Breaking an enemy’s morale until their ability to resist crumbles is how you win a war. The US military used the “shock and awe” tactics in Iraq, between 20 March to 1 May 2003, displaying overwhelming power while employing superior technology and information. The “Shock and awe” is a new phrase for an old strategy.
“Let your intentions be as dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt,” – Sun Tzu wrote in his book The Art of War, between 475 and 221 B.C.
Today, we are emerging from a period of strategic apathy, cognizant that our military competitiveness is diminishing. We are witnessing a rise in global disorder, marked by a deterioration of the long-standing rules-based international order, resulting in a security environment that is more complicated and volatile than any we have seen in recent memory.
The fundamental worry in the world and Nigeria in particular is defending its citizens and territory, both from internal and external attacks. China for example is a strategic rival that employs predatory economics to threaten its neighbours while militarizing South China Sea characteristics. In 2015, Russia issued a warning against illegal border crossings, particularly by immigrants, after there were about 29 attempts from Murmansk and Karelia to trespass the barbed wire fence leading to Norway and Finland. Large Russian military movements towards the eastern Ukraine border and into Crimea, which Russian forces annexed from Ukraine in March 2014, were reported in 2021. Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin, stated that sending troops beyond Russian territory was an “internal matter”. Mr Peskov, on the other hand, accused Ukraine of staging “provocations.”
The Taliban have swept to victory in Afghanistan after 20 years of fighting. On August 15, the group concluded their astonishingly quick assault across the country by taking Kabul. It comes two decades after US forces ousted the insurgents from power in 2001, and two decades after foreign forces announced their pullout following a deal between the US and the Taliban. Thousands of people have been killed and millions have been displaced as a result of the violence. Iran continues to create unrest and is the Middle East’s most serious threat to stability. Despite the destruction of ISIS’ physical caliphate, terrorist groups with a vast reach continue to slaughter innocent people and pose a threat to global peace.
Proxy and civil wars, as well as confrontations, will continue to thrive. The world has already survived the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, the 1983 Soviet false alarm, and the 1995 Norwegian Black Brant nuclear weapons scare. Our luck may eventually run out, and when it does, cities will almost certainly be ground zero. According to the United Nations, the world’s urban population has increased from 746 million in 1950 to 4.2 billion in 2018 (these figures are expected to increase by another 2.5 billion by 2050). Dominating a country has evolved into dominating its populous centres.
This Still Begs The Question, Would Increasing Military Technology Make Us Safer?
The Department of Defense’s discretionary budget power for Fiscal Year 2021 (FY2021) is approximately $705.39 billion ($705,390,000,000). The entire defense budget for FY2021 is $753.5 billion, which includes mandatory spending of $10.77 billion, Department of Energy spending of $37.335 billion, and defense-related spending of $37.335 billion. Defence contractors, university labs, and small tech start-ups with great goals are developing the next generation of weaponry to outgun the old and explore new findings in science and security. They’re there to guard, defend, and win, not to impress war tech nerds. Some work in the air, while others operate on the ground or the water, and yet others work in space. They are a reflection of the world’s top engineers and scientists creativity, curiosity, and dedication. To be sure, technology is rapidly advancing in a variety of fields. But exuberantly waving one’s arms about futuristic military prospects isn’t enough. The stakes are excessively high. Defence resource selections must be based on a detailed study that breaks down and analyses each category of key military-technical invention and innovation.
New Military Technologies That May Help Keep Us Safer
1. Bullets That Steer Themselves: A 50-caliber bulletin development, packed with small sensors, can alter direction quickly in midair, potentially providing even a mediocre shooter sniperlike accuracy and the ability to hit moving targets with ease. Plus, while the cost of these improved rounds is unknown, they will almost certainly be less expensive than the rocket-propelled missiles that they could occasionally replace.
2. The Unmanned Submarine Hunter: Increasingly, governments are deploying ultra-quiet submarines that can operate near to land without being noticed. Defence authorities are concerned about this possibility and are turning to the Anti-Submarine Warfare Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel (ACTUV), also known as Sea Hunter. Consider it a water-based drone capable of hunting submarines for months at a time without requiring anyone to change watches, at least aboard the ship. The ACTUV, which will be equipped with sonar, radar, and other synthetic vision systems, will be able to navigate confined canals and maritime traffic on its own.
3. In The United States, Hypersonic Missiles Are Getting More Maneuverable And Faster: Hypersonic missiles are the supreme first-strike weapon. Ballistic missile interceptors are nearly impossible to catch because they travel at five times the speed of sound or faster. And transparent reporting suggests that Russia and China are further along than the United States. DARPA, on the other hand, is aiming to change that with a request for novel materials that can endure the forces at Mach 5, particularly the tremendous heat generated by air friction. That would be a breakthrough for the United States, and it may allow the country to leapfrog its competitors.
4. More Self-piloted Aircraft, Particularly Army Helicopters: Every few months, a new drone appears on the civilian market, and drone concepts appear every few weeks. The Army, on the other hand, is working on a package that could revolutionize military aviation: a software and hardware suite that could turn every Black Hawk and other helicopters into a remotely controlled drone. They can even choose their landing zones and fly at low altitudes, often outperforming human pilots.
5. Destroyers Of The Zumwalt Class: This multi-role battleship with stealth capabilities, despite its appearance, is a lunatic submarine. This destroyer’s low radar cross-section and wave-piercing hull, along with a variety of other technology, make it significantly less susceptible to hostile radar detection than comparable equivalents. The Zumwalt Class Destroyer is the most expensive vessel of its kind, costing $9.6 billion in research and development. The destroyer’s radar profile is said to be identical to that of a fishing boat, making it 50 times harder to locate than normal destroyers.
The most crucial element, but also the most distinguishing and characterizing of the use of the military instrument, is the effective use of force. Experience reveals that military force has beyond its traditional duty of moderating levels of violence. A wide range of capabilities beyond traditional combat skills has proven to be extremely useful across the conflict resolution spectrum, particularly in the support, complement, or replacement of non-military capabilities.
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