List of military strategies and concepts

Air superiority Essential to a successful air campaign. It is achieved by 1) mastery of the air, 2) attacking the means of production, ) maintain battle ourselves, !) prevent the enemy from battle Attrition "arfare A strategy of "earing do"n an enemy to the point of collapse through continuous loss of personnel and mat#riel $ait and bleed A military strategy similar to the concept of divide and con%uer $attle of annihilation &he goal of destroying an opposing army in a single planned pivotal battle Bellum se ipsum alet A strategy of feeding and supporting an army "ith the potentials of occupied territories $lit'krieg An attack that uses concentrated force and rapid speed to break through enemy lines, named after the (erman )orld )ar II strategy $lockade * +iege * Investment An attempt to cut off food, supplies, "ar material or communications from a particular area by force, usually taking place by sea ,lear and hold A counter-insurgency strategy ,oercion ,ompelling an enemy to involuntarily behave in a certain "ay by targeting the leadership, national communications, or political-economic centers ,ommand of the sea &he naval e%uivalent of air superiority ,ounter-offensive A strategic offensive taking place after an enemy.s front line troops and reserves have been e/hausted, and before the enemy has had the opportunity to assume ne" defensive positions ,ounterforce A strategy used in nuclear "arfare of targeting military infrastructure 0as opposed to civilian targets) ,ountervalue &he opposite of counterforce1 targeting of an opponent.s cities and civilian populations 2ecapitation Achieving strategic paralysis by targeting political leadership, command and control, strategic "eapons, and critical economic nodes 2eception A strategy that seeks to deceive, trick, or fool the enemy and create a false perception in a "ay that can be leveraged for a military advantage 2enial A strategy that seeks to destroy an enemy.s ability to "age "ar 2istraction An attack by some of the force on one or t"o flanks, dra"ing up to a strong frontal attack by the rest of the force Encirclement $oth a strategy and tactic designed to isolate and surround enemy forces Ends, )ays, 3eans, 4isk +trategy is much like a three legged stool of ends, "ays, means balanced on a plane of varying degree of risk E/haustion A strategy that seeks to erode the "ill or resources of a country 5eint &o dra" attention to another point of the battle "here little or nothing is going on 5lanking maneuver Involves attacking the opponent from the side, or rear 6eavy force A counterinsurgency strategy that seeks to destroy and insurgency "ith over"helming force "hile it is still in a manageable state

6uman "ave attack An unprotected frontal attack "here the attacker tries to move as many soldiers as possible into engaging close range combat "ith the defender Incentive A strategy that uses incentives to gain cooperation Indirect approach 2islocation is the aim of strategy. 2irect attacks almost never "ork, one must first upset the enemy.s e%uilibrium, fi/ "eakness and attack strength, +even rules of strategy7 1) ad8ust your ends to your means, 2) keep your ob8ect al"ays in mind, ) choose the line of the least e/pectation, !) e/ploit the line of least resistance, 9) take the line of operations "hich offers the most alternatives, :) ensure both plans and dispositions are fle/ible, ;) do not thro" your "eight into an opponent "hile he is on guard, <) do not rene" an attack along the same lines if an attack has failed Interior lines =lacing ones forces in bet"een the enemy forces and attacking each in turn in order to allo" ones forces to have better communications and allo"s one to mass all of ones forces against a part of the enemies >imited "ar A "ar in "hich the survival of a nation is not at stake =enetration A direct attack through the enemy lines, then an attack on the rear once through =ericlean strategy &he t"o basic principles of the ?=ericlean (rand +trategy? "ere the re8ection of appeasement 0in accordance "ith "hich he urged the Athenians not to revoke the 3egarian 2ecree) and the avoidance of overe/tension =ersisting strategy A strategy that seeks to destroy the means by "hich an enemy sustains itself =incer ambush A ?@?-shaped attack "ith the sides concealed and the middle held back until the enemy advances, at "hich point the concealed sides ambush them =incer maneuver Allo"ing the enemy to attack the center, sometimes in a charge, then attacking the flanks of the charge =unishment A strategy that seeks to push a society beyond its economic and physiological breaking point 4apid 2ecisive Aperations ,ompelling an adversary to undertake certain actions or denying the adversary the ability to coerce or attack others. 4aiding Attacking "ith the purpose of removing enemy.s supply or provisions 4efusing the flank =utting the minimal number of troops re%uired to hold out against an enemy attack "hile the rest of the army launches a counterattack through the enemy flank +eparation of insurgents A counterinsurgency strategy should first seek to separate the enemy from the population, then deny the enemy reentry, and finally e/ecute long enough to deny the insurgent access +corpion attack A pincer attack that is supplemented by an air strike +hape, ,lear, 6old, $uild &he counterinsurgency theory that states the process of "inning and insurgency is shape, clear, hold, build +iege ,ontinuous attack by bombardment on a fortified position, usually by artillery +hock and a"e A military doctrine using over"helming po"er to try and achieve rapid dominance over the enemy +"arming 3ilitary s"arming involves the use of a decentrali'ed force against an opponent, in a manner that emphasi'es mobility, communication, unit autonomy and coordination*synchroni'ation.

&heater strategy ,oncepts and courses of action directed to"ard securing the ob8ectives of national and multinational policies and strategies through the synchroni'ed and integrated employment of military forces and other instruments of national po"er &otal "ar )ar in "hich a nation.s survival is at stake &urning maneuver An attack that penetrates an enemy flank, then curls into its rear to cut it off from home )in "ithout fighting +un &'u argued that a brilliant general "as one that could "in "ithout fighting

Defensive strategies

2efence in depth A strategy to delay rather than prevent the advance of an attacker by buying time and causing additional casualties by yielding space so that the momentum of the attack is lost $o/ing maneuver A strategy used to ?bo/ in? and force and attack on all sides at once )ithdra"al A retreat of forces "hile maintaining contact "ith the enemy 5ortification 5abian strategy )earing do"n an enemy by using attrition "arfare and indirection, "hile avoiding pitched battles or frontal assaults 3ilitary district, also kno"n as Wehrkreis in (erman +corched earth 2estroying anything that might be of use to the enemy "hile retreating, or advancing &urtling ,ontinuous reinforcement of an army until it has reached its full strength, then an attack "ith the no"-superior force

Strategic concepts

,enters of gravity &he hub of all po"er and movement on "hich everything depends, the point at "hich all energies should be directed 2ecisive point A geographic place, specific key event, critical system, or function that allo"s commanders to gain a marked advantage over an enemy and greatly influence the outcome of an attack 2I3E05I>) &he elements of national po"er diplomacy, information, military, and economics, often included are financial, intelligence, and la" enforcement see 3I2>I5E E/pediency )ar is a matter of e/pedients von 3oltke 5og, friction, chance )ar is characteri'ed by fog, friction, and chance (olden $ridge &o leave an opponent an opportunity to "ithdra" in order to not force them to act out of desperation +un &'u Iron ,alculus of )ar 4esistance B 3eans / )ill ,lause"it' 3I2>I5E &he elements of national po"er diplomacy, information, military, and economics, often included are financial, intelligence, and la" enforcement, see 2I3E05I>) 3oral ascendancy 3oral force is the trump card for any military event because as events change the human elements of "ar remain unchanged 2u =i% AA2A loop 2ecision-making occurs in a recurring cycle of observe-orient-decide-act. An entity 0"hether an individual or an organi'ation) that can process this cycle %uickly, observing and reacting to unfolding

events more rapidly than an opponent, can thereby ?get inside? the opponent.s decision cycle and gain the advantage $oyd

=arado/ical nature &he nature of strategy is a parado/ical and does not follo" a linear pattern >utt"ak =ositive ends &he possibility of taking advantage of a ne" security environment to create conditions for long-term peace )ass de ,'ege =rimary &rinity 01) primordial violence, hatred, and enmity1 02) the play of chance and probability1 and 0 ) "ar.s element of subordination to rational policy ,lause"it'
o

+econdary &rinity =eople, Army, and (overnment ,lause"it'

=rinciples of "ar7
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Ab8ective 02irect every military operation to"ards a clearly defined, decisive, and attainable ob8ective) Affensive 0+ei'e, retain, and e/ploit the initiative) 3ass 0,oncentrate combat po"er at the decisive place and time) Economy of 5orce 0Allocate minimum essential combat po"er to secondary efforts) 3aneuver 0place the enemy in a disadvantageous position through the fle/ible application of combat po"er) @nity of ,ommand 05or every Ab8ective, ensure @nity of effort under one responsible commander) +ecurity 0Cever permit the enemy to ac%uire an une/pected advantage) +urprise 0+trike the enemy at a time, at a place, or in a manner for "hich he is unprepared) +implicity 0=repare clear, uncomplicated plans and clear, concise orders to ensure thorough understanding) @+ Army 53 .D

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+ystems approach Cation-states operate like biological organisms composed of discrete systems. &hese systems included7 leadership, organic essentials, infrastructure, population, and the military )arden &ipping point &he point at "hich ?the momentum for change becomes unstoppable.? (lad"ell E@,A Eolatility, uncertainty, comple/ity and ambiguity characteri'e the strategic environment @.+. Army )ar ,ollege )einberger-=o"ell 2octrine A list of %uestions have to be ans"ered affirmatively before military action is taken by the @nited +tates7
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Is a vital national security interest threatenedF 2o "e have a clear attainable ob8ectiveF 6ave the risks and costs been fully and frankly analy'edF 6ave all other non-violent policy means been fully e/haustedF Is there a plausible e/it strategy to avoid endless entanglementF 6ave the conse%uences of our action been fully consideredF Is the action supported by the American peopleF

2o "e have genuine broad international supportF