Amid ongoing wars and political conflicts in Europe and the Middle East, and rising tensions among major powers in the Indo-Pacific, armed forces worldwide are actively rebuilding their capabilities and expanding educational programs for officers and military personnel. Seasoned political decision-makers and defence planners understand that creating highly qualified military units and ensuring their effective operation through multiple exercises takes several years. However, societal urgency often leads to significantly larger defence budgets, enabling a relatively rapid scaling up of forces. Concurrently, ongoing conflicts compel defence planners and educators to continuously re-evaluate existing doctrines and warfare strategies.
These developments raise critical questions about balancing size and quality and discerning which new practices and technologies to prioritize. How can we swiftly bolster the size of defence forces without compromising their eventual quality? How should we interpret preliminary observations from conflicts in Ukraine, the Gaza Strip, and other regions to accurately assess their impact on future warfare?
The rapid increase in defence budgets and the expansion of military organizations pose challenges at all levels, affecting military education, force generation, and long-term defence planning, whether nationally or within alliances like NATO. These changes also impact defence management, command and control, integration of new military technologies, and the refinement of warfighting concepts in accordance with national and international law.
Join us as we explore these pressing issues, seeking to strike the right balance between expanding military capabilities and maintaining the high standards necessary for effective defence forces.
