The  2024 National Defence Strategy (NDS) and  Defence Strategic Review (DSR) describe an Indo-Pacific region increasingly seeing the effects of US-China great power competition in a landscape where modern warfare is rapidly changing. Traditional kinetic warfare is increasingly being replaced by or complemented with hybrid tactics, including the use of  cyberattack ,  foreign interference ,  influence on public opinion, and  cognitive warfare . Climate change and rapidly advancing technologies such as AI …

Enabling Integral Health in the Littoral Environment   Our home is girt by sea, a phrase sung from every primary school hall and sports stadium from 19 April 1984. This phrase and its implications, has been missing in Army doctrine for quite some time. The Middle East Area of Operations (MEAO) period of our history slanted our tactical thinking. Our training often details a threat assessment of Area of Operations (AO) dominance, assuming and providing assuredness through multi-domain superiority. The …

Like a Fish out of Water…   The Defence Strategic Review makes one thing clear to those concerned in Australia’s profession of arms: Army must be optimised for littoral operations in Australia’s northern land and maritime approaches. As the Indo-Pacific faces increased competition, the commentary surrounding Army’s littoral refocus suggests that it will provide a critical function in projecting forces further into Australia’s northern approaches to deliver deterrence through denial. Army will be key in the …

Enhancing Littoral Warfare Capabilities in the Australian Infantry   The Infantry platoon stands as the backbone of ground operations of the Australian Defence Force (ADF). Trained and equipped to fulfil a range of mission tasks that contribute and support an overarching strategic objective. Now, with the strategic shift towards littoral manoeuvre outlined in the 2024 National Defence Strategy (NDS), there is a requirement to adapt and enhance the capabilities of the Australian Infantry platoon for …

Empowering the RFSG   This article was a submission to the 2024 AARC Short Thoughts Competition: Littoral Warfare , which asked: " What is one way that you would see Army adapt in order to contribute to littoral warfare? " In recent months, the Australian Government has announced significant investments in improving defence capabilities in the north of Australia, as outlined in the 2023 Defence Strategic Review (DSR) and National Defence Strategy. As the Australian Defence Force (ADF) pivots towards a more …