The Army is unveiling its new operating concept this month at the Association of the U.S. Army annual meeting in Washington, D.C.
The strategy will have far-reaching effects, from basic to the war zone, and will influence decision-makers for years to come.
The slogan is "Win in a complex world," and the idea is that the Army must be scalable for any terrain, any domain and any mission. The next war could be in a city, or it could be in the desert. Soldiers may fight alongside sailors and Marines, or they could be dispatched in small teams.
The mission could mean combat, disaster relief or humanitarian assistance.
The rollout of the new strategy is timely, if not a little late. Soldiers are preparing to protect against Ebola in Africa, fight the Islamic State group in Iraq, and train foreign militaries across Europe. And oh, by the way, there are still thousands of soldiers in Afghanistan.
It is a complex world out there, and it was about time the Army shed its AirLand Battle strategy, born in the 1980s to battle the Soviets with tanks.
The big problem remains money. Army leadership seems resigned to the fact Congress' inaction will lead to another round of cuts under sequestration. If the Army's new vision is to be prepared for any mission, anywhere, it needs the manpower and the money. Retired Gen. Gordon Sullivan, AUSA's president, compares Congress inaction to the "the sound of silence," and that silence is deafening.
Sullivan says he will keep beating the drum against sequestration. Congress cannot continue to turn a deaf ear to the reality of the Army's needs in an ever more dangerous world.
