"Strategic Survey 2010 does not seek to lay out a new comprehensive strategy for Afghanistan. It does however argue that for Western states to be pinned down militarily and psychologically in Afghanistan will not be in the service of their wider political and security interests. The challenge of Afghanistan must be viewed and addressed in proportion to the other threats to international security and the other requirements for foreign-policy investment. With economic, financial and diplomatic activity moving at such a pace and with such varied outcomes internationally, military operations in general have to be all the more carefully considered. Precision and adaptability will be essential watchwords. For heavy, large, military deployment, the longue durée will be seen as an attitude for other times, other centuries.Will this be the final signal for global leaders to wake up? Maybe too early to tell, but we can always hope...
The Afghan campaign has involved not just mission creep but mission multiplication; narrowing the political-military engagement to core goals as described will allow for proper attention to be paid to other areas posing international terrorist risks, and indeed to other matters affecting international security."
Wednesday, 8 September 2010
"The Afghan campaign has involved not just mission creep but mission multiplication"
IISS
Monday, 1 March 2010
Conflicts in South-East Asia
This post introduces a series of articles looking into current conflicts in the South-East Asia region. Since this blog started, I have been trying not to just cover major conflicts, but also other conflicts which may be lower in profile. As usual, opswarfare will try to concentrate on the military aspects of the conflicts (and try to reduce politics to a minimum).
Followers of the opswarfare Twitter feed may have seen a tweet on the list of current conflicts in the region, based on data (PDF) from the Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP). The list is reproduced below
Followers of the opswarfare Twitter feed may have seen a tweet on the list of current conflicts in the region, based on data (PDF) from the Uppsala Conflict Data Program (UCDP). The list is reproduced below
- Myanmar vs Karen National Union (KNU)
- Myanmar vs Shan (SSA-S)
- Philippines vs Communist Party of the Philippines (and it's military wing, the New People's Army)
- Philippines vs Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF)
- Thailand vs Patani insurgents
Next post will be Myanmar vs Karen National Union (KNU).
p.s. I have not posted in 2 months. Apologies for the delay.
p.p.s I have just borrowed a book from the library called "Conflict - Journeys Through War and Terror in Southeast Asia" by Nelson Rand. Quite apt for this series of articles that I'm embarking on...
Tuesday, 29 December 2009
European Security and Defence Policy
opswarfare came across an European Union (EU) website a while ago which offered to mail some of its hardcopy publications to anywhere worldwide. Well, they appeared in the mailbox today.
The European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP) is something like the military "face" of the EU, taking up peacekeeping missions in Europe, but also in other areas like Africa and Asia.
2 interesting initiatives spotted in the ESDP newsletter. (Summer 2009 edition)
EUPOL Afghanistan
Regular readers will note opswarfare's earlier comments on using policing techniques (as compared to military tactics) on the situation in Afghanistan. It is therefore heartening to see the EUPOL mission, specifically training the Afghan government forces on police, law enforcement, and justice issues.
EU Satellite Center
The availability of satellite assets provides a force-multiplier effect, allowing increased intel and also more accurate maps. It can also be used to record physical changes to the terrain, which will be useful for battle-damage assessment, and early-warning initiatives.
p.s. the link to the free publications webpage can be found here.
The European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP) is something like the military "face" of the EU, taking up peacekeeping missions in Europe, but also in other areas like Africa and Asia.
2 interesting initiatives spotted in the ESDP newsletter. (Summer 2009 edition)
EUPOL Afghanistan
Regular readers will note opswarfare's earlier comments on using policing techniques (as compared to military tactics) on the situation in Afghanistan. It is therefore heartening to see the EUPOL mission, specifically training the Afghan government forces on police, law enforcement, and justice issues.
EU Satellite Center
The availability of satellite assets provides a force-multiplier effect, allowing increased intel and also more accurate maps. It can also be used to record physical changes to the terrain, which will be useful for battle-damage assessment, and early-warning initiatives.
p.s. the link to the free publications webpage can be found here.
Friday, 4 December 2009
(Organisational) Culture and Carnage
Kings of War
A great discussion going on at the King's College London, Department of War Studies blog. As someone who is interested in military operations, and yet a supporter of human rights, this topic is right up my alley :)
Postscript
By accident, I stumbled upon the U.C. Berkeley War Crimes Studies Center. It documents many war crimes, going into detail in each case, explaining what happened, and how the Court came to its conclusion. Interestingly, I found the webpage after searching for "Singapore" on the HuriSearch website. It seems that some Japanese war crimes were on trial in Singapore after WWII.
A great discussion going on at the King's College London, Department of War Studies blog. As someone who is interested in military operations, and yet a supporter of human rights, this topic is right up my alley :)
Postscript
By accident, I stumbled upon the U.C. Berkeley War Crimes Studies Center. It documents many war crimes, going into detail in each case, explaining what happened, and how the Court came to its conclusion. Interestingly, I found the webpage after searching for "Singapore" on the HuriSearch website. It seems that some Japanese war crimes were on trial in Singapore after WWII.
Monday, 19 October 2009
The lines between the Police and the Armed Forces get blurrier
It's been happening for quite a while already.
The Police looked mainly looked at issues within the country, and concentrate on smaller groups like companies, individuals, etc.
The Armed Forces mainly looked at issues outside the country, and dealt with countries and states.
But look at the threats facing countries now. International terrorism, transnational piracy, internet crimes, etc.
Generally, the armed forces are "infringing" into policing duties, more so than the other way round. This has significant consequences on the threats above. opswarfare's personal view is that a policing mindset is more suitable for such threats.
The concepts of counter-insurgency sound more similar to a police force, than an army. Instead of using new methods to counter terrorists, perhaps using different tools can also be considered.
The Police looked mainly looked at issues within the country, and concentrate on smaller groups like companies, individuals, etc.
The Armed Forces mainly looked at issues outside the country, and dealt with countries and states.
But look at the threats facing countries now. International terrorism, transnational piracy, internet crimes, etc.
Generally, the armed forces are "infringing" into policing duties, more so than the other way round. This has significant consequences on the threats above. opswarfare's personal view is that a policing mindset is more suitable for such threats.
The concepts of counter-insurgency sound more similar to a police force, than an army. Instead of using new methods to counter terrorists, perhaps using different tools can also be considered.
Thursday, 15 October 2009
Upping the ante via multiple attacks
NYT
The militants are taking the initiative by bringing the fight to the urban areas, and deliberately targeting defence/security locations. They then up the ante by conducting multiple concurrent attacks. Sadly, it is all working for them, and the Pakistani armed forces are clearly struggling. Spillover effects are likely in neighbouring Afghanistan.
The militants are taking the initiative by bringing the fight to the urban areas, and deliberately targeting defence/security locations. They then up the ante by conducting multiple concurrent attacks. Sadly, it is all working for them, and the Pakistani armed forces are clearly struggling. Spillover effects are likely in neighbouring Afghanistan.
Saturday, 10 October 2009
Pakistan gunmen 'take hostages'
BBC NEWS
The attack (and subsequent hostage taking) on the Pakistan military headquarters indicates a new tactic to spread fear among the population. It also showcases a deliberate attempt to select prominent targets which will attract media coverage. This attack follows another recent attack on United Nations (UN) offices in Islamabad on 5th October 2009. The security situation in the AfPak region deteriorates while the world remains unsure of how to resolve this dilemma.
Note: It's strange to see a deliberate refocus by opswarfare be overtaken by world events. opswarfare continues to collect open-source information on the situation in Mindanao and southern Thailand, but will not hesitate to highlight pertinent military issues.
The attack (and subsequent hostage taking) on the Pakistan military headquarters indicates a new tactic to spread fear among the population. It also showcases a deliberate attempt to select prominent targets which will attract media coverage. This attack follows another recent attack on United Nations (UN) offices in Islamabad on 5th October 2009. The security situation in the AfPak region deteriorates while the world remains unsure of how to resolve this dilemma.
Note: It's strange to see a deliberate refocus by opswarfare be overtaken by world events. opswarfare continues to collect open-source information on the situation in Mindanao and southern Thailand, but will not hesitate to highlight pertinent military issues.
Tuesday, 6 October 2009
PBS Frontline - Obama's War
Just watching the first 5 minutes was enough to make my eyes water. Even though opswarfare has previously stated a desire to look beyond the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, it is tough to ignore the 600-pound gorilla in the room...
Saturday, 26 September 2009
Upcoming changes to the blog
First up, apologies for the drop in blogging rate at opswarfare. I have been busy, but have in the meantime introduced some new content (besides blog posts).
Readers may have noticed the recent inclusion of Twitter feeds, and an app that shows visitor stats. Both have been useful (in my view), but for the Twitter feed specifically, I felt that it was indirectly reducing my blogging rate, as I realised that I leaned towards Twitter for a quick blurb instead of a careful considered blog post on several occasions. I'm still reviewing whether I should continue with the Twitter posts.
A Change in focus
Since the very beginning, opswarfare has consciously avoided a US-centric focus, because not everything revolves around them. On hindsight, this has been a good decision, as it "forced" me to look beyond the usual US-centric military news (e.g. Iraq, Afghanistan, or major US weapons) but to look for more "leftfield" news.
I have now decided to further modify opswarfare's focus to concentrate on regional issues in Asia and South-East Asia. Frankly, the milblogs of Ares, Kings of War, and The Dew Line, etc are great at what they do, and opswarfare does not want to replicate their good work. Also, many regional military news are being under-reported. Examples include the tensions in Mindanao, southern Thailand, and Burma. opswarfare hopes to start off this new phase by looking at these 3 areas.
Readers may have noticed the recent inclusion of Twitter feeds, and an app that shows visitor stats. Both have been useful (in my view), but for the Twitter feed specifically, I felt that it was indirectly reducing my blogging rate, as I realised that I leaned towards Twitter for a quick blurb instead of a careful considered blog post on several occasions. I'm still reviewing whether I should continue with the Twitter posts.
A Change in focus
Since the very beginning, opswarfare has consciously avoided a US-centric focus, because not everything revolves around them. On hindsight, this has been a good decision, as it "forced" me to look beyond the usual US-centric military news (e.g. Iraq, Afghanistan, or major US weapons) but to look for more "leftfield" news.
I have now decided to further modify opswarfare's focus to concentrate on regional issues in Asia and South-East Asia. Frankly, the milblogs of Ares, Kings of War, and The Dew Line, etc are great at what they do, and opswarfare does not want to replicate their good work. Also, many regional military news are being under-reported. Examples include the tensions in Mindanao, southern Thailand, and Burma. opswarfare hopes to start off this new phase by looking at these 3 areas.
Monday, 10 August 2009
Another small submarine in the market
Russia Increasing Surface Warship Fleet | AVIATION WEEK
Scroll down to the bottom of the linked page to see the P-650E.
After the SMX-23 and the 210Mod, this looks to be yet another small submarine for smaller nations (and first time buyers). A crew of 9 sounds unbelievable...
More info on the Piranya (Piranha) class of mini-subs here (PDF).
Scroll down to the bottom of the linked page to see the P-650E.
After the SMX-23 and the 210Mod, this looks to be yet another small submarine for smaller nations (and first time buyers). A crew of 9 sounds unbelievable...
More info on the Piranya (Piranha) class of mini-subs here (PDF).
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