In Pursuit of Military Excellence: The Evolution of Operational Theory

by Naveh,Shimon

• ISBN13: 9780714647272
• ISBN10: 0714647276
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1997-03-31
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Since the late 1960s, almost three quarters of a million Russian Jews have emigrated to the west. Their presence in Israel, Europe and North America and their absence from Russia have left an indelible imprint on these societies. The emigrants themselves as well as those who stayed behind, are in a struggle to establish their own identities and to achieve social and economic security. In this volume an international assembly of historians, sociologists, demographers and politicians assess the nature and magnitude of the impact created by this emigration and to examine the fate of those Jews who left and those who remained. Their wide-ranging perspectives contribute to creating a variegated and complex picture of the Russian Jewish emigration.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	xii	(1)
Introduction	xiii
1. Operational Art and the General Theory of Systems	1	(29)
Introduction	1	(3)
The Universal System Dimension	4	(4)
The Operational Dimension	8	(6)
The Aim - An Essential Triad	14	(2)
The Notion of Operational Shock	16	(4)
The Operational Striking Manoeuvre	20	(10)
2. Mass and Operational Art The Theoretical Dichotomy in Nineteenth-Century Military Thought	30	(40)
The Phenomenon of Mass and the Advent of the Operational Milieu	30	(9)
The First Stage	31	(1)
The Second Stage	31	(3)
The Third Stage	34	(2)
The Fourth Stage	36	(3)
The Cultural Dichotomy: Absence of Operational Cognition in a System Environment	39	(10)
Technology - A Catalyst of Operational Ignorance	49	(21)
The Peninsular War	49	(2)
The Balkan Campaign	51	(2)
The Palestine Campaign	53	(2)
Rail Transport	55	(2)
Communications	57	(2)
Firepower	59	(2)
Roads	61	(9)
3. Destruction and Operational Art The Roots of Ignorance	70	(35)
The Paradox of Destruction	70	(10)
The Paradox of the Battle's Dominance	80	(6)
The Geometrical Syllogism	86	(10)
The Paradox of Operational Asymmetry	96	(9)
4. The Blitzkrieg Concept A Mechanized Manipulation of Tactical Patterns	105	(59)
The Blitzkrieg Myth	105	(7)
The Decline of Operational Cognition	112	(9)
Blitzkrieg - The Mechanization of Destruction	121	(7)
The Absence of Operational Cognition - Empirical Reflections	128	(10)
The Distortion of the Operational Aim Mechanism	138	(26)
5 The Evolution of Soviet Operational Thought	164	(45)
From Successive Operations to the Operational Manoeuvring Group	165	(2)
The Civil War - The Incubation of Military System Thinking	167	(8)
Towards a Unified Military Doctrine	175	(2)
Veterans of the First Cavalry Army and the School of Operational Thought	177	(4)
Strategy of a Single Point	181	(2)
The Identification of System Logic in Military Operations	183	(4)
Deep Battle - The Tactical Circle	187	(4)
Deep Simultaneous Strike - Towards an Operational Paradigm	191	(18)
6. The Deep Operation Theory - Glubokaia operatsiia	209	(41)
Depth and Echelonment: A Framework for Operational Interaction	209	(2)
Udar. The Rationale of the Operational Theory	211	(10)
The Operational Aim	211	(2)
Elements of Operational Manoeuvre	213	(8)
Operational Synergy	221	(10)
Synchronization, Coordination and Combined Arms Combat	221	(3)
EA and ERP	224	(3)
Forward Detachment	227	(1)
Airborne Desant	228	(1)
The Element of Aviation	229	(1)
The Tactical Synthesis	230	(1)
The Essence of Operational Command and Control	231	(5)
Conclusion - The Deep Operation Theory in Retrospect	236	(14)
7. From Tactical Destruction to Operational Manoeuvre The Conceptual Revolution in American Military Thought	250	(37)
Introduction	250	(3)
Formulation of the 1976 Active Defence Field Manual	253	(3)
Operational Brainstorming: The Contribution of the Civilian Reformers	256	(6)
The Cognitive Crisis and the Great Professional Debate	262	(25)
8. From Central Battle to Airland Battle	287	(36)
The Central Battle - An Initial Step in Operational Cognition	287	(5)
The Integrated Battlefield - A Deep Configuration for Operational Synergy	292	(3)
The Extended Battlefield	295	(5)
FM 100-5 1982	300	(5)
A Quantum Leap in Operational Cognition: FM 100-5 1986	305	(18)
Afterword: Operation Desert Storm	323	(9)
Bibliography	332	(61)
Index	393