Development Of Military Capabilities Research Articles

EU Policies for Developing Capabilities to Counter Hybrid Threats

"Combating hybrid threats is one of the main dimensions of the European Union’s policies expressed in the recently developed document, called “A Strategic Compass for Security and Defence”, which guides the development of the Union’s capabilities in the field of international security. The new document entails combining the tools developed since 2016 to combat hybrid threats in an “EU Hybrid Toolbox”, which will also include new tools and modes of action. While the primary responsibility for countering hostile hybrid activity will continue to lie with member states, the EU aims to have a greater capacity to support and coordinate in order to prevent and respond adequately to new threats. The EU’s approach focuses on non-military aspects and on the development of military capabilities to respond to hybrid crises, an aspect that implies increasing the importance of cooperation with NATO in this field."

Politicile Uniunii Europene pentru dezvoltarea capacităților de contracarare a amenințărilor hibride

"Combating hybrid threats is one of the main dimensions of the European Union’s policies expressed in the recently developed document, called “A Strategic Compass for Security and Defence”, which guides the development of the Union’s capabilities in the field of international security. The new document entails combining the tools developed since 2016 to combat hybrid threats in an “EU Hybrid Toolbox”, which will also include new tools and modes of action. While the primary responsibility for countering hostile hybrid activity will continue to lie with member states, the EU aims to have a greater capacity to support and coordinate in order to prevent and respond adequately to new threats. The EU’s approach focuses on non-military aspects and on the development of military capabilities to respond to hybrid crises, an aspect that implies increasing the importance of cooperation with NATO in this field."

Strategic Compass as a new Impetus for European Defense

A few months before the COVID-19 pandemic, European politicians and experts had tried to answer two fundamental questions: is it possible to transform the European Union into a Security and Defense Union? The other one was: is the Union able to generate a program that will become a signpost for a more dynamic development of European defense? The author of this article attempts to answer these questions while pointing to the need for closer defense integration, which is gaining new significance in Europe in the context of the drastic change in the international security environment over the past few years and months. The author discusses extensively the question of the possible emergence of a common military force of the European Union as integrated military units of the EU Member States within the “European army”. He draws attention to the importance of the Strategic Compass, which, in his opinion, may give new dynamics to defense cooperation within the EU, accelerate the development of military capabilities in Europe, strengthen NATO’s deterrence and defense potential, and reduce tensions in transatlantic relations.

Multi-dimensional assessment of the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War

This article contains an assessment of the last war in the Southern Caucasus, referring to it as the second Nagorno–Karabakh war. The assessment is concentrated on the military capabilities built up prior to the major escalation of this war and operational features identified during the battles. The assessment uses analytic categories of processed information and initiatives that sovereign actors took during decision cycles and the conduct of military campaigns. Those analytic categories are named dimensions, with the strategic and military dimensions being the most important for this analysis. The key findings of this article suggest that additional dimensions could be used in researching the complex conditions of the war, which might have a continuous impact even outside the Southern Caucasus. The review of initiatives at the strategic dimension suggested that the built-up of two competing security policy fractions in the South Caucasus was an influential factor. The assessment of the military dimension of that war provided insights regarding the tactical choices of both adversaries. That assessment revealed some significant differences in how the campaign was conducted on both sides. Further complex tensions in the region are expected as national political decisions will drive strategic choices and drive the development of military capabilities. Given the fact that both countries were short of a consensus-based peace deal and Russia sent in peacekeeping forces, further developments in the political and strategic dimensions of this war saga should be expected.

Военно-политическая обстановка в Арктике: очаги напряжённости и пути деэскалации

The article describes the politico-military situation in the Arctic, including the development of military capabilities of states in the region, the coastal infrastructure, the scales and the manner of military exercises, as well as the dynamics of the military landscape in the Arctic. The authors argue that the mili-tary capabilities in most parts of the Arctic remain moderate, primarily due to harsh climate restraints. However, military activity both of NATO member-states and Russia has increased considerably recently in the Euro-Arctic area adjacent to the North Atlantic, in particular in the waters of the Barents and the Nor-wegian seas. Mutual military deterrence in this area represents a "new old" normal that will shape the security situation in the Arctic in the long term. The article concludes by considering possible options for preventing escalation and minimizing the concerns of the sides by restoring a full, regular and institutionalized military dialogue between Russia and the rest of the Arctic states.

Does the method for Military Utility Assessment of Future Technologies provide utility?

The Military Utility Assessment of Future Technologies (MUAFT) method was developed as a cost-efficient alternative to methods such as NATO's Disruptive Technology Assessment Games, to be used as a part of the Swedish Armed Forces' long-term capability development process. The question addressed in this study is whether MUAFT can be considered to have validity in its context and thus if it has potential to be useful to other small to medium size states. The analysis was based on an operationalization of Clark's framework for science and technology intelligence analysis, combined with a military capability centric view of military utility. MUAFT reports from 2012 to 2018 were reviewed in terms of how they satisfy five key criteria. The study shows that MUAFT provides utility, if used by a suitably composed group of experts, who are aware of the method's limitations. The limitations mainly originate from a lack of explicit support for assessing the impact of forces for change, other than technological forces, on military capability development. The expert group serves as the synthesizing bridge between technology forecasts and military utility assessments. Therefore, comprehensive expertise is needed in various military technology specialisations, in the sponsor's military capabilities and in subjects necessary to master in order to assess other influential societal forces for change.

PESCO, CARD, EDF: Strategy, Analysis, and Financing in the European Union Security Guaratee

In the article the authors analyze the institutional basis for strengthening the EU security and the implementation of specific projects designed to expand cooperation between the Member States in the defence and security sectors. The point at issue is about Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO); the Coordinated Annual Review on Defence (CARD) and the European Defence Fund (EDF). The relevance of the comprehensive study of PESCO, CARD, EDF, which activities are aimed at ensuring the strategic component of cooperation, the analysis of the defence sector and funding priorities in the security sphere of the Union have been proved. The authors claim that PESCO has become a key strategic initiative of the EU, CARD allows coordinating the development of military capabilities in the Member States; the EDF was created to coordinate, increase investment and improve defence interoperability between EU member states. The challenges faced within the functioning of these initiatives have been analyzed. It is alleged that a key challenge for the CARD is the unwillingness of Member countries to share national defence plans, as well as the available and potential coordination and harmonization of defence planning within NATO’s Defence Planning. The peculiarities of specific projects financed within the European Defense Fund (“Ocean 2020”, “Eurodrone”, “SPIDER”, “EuroSWARM”, “TRAWA”, “ACAMSII”, “Gossra”, “Vestlife”) have been analyzed. There is continued progress in the field of the EU security and defence: numerous defence projects have been initiated under PESCO; there is a synchronization of defence planning through the CARD; the investments in defence are stimulated by financing the defence research projects through the EDF, the improving military mobility is continuing; coordination of the EU-NATO cooperation is improving, etc.

VPLIV RAZVOJA UMETNE INTELIGENCE NA NACIONALNO VARNOST

The development of artificial intelligence will have a significant impact on international security and the use of a military instrument of power. One of the most important tasks for national security professionals and decision makers is thus to prepare for the repercussions of artificial intelligence development. In the development of military capabilities, artificial intelligence is integrated into intelligence, observation, control and reconnaissance applications, as well as into logistics, cyber operations, information operations, command and control systems, semi-autonomous and autonomous vehicles, and lethal autonomous weapon systems. The artificial intelligence revolution is not going to happen tomorrow. Therefore, pre-prepared policies and the knowledge shared by policy- and decision makers can help us manage the unknowns ahead. Ključne besede Artificial intelligence, national security, military instrument of power, military capabilities, decision-makers

Bucking the Trend: The UAE and the Development of Military Capabilities in the Arab World

The literature examining national militaries in the Arab world paints a near-universally bleak picture of their capabilities. Some argue issues rooted in “Arab culture”—so-called essentialist rationales—fatally undermine military effectiveness. Others assert that regime security concerns encourage leaders to actively politicize, coup-proof, and consequently weaken their military. This article challenges these literatures by demonstrating that United Arab Emirates (UAE) forces have repeatedly exemplified unusual levels of military effectiveness and sophistication in hostile campaigns. Using approaches from public policy studies (the Advocacy Coalition Framework), this paper investigates how the UAE military bucked the trend. The 1990 invasion of Kuwait was a “focusing event” that prompted a rethink of existing approaches. Catalyzed, a key “policy entrepreneur,” Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, changed approaches to training, unified federal militaries, and tested forces in challenging operations. Such findings undercut lingering essentialist critiques of Arab militaries, provide a potential pathway for other states to emulate, demonstrate that secure and motivated leaders can overcome coup-proofing concerns, and showcase the fruitful pollination of methodologies from public policy to security studies.

SLOVENSKA VOJSKA 15 LET PO VSTOPU REPUBLIKE SLOVENIJE V NATO

Abstract The Republic of Slovenia has been a NATO member for 15 years. Its NATO membership has significantly contributed to the quality development of the Slovenian Armed Forces (SAF), which has made a contribution to international security by taking part in international operations and missions. Before and after joining NATO, the SAF has adapted and transformed in view of the newly created settings and security challenges in a way to respond to them effectively. It has participated in and organized multinational military exercises, and has been operating within NATO representations, commands and units. NATO's deterrence posture strengthens the Alliance and requires an effective response to new sources of threat. The security environment is changing rapidly with hybrid and cyber threats becoming increasingly dangerous. NATO's long-term adaptation process requires members to respond to all potential sources of threat with a 360-degree approach. The Republic of Slovenia is also actively involved in the Smart Defence project, the Connected Forces Initiative and the Framework Nations Concept. The years-long decline in the defence budget has been reversed, which can, in the upcoming years, have a positive impact on the development of military capabilities for national needs and for the needs of the Alliance. For the Republic of Slovenia, NATO membership is still the most effective and rational solution to ensure its national security; however, the nation should lend solidarity by taking its share of the burden. Key words NATO, Slovenian Armed Forces, military capabilities, deterrence posture, adaptation.

Influence of intellectual property rights influence on the defense capacity of the state

The violation of intellectual property rights in the defense sphere and its influence on the state defense capacity is consid­ered. The legislation of Ukraine regulating activities related to the development of ar­maments and military equipment, as well as the performance of international mili­tary and technical cooperation, regarding the intellectual property protection, is ana­lyzed. The necessity of the legislation improvement on the regulation of intellectual property protection issues in the defense sphere is noted.The development of military capabilities in the context of Ukraine’s defense capac­ity, to a large extent, depends on the equipment of the Armed Forces of Ukraine with modern weapons and military equipment, which is created on the basis of intellectual property rights objects (hereinafter — IPR objects). The more complex a weapons and military equipment, the more IPR objects are used, which may belong to different subjects of intellectual property rights. Unlawful use of these IPR objects or other vio­lations of intellectual property rights may lead not only to significant financial losses, but also to the loss of IPR objects themselves or to the prohibition of the use of weapons, which will negatively affect the defense capacity of the state.However, the experience has shown that the issues of intellectual property protec­tion, especially in the defense sector, are not fully regulated, so many violations of intel­lectual property rights occur at each stage of the development of weapons and military equipment. These violations cause not only the mental and material losses of the au­thors of IPR objects and patent holders, but also affect the defense capacity of the state.

The Influence of the Operational Environment on the Process of Planning Military Actions

Abstract The international security environment is constantly changing. Ensuring the success of the fight against the new threats can be achieved by understanding the operational environment that is becoming increasingly more complex in the context of the profound changes in the political, social and economic environment of the past decade and of the advanced technologies that create new challenges for all forces with responsibilities in the field of national defense and security, regional and global. The trends in the current operational environment, based on the analysis of the conflicts of the last decades, lead to a new approach to the development of military capabilities, the process of planning, organizing and conducting military actions, the ways of achieving victory in the new conditions imposed by the realities of the battlefield.

Používané přístupy k tvorbě scénářů

The article deals with the issue of methodological approach to scenario development. This paper describes the methods and techniques used in scenarios development both in civilian sphere and within NATO and the EU, with an emphasis on their role in the military capability development process of the armed forces. The article defines the usual scenario construction process and describes the location and differences of generic and specific planning situations. In addition, the principles necessary to create quality scenarios are described here. The conclusion of the article deals with proposals focused on the elaboration of a methodology for scenario building in the Czech Armed Forces as part of the project "Strategic Alternatives to the Construction and Development of the Czech Armed Forces", which is being elaborated at the Center for Security and Military and Strategic Studies of the University of Defense in Brno.

Planning Economic Contributions and Resource Allocation for Military Capability Development – The Case of Romania –

Abstract The Wales Summit in 2014 has meant a shift in paradigm in terms of defense expenditures for NATO member states. This was the case not just because of the general consensus that at least 2 % of the national GDP would be spent on defense, but also because another stipulation was that from that 2 %, at least 20 % would go on equipment acquisition and procurement. With new requirements on expenditures new strategies for defense planning have been implementing. Connecting contributions to capabilities through resource management is a new challenge for MoDs of NATO Members States. It is the aim of this paper to analyze how the Romanian national MoND has developed its own capabilities since 2014 and how the options for the years to come look in terms of defense spending, defense planning and resource allocation

Nato-Eu Cooperation

Abstract The current security situation is marked an increasing competition for power at global scale, the use of power politics, and the growth of the influence of the non-state actors in a changed resource and demographic landscape. NATO and EU seem to be out of sync with the developments in the world, situation which puts their very existence into questioning. However, a closer look shows that both organisations have displayed a very high degree of versatility, re-inventing themselves to adapt to the changing environment, and surviving all the evolution so far, while other peer organisations have become history. Therefore, the main question is whether NATO and EU will overcome the existing and future challenges and continue the current positive trend in their cooperation? When considering the common history, the trend and the most recent evolutions, one can only draw a positive answer. The most significant areas of recent cooperation which indicate a definite positive trend are the adaptation of the NATO Command Structure, the development of military capabilities, and the definition of the cyberspace as an operational domain

Prioritization Methodology for Development of Required Operational Capabilities

This paper presents the main methodological issues related to the prioritization of Required Operational Capabilities (ROCs) of the Bulgarian Armed Forces (BAF). It is specifically orientated to the achievement of nearly-to-the-real results in the development of military capabilities corresponding to the national and coalition, political and strategic requirements. An approach is proposed in this paper based on experts opinion and analytical methods for a generic and flexible support of the decision-making that can be used in the effective defense management. This methodology seeks to identify the ROCs that are necessary to be developed in order to address the mission s achievement. These are the ROCs with greatest potential to improve Alliance mission effectiveness and interoperability in the near, mid-and long-term future.

Why is there no Joint European Remotely Piloted Aircraft System Project under the Common Security and Defence Policy?

The European Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) has often been a paper tiger lacking the required tools to translate the EU’s goals and objectives into action on the ground. At the core of this problem is an enduring expectations–capabilities gap rooted in the meagre results of joint military capability development of CSDP member states. Many actors in the field, who work under conditions of hierarchical interaction favouring nation states over other actors, hamper the execution of joint projects. Those planned are jeopardised by a lack of shared strategic culture. Christian Küsters argues that a functioning European defence and technological industrial base is essential to underpin the CSDP.

THE SUBSTANTIATION OF DIRECTIONS OF DEVELOPMENT OF MILITARY POTENTIAL OF RUSSIA

We proposed a systematic approach to the substantiation of directions of development of military capabilities, its basic components (the armed forces and the military-industrial complex) and elements. Refined methodological framework and tools for assessing the armed forces and the military-industrial complex ofRussia. In the model assessing the military capabilities of the used indicators of the contribution of military-technical potential in its development. This allows to determine the growth of the military potential at the expense of the results of operations of the military-industrial complex. For example, electronic warfare systems developed by the tools of justification among rational elements of the military-technical potential. The implementation considers the methodological foundations and tools in practice will increase the optimal linking of tasks of military development with the objectives of development of the military-industrial complex ofRussiaand, consequently, the level of national security.

Zaangażowanie Polski w misje wojskowe Unii Europejskiej w Afryce w drugiej dekadzie XXI wieku

This paper is dedicated to the involvement of Poland in the European Union’s military operations in Africa in the 2010s. The development of military capabilities is not one of the European Union’s priorities. Nevertheless, the EU is an active participant of the international communities’ efforts to aid African states, including the use of armed forces. The vast majority of such EU missions have been undertaken in Africa. Despite the fact that this region is not a priority of Poland’s foreign and security policies, Poland has actively participated in such actions, primarily due to the peculiarities of contemporary security threats and Poland’s approach to the process of European integration. However, after initial experiences, Poland limited its involvement, due to the limited impact on the achievement of national objectives related to the EU Common Security and Defence Policy. This has been reflected in both official documents and political practice associated with deploying troops on foreign soil. The author sets forth a thesis that these limitations are too substantial, and that there are reasons for greater Polish involvement in the European Union’s military missions.

REPUBLIC OF SLOVENIA IN NATO – SLOVENIAN ARMED FORCES TEN YEARS LATER

The Republic of Slovenia has now been a member of NATO for ten years, and the membership has significantly contributed to the development of the Slovenian Armed Forces (SAF) which has gained international recognition. By participating in international operations and missions, the SAF also contributes to international security. Since the time of its formation, it has been transforming and adapting to new realities and contemporary security challenges, effectively utilizing the available human and material resources in order to provide the necessary military capabilities. It participates in international military exercises and operates in NATO and EU bodies and commands. Both in NATO and the Slovenian Armed Forces, interconnected transformation processes are currently under way. Some solutions that aim to deliver and develop the necessary military capabilities are being provided through participation in Smart Defence projects, the Connected Forces Initiative and the Framework Nations Concept. In recent years, the SAF has been faced with the continuous reduction of financial resources, which hinders the development of military capabilities. In the future, due to the defence budget reductions, it will be necessary to think about the scope and structure of the SAF and provide stable funding.