ISSUE 150 : Sep/Oct - 2001 - Australian Defence Force Journal

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20AUSTRALIAN DEFENCE FORCE JOURNAL NO. 150 SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2001contingencies and protection methods. It isimportant that the cost of protection andcontingency does not out-weigh the warfightingadvantage gained, so any study of NEW mustbe followed by an equally rigorous study ofmetrics and measurables to be employed inorder to make meaningful comparisons.Measures of advantage are likely to becomposed of foundation elements and subelementsin coupled, federated and/or integratednetworks. These measures, alongside theanticipated cost of acquisition enable theresource allocation question to be approached.It is unclear whether the advantages of NEWwill be able to be met in a manner, cost effectiveto the ADO. However we suggest it is also notclear that the current migration path tocomplex, expensive platforms offers the bestapproach to forming a future force.We can suggest that as new technologiesenter the battlespace it would appear thatplatforms are becoming more visible and costly,while the munitions required to destroy themare becoming comparatively more costeffective. 4 At the same time networking andintegration of C4ISREW elements is becomingmore flexible, capable, accessible and costeffective.Network Enabled Warfare and the ADO: AStrategic OutlookAustralia's current strategic policyrecognises potential military roles for the ADFspanning a spectrum of conflict wide in scale,intensity and geographic diversity. 5 Currentlythis guidance broadly includes:• Defending of Australia (DA);• Contribution to the Security of theImmediate Neighbourhood (CSIN)• Strategic Wider Interests (SWI)• Peacetime National Interests (PNI)Although defeating attacks againstAustralia's territory (DA) remains the core forcestructure priority, decisions may be influencedby the ability of Australia's military forces toalso contribute to the task of defending regional(CSIN, SWI) and even global peacetimeinterests.Figure 1. Australia's area of regional strategic interest has a rich and extensivegeo-political diversity of a scale similar to Europe. 6
Regional InterestsAustralia's regional interests stem from oursupport to stabilising the local strategicenvironment and taking our positions with UNpeacekeeping operations. The size of our localregion and geo-political diversity can beconceptualised in Figure 1. This shows anoverlay of regional interests over a map ofEurope indicating that the area of immediatesecurity is extensive, volatile and will challengeAustralia's diplomatic skills and defensivecapabilities. Australia is currently serving inseveral UN-brokered peacekeeping zones, firstamong which is our role in East Timor.Joint OperationsThe concept of joint operations involvingcomponents of sea, air and land forces is wellestablished and is a key consideration in ourdefence capability development. Jointoperations form the cornerstone of ADF forcestructure and doctrine. Indeed many believethat a central tenet for NCW or NEW is therequirement of a much greater role for jointoperation. 7Self-Reliance and Coalition OperationsAustralia is dedicated to defend its territorywithout relying on the combat forces of othercountries. With self-reliance comes selfsufficiencywhere Australia can undertakeindependent military action with capabilitiesthat can be sourced from overseas butsupported through local industry involvementand a network of allies. Our need for a NEWthat supports coalition operations is thereforecritical.AUSTRALIAN PERSPECTIVES ON NETWORK CENTRIC WARFARE 21The sea-air gap to our north provides anatural impediment but also the main gatewayto the Australian mainland. The employment ofa range of capabilities within and across thesea, air and land environments in protection ofAustralia (DA) is a key focus for NEW.Spectrum of Future ConflictThe ADF may be called upon to undertakeboth operational and non-operational rolesassociated with the application of militarypower across a wide spectrum of conflict. Anindication of the range of potential operationsis given in Table 1.The ADF has been called upon tosupplement the civil emergency services intimes of exceptional demand, however it doesnot normally provide these services to the civilcommunity. Two exceptions to this principleinclude the provision of specialist support tocounter-terrorist operations, and support tocustoms, immigration, fisheries and other civilauthorities. It does this by providingsurveillance and response forces in Australia'scoastal waters.The ADO's civil and regional roles under theUN flag sit within the spectrum of conflict thatNEW is being designed to meet.Steps Toward NEWTo meet its military objectives, the ADO hasrecognised that its network structures are notoptimal for its purposes. This recognition wasfurther catalysed in 1996 by the Command andControl Support Study (C2SS), whichhighlighted the scope and extent of barriers toPEACE OOTW WAREmergency ReliefPeace EnforcementSupport to Civil Authorities Peacekeeping Local ConflictsCounter Terrorism Sanctions Regional WarsEvacuation Humanitarian Aid General WarTable 1: Possible future roles for the ADF which will influence an ADO based NEW. 8
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ISSUE 150 : Sep/Oct - 2001 - Australian Defence Force Journal

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