Online Military strategy-making – Army Futures Command peps up Wargames during COVID-19 scenario

Amid the lockdown and standstill that COVID-19 has caused across the USA (and other parts of the world), the futurists of the US Army are thinking of practical and effective alternatives for brainstorming sessions. Usually, the sessions are conducted face-to-face. But Pentagon already officially extended travel restrictions till June 30^th. Keeping administrative, strategic, and military stakes under purview, the concerned experts are chalking out concrete plans to evolve better in these trying situations.

Avoiding delays

The seminar sessions and Wargames are being relocated to online platforms. This means the work will not be delayed for months. Future planning in this context requires distinct maneuvering of strategies, tuning of policies, designing implementation plans, and similar kinds of proactive initiatives.

The trade-off factor

One can’t deny the fact that there is a considerable trade-off in moving the discussion sessions and strategic planning interactions online. On one side, the experts will be in a good position to maintain the deadlines, making progress in various projects, and keeping assignments updated. On the flipside, conditions will or may arise in which the classified data will not be secure in the desired manner. The collaboration tools for long-distance communication are not full-proof and reliable enough to not create complex scenarios that are off-limits.

The bottleneck

From a practical perspective, COVID-19 has resulted in installing a significant chunk of military training, besides crucial experimentation. Some of the top-priority exercises were in the schedule to test new technologies and fresh strategies, but the Army Futures Command has put them in hold for time being.

On track with plans

Lieutenant General Eric Wesley has rightly pointed out that most of the work that Army Futures Command does centers on developing advanced concepts in phases and testing their viability theoretically, gauging the probable consequences and repercussion effects. The close-knit interactive sessions on online platforms will not deter such plans.

Maintaining TTXs

Tabletop exercises (in short TTXs as per Army jargon) can be easily moved online. They will also comprise of the exclusive capstone exercise, focusing on the future warfare strategies complying with the conceptual framework of the Army. The TTX will also include a crucial exercise on Multi-domain operations (MDO) that was scheduled to be conducted in May.

Structured seminars

Conventionally, the Army Generals, military strategists, planners, officers, civil servants, and relevant stakeholders would have met together in ‘schoolhouses’ of Army, and discussed in tandem about region-specific deployment, usage of technology, and countering adversaries. But now, COVID-19 has altered the classical nature of Wargames. Currently, no participant can clearly pen down the rules and regulations for a highly detailed simulation strategy. The Army experts are rigorously digging for robust solutions. Undoubtedly, it can be stated that online seminars would be extremely structured, where participants can discuss and exchange views without technical hassles, using standard tools for online collaboration.

Tackling the unclassified network

The most telling issue in this set-up and planning is a definite probability of some data leakage as the network is unclassified. Still, the experts in the field are dedicatedly focusing on matters like strategic and political maneuvering, especially in the competition phase, with a single-point agenda of accomplishing the broader and primary military objectives.