and the revolution in military affairs. In april 1994, the army war college and the strategic studies. The revolution in military affairs and conflict short of war. Can india create the next revolution in military affairs. The nuclear revolution in military affairs a technologydriven rma new doctrine and strategy new organization military new service elites civilian additional technological developments. Posted on federation of american scientists web site. 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. Unable to agree if they represent cataclysmic and revolutionary events, or. 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. 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.
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 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. Keeping pace with the revolution in military affairs. 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 view of the revolution in military affairs. Defense and the national interest, 03 november 2007. 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. Department of defenses office of net assessment in the 1980s and was expanded to include improvements in. 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. Discussions of the revolution in military affairs rma, the militarytechnical. In each of these cases, revolutionary change in the conduct of war. A retrospective on the socalled revolution in military affairs, 2000. The revolution in military affairs rma is an american concept that frames a debate about the restructuring of.
A theory on firstmover advantage abstract what determines the length of firstmover advantage in military innovation. 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. 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. Another sort might be the conversion from wooden sail. Every april the army war colleges strategic studies institute. 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.
This had much to do with the fall of the iron curtain, the stunning. This published version of the 1992 ona mtr paper contains reflections by marshall and krepinevich. Revolutions in military affairs weapons and warfare. In adopting revolutions in military affairs, some first movers benefit from a lengthy advantage while others suffer from a brief advantage. It suggests that two very different phenomena have been at work over the past centuries.
The revolution in military affairs army university press. 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. An example of an rma might be the universal change across warfare driven, for instance, by the development of the airplane or atomic bomb. 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 history section as it stands is thus misleading.
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. Blitzkrieg has been termed a revolution in military affairs or rmaa fundamental change in the nature of warfare that the. By jason kelly 58 china must actively seek to promote the revolution in military a. 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 real revolution in military affairs center for. A holistic view of the revolution in military affairs rma akshay joshi. According to many established experts a revolution in military affairs rma creates a paradigm shift in the nature of military operations by either making the core capability of a dominant player irrelevant or creating new capability in some new dimension of warfare or both. Discussions of the revolution in military affairs rma, the militarytechnical revolution mtr, and information age warfare. Defense planners subsequently embraced the term revolution in military affairs rma in the 1990s. Aug 05, 2014 the real revolution in military affairs. In the late 1970s soviet military analysts, led by marshal n.
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. Militarstrategisk doktrin militarystrategic doctrine, msd. The concept of dramatic change in the profession of arms was developed by soviet military theorists and labeled militarytechnical revolutions. Scholars, soldiers, and defense analysts from throughout the nation and europe gathered to consider the vitally important impact that rapid technological advances have. Historical lessons applied to the current technical revolution in military affairs by benjamin huebschman major benjamin d. The limits of foresight in the preworld war ii revolution in military affairs rma full text.
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. The revolution in military affairs and conflict short of war introduction. Another view of the revolution in military affairs 103 even amid the poverty of budgetary resources for defense needs. Overall, is the rma as process a generally applicable tool or suited only to specific issues. The performance of us forces in the major combat phase of the operation in iraq demonstrated the ability of institutions functioning within standard bureaucratic. In all of this, it is a mistake to focus exclusively on new weapons hardware.
Mar 14, 2012 the concept of dramatic change in the profession of arms was developed by soviet military theorists and labeled militarytechnical revolutions. But analysts quickly found an exclusively technological focus too limiting and the mtr evolved into the more holistic concept of revolutions in military affairs. Reflections on the revolution in military affairs stephen j. The debates with regards to the concept of military revolutions mr or revolutions in military affairs rma are largely an issue of semantics. The burke chair at csis has prepared a working paper that suggests the u. 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. A revolution in military affairs rma is a concept that explains how advancements in technology, organization, and strategy have changed the nature of warfare. Mazarr argues that the current revolution in military affairs is part of a larger. Chapter four an informationbased revolution in military affairs.
Historical lessons applied to the current technical. 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. The revolution in civilmilitary affairs center for. Revolution in military affairs rma was the most widely used, and abused, acronym in the u. This is largely, and not coincidentally, the same technology on which any prospective revolution in. Military revolutions, evolution, and international.
The revolution in military affairs victoria university. 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. Revolution in military affairs, rma, information war. 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. Yet when applying the theoretical notion of an rma to reality, each nations. The term revolution in military affairs rma became a buzzword in the course of the 1990s. Pdf click to increase image size click to decrease image size. 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. This essay argues, first, that there are two revolutions in military affairs. The maturing revolution in military affairs center for strategic and.
Accurate descriptions of change or intellectual constructs. Assuming that the revolution exists as described, the current transition post1990 is defined by the development and use of precisionguided munitions pgm, standoff weapons. The current revolution in military affairs rma is taking. Revolution in military affairs why computer professionals should be concerned we will discuss the essential and disconcerting role of information and communication technology ict. A military revolution or revolution in military affairs. Rmas importance is likely to grow over the coming decades of great power competition and proxy wars across eurasia and its neighbors. 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. Following the persian gulf war, many authors focused on the im pressive array of hightechnology weapons that allowed the u. 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. Revolution in military affairs rma however one chooses to define it is a complex phenomenon.