Ms Sonya Russell is a career public servant with the Australian Department of Defence. She was the International Policy Liaison Officer to Headquarters Joint Operations Command in 2017 and Policy Advisor on Operation HIGHROAD in Afghanistan from late 2017 to 2018. She posted to Port Moresby as the inaugural Strategic Policy Advisor to Papua New Guinea’s Department of Defence. Ms Russell is currently the Director of International Policy Division’s Pacific East section. … Sonya …

Summarising the presentations and deliberations of delegates, the author presents thinking on the enduring nature of urban warfare, and then considers what is new to the discussion and opportunities for the future. The conference ranges freely and example outcomes include: the potential of the systems/flows approach to make operations quicker and more exact; the fundamental decisive elements of leadership/warriors/ideas; and the imperative to educate, train, and condition “antifragile” military teams and …

Tactical Observations on the 2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine Abstract This Spotlight Brief examines Russia’s combined-arms approach during its invasion of Ukraine in 2022. To provide context to this study, it discusses the primary Russian tactical unit of action, the Battalion Tactical Group. It subsequently explores a range of observations on the application of combined-arms at the tactical level during the initial phases of the invasion. It concludes by offering a number of deductions pertinent to the …

Achieving that Long-Desired Information Advantage Foreword This thoughtful and candid article from Jason Logue addresses challenges and opportunities within the Australian Defence Force (ADF) regarding the evolution of operations in the information environment. While he focuses on his experiences within the ADF, his characterisation, observations and views are consistent with US challenges based upon my almost 30 years of experience as US Department of Defense Information professional. Essentially, Grey …

Tactical Observations on the 2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine This Spotlight Brief examines Russia’s combined-arms approach during its invasion of Ukraine in 2022. To provide context, it discusses the primary Russian tactical unit of action, the Battalion Tactical Group. It subsequently explores a range of observations on the application of combined-arms at the tactical level during the initial phases of the invasion. It concludes by offering a number of deductions pertinent to the Australian Army’s own …

An introduction to gender studies, unshackling human talent and optimising military capability for the coming Era of Equality: 2020 to 2050 Introduction Gender has been a high-profile issue within the Army over the last five years. In response to Pathways to Change (PtC), Army has introduced significant changes in a short period. However, there is now a chance for Army to catch its breath and reflect more deeply and strategically about how it approaches gender issues in the longer term. Although there may …

The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and Mission Command is the most important challenge facing those tasked with building the ADF’s future Command and Control system. [1]  For the Army in particular, getting this integration right is essential. The Australian Army has recognised this technological factor as a critical component of Australia's future land power, but AI is a tool with unique characteristics. Rather than just being a physical instrument, it is also an "intelligent" one, …

Our people must be leaders and integrators who contribute to multi-disciplinary teams, enabling us to thrive in uncertainty, adapt to change and generate solutions. Accelerated Warfare: Futures Statement for an Army in Motion Both  Army in Motion  and  Accelerated Warfare  advocate for a strong people capability. The debate on how to achieve this focuses predominantly on how to train everyone better and the use of technologies such as  human-machine teaming ,  artificial intelligence , and  big data . …

Australian Army Occasional Paper No. 6 In this paper, Associate Professor Kevin Foster of Monash University examines how the Australian Army’s engagement with, and use of, social media compares to that of allied and comparator militaries. Drawing on historical examples drawn from the First Gulf War, Somalia and Kosovo as well as Afghanistan and the Second Gulf War, the paper examines how militaries in the US, Britain, Israel and Australia have met (or have yet to meet) the challenges posed by the changed …

Colonel Jason Logue recently accrued 30 years of service in the ADF - the past 20 of which have been almost solely focused on planning, integrating and achieving effects in the information environment. In the absence of a formalised career approach, he is one of the handful of ADF officers with more than a single posting as an information staff officer working across capability specialist and information environment generalist roles. He has undertaken a broad range of information environment related …