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<TITLE>Assistant Secretary Linton Wells II</TITLE>
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<p ALIGN="center" class="style71"><span class="style31 style85"><span class="MsoNormal style78"><span class="style18 style117"><span class="style36 style26"><span style=""><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold'><span class="style18 style117"><span style=""><span style=""><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold'><span style="font-family: color: #336699"Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-style: italic;"><span style=""><span style=""><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold'><span style=""><span style=""><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold'><span style=""><span style=""><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold'><span style="font-family: color: #336699"times new roman", times, serif; font-style: italic;"><span style=""><span style=""><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold'><span style=""><span style=""><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold'><span style=""><span style=""><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold'><span style="font-family: color: #336699"Times New Roman", Times, serif; font-style: italic;"><span style=""><span style=""><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold'><span style=""><span style=""><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold'><span style=""><span style=""><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold'><span style="font-family: color: #336699"times new roman", times, serif; font-style: italic;"><span style=""><span style=""><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold'><span style=""><span style='mso-bidi-font-size:12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold'><img src="../../images/csdr_logo.jpg" name="image" width="284" height="86"></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
<h1 ALIGN="center">Network-Enabled Capabilities—Issues and Implications</h1>
<h2 ALIGN="center">Dr. Linton Wells II<br>
Assistant Secretary of Defense for Networks and Information Integration </h2>
<p ALIGN="left" class="style79"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"><span class="style2">I would like to address three broad areas related to what NATO calls network-enabled
capabilities and the U.S. refers to as network-centric warfare: first,
transnational issues related to network-enabled capabilities, especially
as they pertain to the transatlantic alliance; second, how to acquire network-enabled
capabilities in a resource-constrained environment; and third, the strategic
implications of network-enabled capabilities.</span>
</FONT></p>
<h3 ALIGN="CENTER" class="style71"><B>TRANSNATIONAL ISSUES RELATED TO
NETWORK-ENABLED CAPABILITIES</B><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"><B> </B>
</FONT></h3>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"> <FONT COLOR="#1f1a17">During the workshop we have heard many discussions about the future, focusing
on:
</FONT></p>
<UL>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Global, non-traditional threats
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> The need for NATO and the EU to engage in unfamiliar regions, such as the
Greater Middle East
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> The problems of coalitions with changing partners
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> The demographic and environmental dimensions of security
</FONT></p>
</LI>
</UL>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> However, we need to be careful about forecasts. The U.S. Defense Department
has something called the Defense Program Projection (DPP), which looks
10 years beyond the end of our “Future Years Defense Program” (FYDP). This
year, we will look out to 2021, mainly to make sure that there are no unaffordable
convergences of major acquisition programs during those years. However,
in the process of reviewing the DPP, someone noted that the 17 years between
2004 and 2021 are longer than those between the Wright brothers’ first
flight in 1903 and the end of World War I. In mid-1903 it would have been
hard to forecast the needs of military aviation, which few imagined was
possible, in a major war that few imagined was coming.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> To test our forecasting ability in a more current scenario, let us look
back 17 years from this 2004 workshop period, to 1987:
</FONT></p>
<p></p>
<UL>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Our land forces were preparing for armored warfare in the Fulda Gap.
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Many of our aircraft were being designed for combat above the inter-German
border.
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> The navy had an objective of 600 ships, in part to defend the North Atlantic
sea lanes.
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> The mujahedin were regarded as valued freedom fighters against the Soviets
in Afghanistan.
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> There was a strong buffer against the Islamic Revolution in Iran—his name
was Saddam Hussein.
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Almost no one had heard of the Internet.
</FONT></p>
</LI>
</UL>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> It may be that we will improve our forecasting skills in the future, but,
at a minimum, this look back suggests that the systems we acquire now should
provide us with flexibility.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Network-enabled capabilities were described as important in the presentations
made by General Kujat, Minister Struck, General Jones, Under Secretary
Wynne, and others, even in situations short of general war. Mr. Cunningham
also presented an excellent synopsis of essential network characteristics,
Mr. Lentz reminded us that security must be designed into the network from
the beginning, and General Joulwan admonished that we must continue to
provide connectivity and situational awareness to existing forces even
as we transform.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> In his speech, General Jones spoke of four pillars of transformation:
</FONT></p>
<UL>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Figuring out how to incorporate and use new technology
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Developing new operational concepts
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Reforming institutions
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Changing the way we spend money
</FONT></p>
</LI>
</UL>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Network-enabled capabilities touch each of these pillars. In addition,
information and communications technologies (and changes in doctrine) can
help smaller nations make useful contributions to the Alliance or to coalitions,
so we should design our systems for “plug and play.”
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Of the six changes General Jones called for in his presentation, network-enabled
capabilities affect at least four:
</FONT></p>
<UL>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Making our capabilities more usable
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Improving “tooth-to-tail” ratios, especially by reducing logistics footprints
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Improving the sharing of all kinds of information, not only intelligence
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Overcoming challenges to transformation
</FONT></p>
</LI>
</UL>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> In these areas, there is much to be optimistic about. Earlier we spoke
about the transnational opportunities available in the Joint Tactical Radio
System (JTRS), and the fact that much of the U.S. movement toward network-enabled
capabilities was being based on web-based tools and commercial standards.
The potential to incorporate NATO data standards from the Multi-National
Interoperability Programme (MIP) into U.S. approaches also is very exciting.
Moreover, commercial trends are in our favor in that the cost of computing,
storing, and communicating is falling dramatically, and should continue
to do so.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> However, with that said, there also are challenges to bringing network-enabled
capabilities to bear quickly, and deploying them where they are most needed:
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Lessons learned from Iraq, which could be applied to many stabilization
operations, suggest that we should consider new approaches in pre-war or
pre-deployment planning if we are to take best advantage of the network-enabled
capabilities that might be available. For example:
</FONT></p>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17">– The civil side in a civil-military operation has requirements that are
just as valid as those of the military, but because they are not linked
with supporting documentation with strange acronyms such as ICDs, CCDs,
and TEMPs we often do not pay as much attention to their needs as we should.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> – Before Operation Iraqi Freedom, humanitarian assistance units and disaster
assistance response teams had developed tools for collaborating across
national and organizational boundaries in austere information environments
that might have been very useful early in the post-conflict period. However,
for a variety of reasons, they were not adopted, and atrophied accordingly.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> General Joulwan pointed to the importance of continuing to meet the needs
of the existing force, even as we transform. Some studies have shown that
transformational effects can be realized when as little as 8% to 10% of
a force has adopted new technologies and operational concepts. This may
be so, but timing the introduction of transformational capabilities and
coordinating them with units that have not yet received the capabilities
is critical.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Culture must be changed along with technology and operational concepts.
For example, faced with exactly the same information, different practitioners
may come to quite different conclusions. During a Partnership for Peace
exercise a few years ago, U.S. military personnel and their European counterparts
were shown the same common operational picture, based on network-centric
principles. Some U.S. personnel looked at the richness of the display as
an opportunity for low-level units to self-synchronize without waiting
for orders from higher echelons. Some European leaders praised the clarity
of the identical display because it allowed senior officers to make more
centralized decisions. And some on both sides were concerned that the amount
of information available to senior levels would cause them to micromanage
the engagement.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> We need to be clear in our terminology. As noted earlier, several similar
phrases are being used in different quarters: network-enabled capabilities,
network-centric warfare, network-centric operations, knowledge-enabled
warfare. I think that the first three are fully equivalent in substance,
but we need to make sure that everyone understands what we are talking
about. Moreover, fundamental concepts such as “control” (as in “command
and control”) probably need to be rethought in the network-centric environment.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> As Bob Lentz mentioned earlier, information assurance concerns are absolutely
critical, and need to be incorporated into the design of networks and network-centric
concepts from the beginning.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Finally, we need to make hard decisions when sharing information in multinational
environments and in interagency situations in which law enforcement and
private sector data may be involved. We need to move beyond present coalition
networks like CENTRIXS and Griffin to truly multinational information systems,
but this will take hard work both in designing the systems and in constructing
the information sharing policies to support them.
</FONT></p>
<h3 ALIGN="CENTER"><B>ACQUIRING NETWORK-ENABLED CAPABILITIES IN
A RESOURCE-CONSTRAINED ENVIRONMENT</B><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"><span class="style69"><B> </B></span></FONT></h3>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> In order to obtain network-enabled capabilities, we need to take four important
steps:
</FONT></p>
<UL class="style71">
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Leverage commercial trends
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Change our business practices and TTPs (tactics, techniques, and procedures),
not just technology
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Work together to rationalize resource allocations
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Recognize the dangers and impediments, and address them head on</FONT><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17">.
</FONT></p>
</LI>
</UL>
<div align="center" class="style71">
<h3 class="style69"><B>Leveraging Commercial Trends</B>
</h3>
</div>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> One of the pioneers of the Internet revolution recently offered several
insights into trends in commercial information and communication technology.
Some highlights included:
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17">
<I>Cell phones.</I> In the early 1980s, AT&T completed a market forecast of the
demand for cell phones. It concluded that the global market would reach
900,000 phones by the year 2000. In 2003, 500,000,000 cell phones were
sold, a number that should reach a billion per year in just a few years’ time.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> – The next generation of phones being readied for distribution in late
2004 in Japan will have two distinct processors, one for the phone and
one for computing applications. Although the input/output devices for the
phones still need work, cell phones and portable computers are converging.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> – The quality of digital photography built into phones will increase rapidly,
threatening stand-alone digital cameras
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> – Linux is becoming the operating system of choice for the new cell phones,
due to cost and stability. In a short while, most phones will ship network
ready.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Play stations. Processors optimized for computer games cost only a few
hundred dollars, but they are powerful because they are subsidized by computer
gaming revenues, which now have surpassed motion picture revenues in the
U.S.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> – The University of Illinois recently put together the cards from 600 play
stations (total cost: under $200k) and built a parallel supercomputer that
ranked in the top 100 in the world. This power will continue to grow. The
Play Station 3 is expected to ship in 2005 as part of a full-fledged attack
on Microsoft-based PCs. A Play Station X, with 320 gigabytes of memory,
enough to record 320 hours of television video, is under development. The
result is a three-way competition/convergence among:
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> – Windows, Linux, and Java operating systems
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> – Mobile computing with integral phone and network links
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> – High-performance gaming computers.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> In the Internet pioneer’s view, it’s not clear which combinations will
win, but the net result will be a proliferation of increasingly powerful,
networked systems at lower prices.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Embedded systems. The average car today has about 100 central processing
units (CPUs), which increasingly are linked via wireless, packet-switched
local area networks (LANs). In about five years there will be 400–500 CPUs/car,
and each vehicle will be effectively a mobile, massively parallel computing
system.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> – Linux also is becoming the dominant operating system for embedded computers.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> – Radio-frequency (RF) sensors are becoming ubiquitous. Those being manufactured
by Dust, Inc. (a spinoff of a DARPA project) are indicative of new generations
that can wake up, report in, and go back to sleep to save power or draw
energy from the interrogating RF signals.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> – Before long, sensors will be available that have 3- to10-year battery
lives and that can be scattered anywhere.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> This environment of “creative destruction,” in which product cycles are
measured in months to weeks (in comparison to government budgeting cycles
measured in years) suggests that we should build as much flexibility as
possible into our infrastructures and adopt open standards wherever we
can. This is the approach the U.S. is trying to take, using browser-based
displays wherever possible and making strong commitments to international
standards such as Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) and the commercial
software communications architecture found in JTRS.
</FONT></p>
<h3 ALIGN="CENTER" class="style69">
<B>Changing Business Practices and TTPs, Not Just Technology </B></h3>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> John Chambers, CEO of Cisco Systems, recently addressed the relationship
between investments in information and communications technology (ICT)
and increases in productivity. He found that companies that had preceded
their ICT investments with business process reengineering had realized
significant gains in productivity measured over several years. However,
companies that had used only ICT to automate existing processes actually
experienced reduced productivity. As was mentioned earlier, we need to
co-evolve doctrine, organization, training, material, leadership, personnel,
and facilities (DOTMLPF) to achieve the full benefits of transformation.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> One senior NATO leader, as well as others, expressed concern that the increased
visibility into lower-echelon activities that network-enabled capabilities
provides will encourage senior officers to meddle and micromanage, potentially
destroying junior officers’ and noncommissioned officers’ initiative. There
is no doubt that this is a possibility, and there have been examples in
the past in which fleet commanders called battle group commanders thousands
of miles at sea to suggest they adjust their tactical dispositions. However,
the potential for micromanaging can also be addressed by doctrine, training,
and discipline. The Navy has already done this with its Composite Warfare
Commander concept, wherein authority for different parts of an engagement
is delegated to subordinate commanders; the approach has evolved into an
effective one. Nonetheless, there are interactions between leadership and
technology that need to be understood and addressed in our training environments.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> The concerns of Generation Y, roughly those under 30, also need to be addressed.
They come into the service, or start working for their employers, with
an expectation of connectivity. Look at the way many teenagers today operate,
with multiple windows open on their computers and multiple chat sessions
underway simultaneously. They have continuous situational awareness of
which friends are online and available, exquisitely tailored cell phone
configurations, and continuous access to the information resources on the
Web. We can learn a lot from them about network-enabled environments. But
we also need to be careful, since this connectivity is not a “nice-to-have”
thing for many of today’s young people, but an inherent part of their culture.
As we bring them into government employment, where this level of connectivity
may either not be available or not allowed because of classified information,
we can expect frustration and push-back.
</FONT></p>
<h3 ALIGN="CENTER" class="style69"><span class="style69"><B>Working Together to Rationalize Resource Allocations</B></span><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"><B> </B>
</FONT></h3>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> General Jones described the exceptional transformations that have taken
place within NATO, especially since the Prague Summit. From the standpoint
of achieving network-enabled capabilities, these include:
</FONT></p>
<UL class="style71">
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Establishment of the Allied Command Operations (ACO), which sets requirements
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Establishment of the Allied Command Transformation (ACT), which is the
forcing agent for change through the development of Concepts of Operations
(CONOPS), experimentation, and modeling and simulation
</FONT></p>
</LI>
</UL>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Both of these achievements are complemented by the work of the Hague Technical
Center under the NATO C3 Agency, which is doing network-centric research,
and by NATO’s three current operations (Afghanistan, the Balkans, and the
Mediterranean), which offer opportunities to introduce new operational
concepts.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> But in addition to these achievements, we should leverage the work of other
partners, notably Sweden, which has been at the forefront of transformation,
and Singapore, which has fenced 1% of its defense budget for transformation,
established a center for military experimentation, and appointed a future
systems architect. U.S. Strategic Planning Guidance has also called for
accelerating the transformation to a network-centric force.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> All told, these parallel initiatives offer exceptional opportunities for
rationalizing investments in network-enabled capabilities. By taking advantage
of commercial standards and data-centric strategies, as well as specific
initiatives such as JTRS and the MIP, we should be able to achieve such
capabilities and improve interoperability even within constrained resources.
Mr. Cunningham’s six principles for networks (build to a common architecture,
establish a framework that is responsive to operational needs, maintain
trust in activities on the network, set up the network as an enabler that
allows capabilities to be used better, promote interoperability, and keep
interoperability affordable), coupled with the prerequisite of addressing
security issues during the design phase, also promote common objectives.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> The future, however, is likely to see increased pressures on security spending,
not only in Europe but also in the United States, after several years of
exceptional growth. Clear choices will be offered between continuing traditional
investments in platforms and moving to place more emphasis on the network
and its capabilities. We need to make sure that the implications of the
choices are understood fully.
</FONT></p>
<h3 ALIGN="CENTER" class="style88"><span class="style69">Recognizing the Dangers and Addressing Them Head On</span> </h3>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> What back-ups are needed as we move toward network-centric solutions? Recently,
for example, a military base had several of its computer networks go down,
but the phones still worked. If, in the future, the telephone systems on
the base were converted to Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP), a commercial
trend in which phone calls ride over the computer network, then the back-up
telephone service might not be available if a similar incident occurred
again. As we take advantage of network-centric trends, we need to be aware
of what fallback solutions, if any, will be needed. As someone put it,
how long do we keep fitting sails on the steamships?
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> In order to manage the radio-frequency spectrum, we need to be aware of
several things:
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> New intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance systems (ISRs) such
as unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) can collect enormous amounts of information.
They transmit it via very-wide-bandwidth datalinks, some of which exceed
250 megabits/second. In addition, mobile digitized forces will need to
be connected robustly to exchange information on the battlefield, and advanced
techniques such as “frequency hopping” may mean that information is sent
over several different frequencies in a short period of time. All of this
will require access to large amounts of the radio-frequency spectrum, and
use of the spectrum will be much more dynamic than it has been in the past.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Today, the spectrum is managed through a series of fixed allocations of
bandwidth that often vary between countries or regions. In other words,
a frequency band in the U.S. may have one purpose while in Europe it could
have another. In international meetings, such as the World Radio-Communications
Conference (WRC), the U.S. and Europe sometimes find themselves at odds.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> The movement of NATO (and potentially the EU) to a more expeditionary posture
suggests that there will have to be close cooperation with Alliance partners
and coalition members on spectrum use. It also turns out that there are
new technologies and new policy approaches that can facilitate more efficient
use of the radio frequency spectrum. We should explore opportunities to
cooperate in both policy and technology issues in as many of these areas
as possible.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Taking advantage of commercial trends means that we will make more use
of commercial off-the-shelf technologies (COTS). Over the next several
years, such technologies are likely to become more secure through a variety
of market pressures and other incentives. However, market forces are not
likely to make software strong enough to withstand dedicated attacks by
well-funded, persistent, state-sponsored adversaries. Accordingly, there
will almost certainly be a need for government-only solutions (GOTS) to
support those special functions that won’t be generated by the marketplace.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> New technologies, such as wireless, bring great increases in performance
and convenience. But they also introduce vulnerabilities that are real
and potentially serious. The risks must be balanced systematically against
the gains in determining policy choices. For example, the DoD recently
issued a policy statement on the use of commercial wireless. This is a
significant step forward, but also contains important restrictions, such
as the requirement for using strong identification and authentication,
issuing mandates concerning the use of approved encryption, and prohibiting
their use in classified environment. These restrictions reflect both the
opportunities the technology brings as well as the very real vulnerabilities
associated with it.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> We must address these kinds of questions head on and early, and not sweep
them under the rug hoping they will go away. Because they won’t.
</FONT></p>
<h2 ALIGN="CENTER" class="style71"><B><span class="style69">STRATEGIC IMPLICATIONS OF NETWORK-ENABLED CAPABILITIES</span></B><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"><B> </B>
</FONT></h2>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Issues such as the ones described above too often are considered the province
of technical specialists. But they frequently involve strategic issues
that deserve serious attention at ministerial levels, for several reasons:
</FONT></p>
<UL class="style71">
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Information and communications technologies are enormously powerful. They
are changing the very fabric of our societies, the way we do business,
and the way our young people (our future force structure) think and interact.
Security-force leaders need to understand them in a broad political and
economic context.
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> These capabilities can improve the effectiveness of stabilization operations,
especially if introduced early.
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Key resource choices need to be made between platform-centric and network-centric
approaches.
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Networks are most effective when they are as broad as possible; they may
therefore cross traditional boundaries between agencies and even between
nations.
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> Many different sources of information need to be fused together, but some
of this can’t be done without changes in policies or even laws.
</FONT></p>
</LI>
<LI>
<p><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> The U.S. alone doesn’t have all the answers to these issues. We need support
from our Alliance partners in working through solutions.
</FONT></p>
</LI>
</UL>
<h3 ALIGN="CENTER" class="style71"><span class="style69"><B>CONCLUDING REMARKS</B></span><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"><B> </B>
</FONT></h3>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> To sum up:
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"> <span class="style94">First,</span><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> information and communications technologies are tremendously powerful,
as noted above. Their implications need to be considered in a broad political,
economic, and even diplomatic context, not just on a technical basis.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"> <span class="style96">Second</span><span class="style90">,</span><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> the introduction of modern information and communications technologies,
even short of full-fledged network-enabled capabilities, can have a direct,
positive impact on the outcome of stabilization operations. Lessons learned
from Afghanistan, Iraq, and other areas suggest strongly that connectivity
and collaboration tools should be brought to bear on stabilization operations
within days or weeks following the end of combat.
</FONT></p>
<UL>
<LI class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17">This would allow us to establish communications quickly with key parties,
collaborate more closely with partners, and provide coalition forces with
the same information superiority that they demand during combat. Moreover,
having these capabilities is essential to the effectiveness of indigenous
security services (because it will improve their command and control),
to enabling the information flows that are the life-blood of democratic
societies, and for helping to attract foreign investment as a country rebuilds.
</FONT></LI>
<LI class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17">Therefore, while our planning in the past has largely focused on combat
operations (Phases II and III), pre-war planning (the so-called Phase I)
must expressly address the introduction of these capabilities early in
the stabilization period (Phase IV). This will happen only through senior
leadership’s involvement.
</FONT></LI>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> <span class="style94">Third,</span> the new capabilities will not become available unless senior leaders
decide to fund them. In a resource-constrained environment, the natural
inclination will be to pursue traditional platform-centric or manpower-centric
approaches instead of network-centric ones. However, without the networks,
troops and stand-alone platforms will be much less effective, interoperability
will be impeded, and transformation delayed. But the needed resource allocations
won’t be made without ministerial-level attention.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> <span class="style94">Fourth,</span> the broader networks generally are more effective than the smaller
ones; in addition to serving joint forces, the larger networks also should
include coalition partners. In fact, some countries are choosing to extend
their networks beyond traditional security establishments to include law
enforcement, intelligence agencies, and providers of open source information.
In certain cases, such as to protect critical national infrastructures
such as power and water, public-private sector partnerships will be needed.
But, again, such cross-agency outreach decisions require the personal involvement
of government’s most senior officials
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> <span class="style94">Fifth, </span>what is being shared is a wide range of information, not just intelligence
or military data. Rules for collecting, processing, storing, and disseminating
such information may involve cultural, policy, and perhaps even legal issues.
The establishment of rules to encourage “need to share” information and
eliminate “hoarding” demands changes in thinking that can come only from
the highest levels. The need to design security into new networks from
the outset also will not come without senior-level insistence.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> All of these issues are tied into the political fabric of the Alliance,
and indeed to its future effectiveness. We in the U.S. don’t have all the
answers, and we need your help, feedback, and opinions as well as your
support in implementing these critical transformations.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><FONT COLOR="#1f1a17"> The reality is that information and communications technologies are having
major impacts on societies across the globe, and will inevitably affect
policy and strategy as well as technical areas. Network-enabled capabilities
reflect the application of these transformational changes in the national
security sphere, and they need to be given serious consideration within
the nations of the transatlantic alliance. I ask that ministers and other
senior personnel expand their thinking beyond traditional approaches to
include these factors that are rapidly reshaping our world. Together we
can look forward to an exciting future of dramatically increased, usable,
network-enabled capabilities that benefit us all.
</FONT></p>
<p ALIGN="LEFT" class="style71"><span class="style90"><a href="../../index.html">csdr home page</a>| <a href="#top">top of page </a><span class="style9">|</span> </span><span class="style43">©2003, 2004 center for strategic decision research</span> </p>
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