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Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan on Tuesday noted how technology is gradually "taking over and overshadowing" geography when it comes to being the most important factor in deciding strategy for modern warfare.
General Anil Chauhan emphasised that tactics and strategy decide the outcome of a war, noting that these factors were largely derived from geography in the past, but that has begun to change. "Warfare and winning in warfare are basically dependent on strategy... Largely, if you look at the past, strategy was largely derived from geography, but gradually, the element of technology is taking over and overshadowing geography," CDS Gen Anil Chauhan said. Gen Anil Chauhan highlighted key geographical aspects that used to decide the outcome of a war in past such as high ground, suitability of terrain, vast expanses of deserts, mountain ranges and oceans. "The importance of high ground for observation and for occupying defence, the suitability of terrain for achieving surprise and deception, speed of movement, direction of attack, axis of maintenance-they were all selected based on geography, and they were the battle-winning factors. Vast expanses of deserts, mountain ranges and oceans provided natural barriers against invasion," he said. He further talked about the discovery of gunpowder, a pivotal moment that laid the foundation of modern warfare tactics. "Technology started influencing the outcome of the battle significantly after the invention of gunpowder. This influenced combat at the lowest end of the duel, a warrior with superior arms and better protection had better chances of winning. From the discovery of gunpowder to the invention of the telegraph, tanks, aircraft, and nuclear arsenal-all this impacted tactics and strategy," he said. CDS Gen Anil Chauhan then discussed the 'Blitzkrieg,' a military tactic used by the Germans during World War II. Gen Anil Chauhan highlighted that it was the first time that technology had almost overpowered geography. "Tactical concepts like envelopment, turning movement were introduced by the Germans as part of their strategy of Blitzkrieg, which involved rapid movement, surprise, concentrated firepower and enclosed air support. This was the outcome of a mix of technology and geography," he said. He further cited Operation Barbarossa, a large military campaign launched by the Germans to capture Moscow. "To give a modern-day example of this is Operation Barbarossa, the German invasion of Russia. Almost they travelled 3,000 Km to the gates of Leningrad, Moscow and Stalingrad. Technology made them reach there but it was geography that decided the outcome," he said. Operation Barbarossa failed due to multiple aspects, one of which was the harsh Russian winters and mud, giving the Red Army a tactical edge over the Germans. However, CDS Gen Anil Chauhan cited the 'Battle of Britain,' in which German Air forces delivered heavy losses to the British, noting how technology overpowered geography, changing war tactics forever. "In the same war, Technology kind of overshadowed geography, and it was the Battle of Britain. The Germans used their air power to subdue the British," he said. (ANI)
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