Page 31 - NAVAL SCIENCE 3 TEXTBOOK

36 NAVA L KNOWLEDGE

Capabilities means the ability of a sl.lle 10 satisfy its objectives them) must be taken in order to I1lnke best usc of the available
or to slop others from threlltenillg it~ill pellce IlS well as in war. resources, be they economic. milit<lr),. or other. '10 do this intelli-
TheY;:1re the Slim total of J1lltional power: political. mililllry. eco- gentl)', the plmiller must be well informed and nlert to (til)' possible
nomic, social. scientific. technological, psychological. moral, Ilnd negative efitxts on the overall grand strategy.
geographic. Capabilities are only useful when combined with the
meallS of applying that power eftectively.
Principles of War
lI/tellfiollS concern a state's determination to execute cer-
tain plnl1s. Intentions are subjecti,'e and often easily concealed. If allllleasures short of war 1~1i1. <lnd wnr comes, there Ilre certain
They nre shnped by interests, objectives. policies. principles, and principles that have evolved over the centuries that govern Wilr-
commitments, many of which may be unknown to outsiders. fighting stmtegy and tactics. The}! have been used b)' all sllccess-
Determining the intentions of a potential adversnry is extremely ful military cOlllmanders. both (nmous ,md infill110us. since bib-
difllcliit. An adversa ry's probable course of action, however, Illust lical times. including Hannibal. Julius Caesar, Napoleon, Lord
;:llw;\)'s be considered in determining onc's own best strlltegy. A Nelson. Grant, Eisenhower, Nimitz, and Schw<lrlkopf. to name just
rule of thumb is generally applied: the best indication of intentions "few.lakcn together. these ore c"lied the prillciples ofll'lIr. The)' are
is nut what people say, but rather what they do. as follows:
Vllillerabilities me the weaknesses of a nation, which, if struck
Define the objective. Evcf)' militaql operation should be
by Ilily Ilction or means. will reduce the war potential, combll! dice-
directed toward a c1enrly defined. decisive. and attainable
tiveness. or nationlll will of that nation. Nations' vulnerabilities dif-
objective. ''''hether the objective is destro)'ing an enemy's
fer: they Ill<ly include the e<lse of interdiction of key trnnsportntion
<lnned forces or merel), disrupting the <lbilit)' to use forces
routes, the vulner<lbility of major industrial centers, dependence
eA-rctively, the most significant prepamtion <l commander can
0 11 overseas imports of r<lW materials or fuels, weak or unpopulilr
make is to express c1earl)' the objective of the operation to
governments, and so forth. The list is extensive.
subordinate commllndcrs.
The illfelligcllce process is used to gain the information ne(es-
Mass forces. Use strength against weakness. A force, even one
sary to make estimates of the situation or threat th<lt might t~lCe a
smaller than ils <ldversary. call nchieve decisive rcsults when it
nntion. Ontn concerning capabilities. intentions. <lnd vulnernbili-
cuncentmtes or focuses its assets 0 11 defeating <In enemy's crit-
ties must flow in a never-ending stream to intelligence speci<llists.
iC1l1 vulnerability.
who Illust process. all<llrLe, and evaluate this information.
They arrive at iflfclligcllce estimates th<lt are provided to the Maneuver. PI<lce <In enem), in a position of dis<ldvantage
decision-making lellders. This evalullted, integmted, <lnd inter- through the use of speed and agility to gaiu ,.111 advant<lge in
preted information required for the development of national sccu- time and space relative to the enemy's vulnerabilities.
rity objectives, policies. and plmls is called strategic intelligence. Take the offensive. Seize, retain, and exploit the initilltive.
The purpose of estimates is to forecast intentions. The stratc- OA-ensive action allows the commander to set the terms and
gic intelligence specialist has a greater chance for success than does select the place of confrontntion. exploit vulnerabilities, and
the combat intelligence officer. since the fonner h<ls more time to seize opportunities from ullexpected developments.
study and re<lch conclusions concerning enemy cnp<lbilities, h<lb- Economize force. Emplo)1 all comb<lt power available in the
its. and vulnernbilities. Estimating intentions. however, is a dllnger- most eftective wa), possible; minimize (om bat power spent on
ous occupation. It is so because no one can positively determine secondary targets. A successfully coordinated strike at an ene-
what ilCtlJ<lll}' is in the minds of potential enemy le;:ldefs. Wide m)" s critical vulnembility can have far morc significance than
background knowledge, wisdom, experience, and judgment arc an attempt to attack all vulnerabilities <It once.
nccessaq', and e\'ell then the strategist must recognize that the best
Achieve unity of command. Ensure coordinllted effort for every
intelligence estimators arc subject to error because they <lre human.
objective under one responsible commander. \"'hether the
Thrent evaluation is <l difficult and vital process. but one 011 which
responsibility involves a single independent unit or 11 complete
every government and nation is dependent for survivnl.
battle force, unity of command is achieved b)' assigning a sin-
The strntegic pl<lnner must <lssess the degree of risk associ-
gle commander at every level of coml1land.
ated wilh v<lfious possible courses of action that could be 1'1ken to
Maintain simplicity. Avoid unnecess<lry complexit)1 in pre-
achieve national objectives. This mellns, simply, the probability of
paring. planning. and conducting military opemtions. The
Sll(cess of a course of Ilction versus the stakes. The degree of risk is
implementing orders lo r some of the most influential naval
almost entirely .. 1 1ll.1Uer of judgment. Defeat and failure can resuit
bllttles ever fought have been little more than a pamgraph.
from miscalculations such as overrating one's OWI1 capabilities or
Broad guidance, mther thall deti1iled <l nd ilwolved instruc-
lIndermting those of the opposition. Sometimes unavoidable en/-
tions. promotes flexibility ;:md simplicity. Simple plans and
cII/flter/ risks (actions having some degree of risk associated with