Effects Based Approaches To Operations

Distributed by the Government of Canada Depository Services Program.

The author examines the extent to which the United Kingdom (UK) has transitioned to effects-based operations to ascertain: (1) Areas where the U.S. Army could draw lessons from UK policies; (2) Areas where the U.S. Army and the British Ministry of Defence could develop integrated or complementary approaches and doctrines towards transformation for future alliance/coalition operations; and (3) Implications for the U.S. Army for working with the UK. This monograph is subdivided into four parts. Section 1 is a review of the evolution of British defence policy since the end of the Cold War and evaluates the degree to which it has adopted an effects based approach. Section 2 examines the British operational experience since the end of the Cold War including an analysis of the lessons learned and its experiences of working with allies. Section 3 analyses the UK's capability development through its doctrine and acquisition strategies. Section 4 evaluates the implications of these findings for the U.S. Army and makes 17 main recommendations.

The inherent difficulty in developing and executing military courses of action to achieve the desired end-state comes from the complexities of the operational environment. Each environment contains within it different initial conditions that affect the nature of military operations with relationships that are as complex as they are numerous. This means that a similar course of action executed in a similar manner in one environment may not produce similar effects in another. This occurs due to the nature of those initial conditions, and how they alter the effects produced within that operational environment. The Effects-Based Board (EBB) seeks to provide clarity to an otherwise convoluted system of relationships by supporting the Combatant Command, and their joint staff, with a board of professional military and civilian personnel whose collective knowledge can help shape course of action development. Subject matter experts and liaisons from the Department of Defense, Department of State, national intelligence agencies, intergovernmental/non-governmental organizations, and foreign nations make up the membership of the board, and through their guidance can shape the development and execution of deliberate and crisis action plans. Identifying the initial conditions, determining the effects of their linkages, and creating courses of action that target those links in order to shape them can, in due course, shape the operational environment towards the desired end-state.

Outside the United States, the United Kingdom (UK) has led the way in seeking to transform its military forces to meet the new strategic context in which it finds itself. Like so many of its counterparts, it has sought to do this within a defense budget that has continued to decline as a percentage of gross domestic product. This has meant a series of changes to the traditional approach to defense that have gone much further than the United States and many of its European counterparts. In essence, for good or ill, the UK has pushed ahead with changes toareas such as the use of contractors, both at home and on the battlefield; acquisition reform involving leasing and Public- Private Partnerships; the disposal of surplus defense real estate; and the role of sponsored reserves. As the same time, a considerable amount of attention has been given to how operations are conducted. As part of this process, the UK's Ministry of Defence and Armed Forces have officially sought to adopt an effects-based approach to operations within the context of an overall "comprehensive approach" that brings together the various organs of government. For the United States, the UK's approach to military operations is important for a number of reasons. First, the UK frequently engages in a variety of similar type operations from which there are lessons that may be applicable to the United States either now or in the future, such as counterinsurgency in Northern Ireland or nation-building in Sierra Leone. Moreover, a number of authors have argued that there is a distinctly "British way in warfare" which is particularly suited to such unconventional operations. Second, since the United Kingdom is one of the United States' closest allies, the UK armed forces are frequently engaged in operations in partnership with the United States. These have ranged recently from the Balkans to Afghanistan to Iraq. In fact, the only noticeable time the British were not involved in a U.S.-led operation since the end of the Cold War was in Somalia. The vast majority of these operations have involved sizable British commitments and a close integration of the British military in all the stages from planning through to nation-building. Interest in future British policy was most recently evident in the debate surrounding the transition of power from Prime Minister Tony Blair to Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Third, the UK is a member of various military alliances, coalitions, and partnerships which place it in a strong position to influence how others conduct operations. These include the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO); the European Union (EU); America, Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand (ABCA); the Five Power Pact in the Pacific; and the Commonwealth. In the case of NATO, it was General David Richards, the commander of the largely British Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC)headquarters, who deployed to Afghanistan in 2006 and oversaw the expansion of NATO's role, including, for the first time since the end of World War II, leading a significant U.S. contingent. This monograph therefore seeks to examine the extent to which the UK has transitioned to effects-based operations to ascertain (1) areas where the U.S. Army could draw lessons from UK policies; (2) areas where the U.S. Army and the British Ministry of Defence could develop integrated or complementary approaches and doctrines towards transformation for future alliance/ coalition operations; and (3) implications for the U.S. Army for working with the UK. This monograph has been subdivided into four parts. Section 1 undertakes a review of the evolution of British defense policy since the end of the Cold War and evaluates the degree to which it has adopted an effects-based approach. Section 2 examines the British operational experience since the end of the Cold War, including an analysis of the lessons learned and its experiences in working with allies.

Effects-based operations (EBO) are defined for thismonograph as operations conceived and planned in a systems framework thatconsiders the full range of direct, indirect, and cascading effects

Originally published in 1976, Clausewitz and the State presents a comprehensive analysis of one of the significant thinkers of modern Europe. Peter Paret combines social and military history and psychological interpretation with a study of Clausewitz's military theories and of his unduly neglected historical and political writing. This timely new edition includes a preface which allows Paret to recount the past thirty years of discussion on Clausewitz and respond to critics. A companion volume to Clausewitz's On War, this book is indispensable to anyone interested in Clausewitz and his theories, and their proper historical context.