PfP DEFENCE POLICY AND STRATEGY WORKSHOP

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PfP DEFENCE POLICY AND STRATEGY WORKSHOP 30
SEPTEMBER 2002 LOGISTIC CAPABILITIES FOR A NEW
ERA OF ASYMMETRIC THREATS GROUP CAPTAIN P M
MILES, UKAF BRANCH CHIEF LOGISTICS NATO
HEADQUARTERS INTERNATIONAL MILITARY STAFF
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SETTING THE SCENE

• All change in a new era?
• Evolution of the strategic landscape and its
  impact on logistics
• NATO Partner cooperation in an era of asymmetric
  threats

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COLD WAR ENVIRONMENT

• Short war defence of NATO homeland by large
  high intensity warfighting formations
• Logistics posture was based on
• pre-positioned stockpiles and permanent bases
• well defined Host Nation Support arrangements and
  secure interior lines of communication
• essentially national stovepipe supply chains
• civil logistics supported military operations

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POST- COLD WAR ENVIRONMENT

• Small-scale Crisis Response Operations on the
  peripherary of NATO territory
• may not involve warfighting and may be
  intra-state
• unpredictable and of indeterminate duration
• Light, agile deployable forces tailored for
  expeditionary warfare
• deployable logistics capability
• combined, joint approach to operations
• involvement of Partners

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LOGISTICS FOR EXPEDITIONARY WARFARE

• The challenges
• Lack of Host Nation Support and infrastructure
• Long supply chains and probably limited lines of
  communication
• Sustainability of the force and of the logistic
  enabling units for an indeterminate period

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LOGISTICS FOR EXPEDITIONARY WARFARE

• The capability requirements
• Strategic sea and airlift
• Deployable theatre level specialist logistic
  capabilities to establish, manage and operate the
  theatre support chain and infrastructure
• Deployable combat service support units organic
  to combat formations
• Expeditionary capability is expensive!

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LOGISTICS FOR EXPEDITIONARY WARFARE

• The NATO response a multinational approach to
  reduce the operational logistic footprint and the
  cost to individual nations
• Key aspects include
• Logistic lead nation and role specialist nations
• Contractorisation
• Multinational Integrated Logistic Units (MILUs)
• Multinational Joint Logistics Centres

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LOGISTICS FOR EXPEDITIONARY WARFARE

• National defence logistic reforms to fund
  capability improvements have included
• Delivering some aspects of logistic support on a
  joint rather than single service basis
• Greater involvement of Industry in the logistic
  support chain
• Reductions in government-owned stockpiles and
  logistic infrastructure

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LOGISTICS FOR EXPEDITIONARY WARFARE

• Impact on civil-military co-ordination
• Cooperative arrangements for assured access to
  commercial strategic transportation assets
• Greater penetration of contractor support in the
  operational theatre
• Mainly civil support for military operations but
  more structured approach to possible military
  assistance to disaster relief and humanitarian aid

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ASYMMETRIC ENVIRONMENT

• Targets soft centres of vulnerability of complex,
  integrated democratic society
• Civilian rather than military
• Unpredictable, unconventional and multi-faceted
  threat difficult to detect and counter
• non-state as well as state actors
• possible use of weapons of mass destruction
• Some states may consider preemptive action
  necessary

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LOGISTICS FOR ASYMMETRIC WARFARE

• Deterrence and preparation
• Logistic readiness for operations new risks for
  the national civilian logistic base?
• Cyber attack proofing logistic information
  systems
• Medical preparations to counter chemical and
  biological weapon use

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LOGISTICS FOR ASYMMETRIC WARFARE

• Active military response capabilities
• Expeditionary logistic capabilities for deployed
  operations as for Crisis Response Operations
• Strategic and all terrain tactical mobility
  assets
• Deployable military medical NBC consequence
  management capabilities
• Likelihood of involvement in humanitarian
  assistance tasks

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LOGISTICS FOR ASYMMETRIC WARFARE

• Impact on civil-military co-ordination
• Specialist military consequence management
  capabilities will be sought for civil emergency
  purposes
• Military logistic assistance may be sought for
  immediate sustainment of civilian populations
• Military as a supplier of logistic capability as
  well as customer for civilian logistic support

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LOGISTICS FOR ASYMMETRIC WARFARE

• KEY EXAM QUESTION FOR DEFENCE POLICY MAKERS
• Should we invest in dual-use consequence
  management capabilities over and above those
  needed to meet the military operational task?

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LOGISTICS FOR ASYMMETRIC WARFARE

• Partner areas for development
• Continue investment in expeditionary logistic
  capabilities for deployed operations,
  particularly Multinational Integrated Logistics
  Units

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EXPEDITIONARY WARFARE MILUs FOR ASYMMETRIC OPS

• The Top 10 MILUs comprise
• Engineering Units for general construction
  support, bridging, fuel pipelines and storage
  sites, power generation and estate management
• Bulk water purification
• Transportation Units for bulk fuel and water,
  heavy equipment and containerised loads

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LOGISTICS FOR ASYMMETRIC WARFARE

• Partner areas for development
• Continue investment in expeditionary logistic
  capabilities for deployed operations,
  particularly Multinational Integrated Logistics
  Units
• Strategic transport cooperation
• Disease monitoring and detection
• Medical consequence management capabilities
• Interoperability for consequence management

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LOGISTICS FOR ASYMMETRIC WARFARE

• NATO/Partner logistic cooperation
• Development of interoperable expeditionary
  logistic capability
• Development of harmonised, interoperable NBC
  detection and warning processes and consequence
  management capabilities
• Use existing logistic cooperation mechanisms
• SNLC and COMEDS in EAPC format

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SUMMARY

• Elements of both continuity and change in
  developing logistics for asymmetric threat era
• Expeditionary logistic capabilities for deployed
  forces in Crisis Response Operations remain
  relevant to era of asymmetric threats
• Specialist military capabilities needed for
  defence against use of chemical and biological
  weapons these may be sought for civil
  emergency purposes

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SOME QUESTIONS

• What is the impact of the demands of asymmetric
  warfare on the balance of Partners military
  investment?
• What do assistance do Partners want and can
  realistically expect from NATO?
• What is the scope for further logistics
  cooperation between Partners and between Partners
  and NATO?

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