ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY

The Army should rethink how it is organized, trained and equipped to prepare for the fast-moving, multidomain battles of the future, Col. Yi Se Gwon writes in a new Association of the U.S. Army landpower paper. 

Gwon, who is chief of staff for the Army’s Multi-Domain Operations Directorate, says command posts below theater level must be prepared in the future to operate at a faster pace to identify and exploit enemy vulnerabilities. 

Without the resources it needs, the Army could not sustain global commitments, maintain unit readiness or push forward with its modernization efforts, senior Army leaders said. 

“We’re going to try to protect readiness at all costs, we’re going to try to protect as much modernization as we can at all costs, but there’s not a lot of room to maneuver in the Army budget,” said acting Army Secretary John Whitley.

The Biden administration continues to work on its fiscal 2022 budget request, so the Army’s budget is still not finalized, Whitley said April 27.

Commanders on the future battlefield will find themselves racing against adversaries that are faster and more capable than ever before, a senior Army leader said.

“The ability to sense first, to understand first, to decide first, which gives you the ability to act faster than a future opponent, is going to be a significant advantage for any commander on the future battlefield,” said Gen. Mike Murray, commander of Army Futures Command.

The Army is teaming up with the other services as it gears up for Project Convergence 21, the next big event in its ongoing effort to test new and developing technologies. 

Led by Army Futures Command and announced in 2020, Project Convergence is a series of demonstrations and experiments that Gen. Mike Murray, commander of Futures Command, has called the Army’s “campaign of learning.” 

The first event took place last fall at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona.

In looming competition with China, one of the biggest risks to the U.S. is getting involved in unnecessary skirmishes, an internationally recognized geopolitical strategist said during an Army-sponsored Mad Scientist webinar. 

George Friedman, founder and chairman of Geopolitical Futures and former CEO of Stratfor, described China as “terrified” the U.S. would economically hurt it by blocking its ports in a conflict. For this reason, China wants to face the U.S., but not in any open conflict, because “they cannot afford to lose,” Friedman said. 

The Army must continue the work it has begun to update its fleet of helicopters with aircraft that can fly further and faster across the future battlefield, several top Army aviation experts said.

“Modernization is an imperative,” Brig. Gen. Robert Barrie, Aviation program executive officer, said March 17 as he appeared on a panel during the Association of the U.S. Army’s Global Force Next virtual conference. 

“I don't see it as a choice,” Barrie said. “It’s a matter of us prioritizing those efforts.”

As the Army undertakes its most extensive transformation effort in decades, the service’s goal is not to get into a fight, the commander of Army Futures Command said.

“Overmatch is about fighting and winning, but overmatch is also about the ability to deter,” said Gen. Mike Murray.

The second day of Global Force Next, the Association of the U.S. Army’s three-day virtual conference, features a keynote address by Gen. Mike Murray, commanding general of Army Futures Command. 

This year’s theme is “The U.S. Army: Protecting Tomorrow Through Persistent Modernization.” Presentations throughout the event will focus on the Army’s transformation and modernization efforts and include updates from Army Futures Command’s eight cross-functional teams. 

As the Army continues to refine its Multi-Domain Operations concept, the service is seeking to start a conversation about what the future may look like—and what kind of world soldiers will find themselves operating in.

From a world where the U.S. and China compete for global primacy to a future of persistent instability and conflict, the Army must think “rigorously and creatively” about the future, Gen. Mike Murray, commanding general of Army Futures Command, writes in the foreword of a pamphlet produced by the command.

While recognizing that presidential elections can often mean many changes, Army Futures Command's commander said he expects most of the Army’s priorities are likely to stay the same.

“I remain committed, as long as the Army will have me, to maintain that momentum regardless of the upcoming changes with the new administration,” said Gen. Mike Murray, speaking at a Jan. 25 webinar hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “Our modernization priorities have remained consistent, and they will remain consistent.”