IAF and asymmetric war
By Sharad Dixit
Eighth of October, The Air Force Day, approaches again. The ceremonials planned
had been grand. Events of Black Tuesday’ however, cast a shadow. The
preoccupation of much of the world with possible repercussions caused the
cancellation of the proposed ‘Fleet Review, a-la the Navy. Celebrations
nevertheless would proceed as normal, with much painting of trees and towns -
red invariably.
The occasion could also be one of introspection, of assessing where we have been
and are headed. Of our objectives, our capabilities, our plans and their
compatibility.
We read much about our modernisation - the SU-30, The MiG- 21 upgrade,
development of missiles, fighter aircraft, helicopters, un-manned vehicles,
communication systems and a plethora of gizmos. We also hear of acquisitions
including mid- air refueling capability, Airborne Warning And Control System
(AWACS) or its variants, jet trainers, long-range radars, anti- missile systems
etc.
Despite our complaints of lack of resources, we are sinking a lot of money into
military hardware, its development and acquisition. The specifics of military
spending, however, is not the focus here. It is a glance at our concept of war
in the foreseeable future.
The dominance of ideas/ideals propagated by the elite - be it national or
international - is widely accepted. So it is in the field of warfare. The more
publicised recent conflicts (Korea onwards) have all involved the US and other
developed nations. Other conflicts though more savage, bizarre and unrelenting
have got less footage for want of an affluent media. The concepts that have
evolved from the ‘Ware with Fanfare, invariably highlight ‘Human Rights,’
‘Innocent Civilians’, ‘Collateral Damage’ etc. This is because the military and
intellectual elite of the developed nations would like us (the third world) to
fight future battles on their terms.
The explanation lies in the societal organisation of the developed capitalist
countries. The states are ruled not by the Bushes and the Blairs. Nor are they
ruled by the people. The power lies with the major corporations whose
representatives form governments and pursue their economic interests.
These would not always coincide with the interests of tranquility and stability.
Wars are lucrative business. Witness the killings made by several petrol pump
owners in the wake of the WTC bombings, The claims on governments by airlines
and insurance companies, the uncertainty in the oil market and of course the
machinations of the wily Musharraf, who has already manoeuvred sanctions, has
been promised aid, gained importance as the sole interlocutor and marginalized
India while grossly multiplying the threat to the latter.
The people in the rich nations however, are not power-less. Public opinion and
the Justice System are effective checks on the wilder schemes. Thus the loss of
their military personnel in distant lands for unknown causes is no longer
acceptable. They are not really interested whether sub-human multitudes in
places with unpronounceable names massacre each other or not. Remember President
Bush during his election campaign? He did not know who India’s PM or his
counterpart in Pakistan was. Hence the compulsion of the US (in particular) to
fight antiseptic wars. Their concept as verbalised recently was ‘'to launch a $2
million missile to destroy a ten dollar tent and kill a camel". They cannot
justify human losses. The projection of Humanity’ and avoidance of ‘Collateral
Damage’ follows. Naturally they expect the victims to mimic the same route and
get slaughtered.
‘Human Rights’ are similarly eulogised. There is much talk of Iraqi children not
having private toilets or a tap in their house. Legalities of holding criminals
and terrorists are debated. ‘Proof’ is sought to question subversives. It would
be impossible to explain the dichotomy to children in India or Bangla Desh, who
have no house, let alone access to drinking water.
Some in the Third World have recognised this. They send shivers down rich
spines. Saddam terrorised the West with, hostages meant to create human shields.
He threatened Chemical and Biological warfare. He pursued Ecological Warfare
while setting Kuwaiti oil wells afire. Terrorism was an official policy of the
government, enunciated by Tariq Aziz. Milosevic neutralised all the allied plans
by bribing a French official and anticipating attacks. He embarrassed the US
hugely by colluding with China to send disinformation regarding the Chinese
consulate. The US is still paying in diplomatic terms for its faux pas of
bombing the (empty) building.
He esculated the war in Kosovo the moment coalition attacks began, creating a
nightmare of disaster control.
The premise therefore is that war cannot be ‘partial’. Each side must fight as
beet as it can. With the weapons it has on terms of its choosing, at the time
and place of its choosing. India needs to recognise this. The jargon is
‘Asymmetric Warfare’. We have suffered for decades at the hands of sponsored
terrorists, indigenous dissidents and plain crooks. The enemy loses little as he
is financed by narco-terror that costs him nothing, Indian finances diverted
through coercion/subversion of government servants and politicians, and by
extortion. The governments lose little as the casualties do not form a
substantial vote bank. Individuals in power can be won over through a host of
delightful means. The loss is inevitably the Services’, and the common man’s.
Future wars that we may expect would not be W.W.-II types with an identified
enemy. We would need to fight unconventional ware with appropriate responses, or
rather initiatives. Modern third world combat trends exploit society. They claim
the benefits while undermining its structure. The culpability cannot then be
restricted only to those physically acting. The ideologues, promoters,
harbourers, beneficiaries and even accessories who fail to report anti-national
activities must be severely punished. The state must not indulge this criminal
element by housing and feeding it for years at public expense. Else every poor
man may find this a convenient method for comfortable survival.
The IAF must redefine its role in this context. The creation of a monolithic
monster that is meant to serve its Personnel, Administrative, Logistical and
other supporting staff must be replaced by an effective, lean, mean fighting
machine. Quantity must be replaced by quality and synergy. Weapon systems should
of course be capable of dealing with the conventional threat.- Their efficacy
however must be ensured through the creation of the necessary infrastructure,
maintaining the volume and quality of manpower required, devolving power rather
than centralising, and most importantly, acquiring task specific weapons. The
doctrine must be reviewed to make it decisively offensive. We must not need
weeks to react in support of the Army in future Kargils. We must be able to act
punitively, perhaps more importantly, in non-conventional situations. This would
require specialist weapons and critically, the political resolve to accept
‘Collateral Damage,. This would never be acceptable to devious politicians.
The resolve therefore will have to be forcibly extracted through aggressive
persuasion, coercion and punishment of individuals reluctant to act decisively,
willing to sacrifice the law abiding, the conscientious and the duty-bound to
expediency.
The IAF has weathered many storm. It has the best wishes of the people of this
country- well, many of them anyway. We ardently wish that it forces issues and
creates a resurgent culture that would best serve the nation.
PTI Feature
India must be on its guard
By H L Kapoor
The United States of America has declared war on terrorism. The killing of 7,000
people and destruction and demolition of the World Trade Towers and part of the
Pentagon were acts of unprecedented terrorist crime. The US is consolidating its
position and seeking support from friendly countries to tackle terrorism. It is
expected to strike as soon as Osama bin Laden's whereabouts in Afghanistan are
pinpointed. On the other hand, Afghanistan under Taliban has spoken in
unequivocal terms of waging a "Jehad" (holy war) against USA, if it goes ahead
with retaliatory strikes against its people.
Before a month was out, a suicide bomber of Pak-based Jaish-e-Mohammad blew
himself up at the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly building. The attack has taken a
toll of over 30 people, including 14 security personnel.
Tension is building up with every passing moment. In case of conflict, India has
reasons to fear wore attacks and cannot lower its guard. It will have to remain
in a state of complete preparedness and there cannot be any room for
complacency. While the Army, which is the backbone of the country's defence, is
expected to assume responsibility along the borders, the police and other
paramilitary forces must prepare themselves to maintain internal security and
law and order so that anti-national forces do not exploit the situation.
Our top priority should be protection of vital installations throughout the
country. These include our nuclear plants, dams, water reservoirs, power houses,
telecommunication systems etc. The Central Secretariat, Rashtrapati Bhawan,
Prime Minister's House and the Parliament building are some of the places which
need special protection, apart from the security of the WIPs.
Likewise, State capitals throughout the country should be on the priority list
of respective Governments to ensure proper communication systems on the spur of
the moment with the Centre and their counterparts in various states.
Water resources must be continuously kept under watch. Anti-national elements
usually destroy the reservoirs to create chaos or mix poisonous substances in
water to cause maximum damage. Terrorists trained and armed by Pakistan's ISI
are hellbent on killing innocent people to create a serious situation in the
country.
We are already facing a proxy war at the hands of Pakistan. Those arrested have
not hidden the fact of Pakistan's complicity. There are credible reports that
top military officials have been responsible for training terrorist outfits to
undertake subversive operations against India.
Terrorists main objective is to aid and abet anti-nationals, help secessionists,
create disorder, kill innocent people and generate a fear psychosis. They are
also intent on disintegrating the country, creating communal disturbances by
damaging religious places or by killing members of a particular community. They
have been indulging in kidnapping of important people.
Historical places like the Red Fort, Jama Masjid, Taj Mahal, some gurdwaras in
Amritsar, Anandpur Sahib, Paonta Sahib; Sisganj and Rakabganj gurdwaras in Delhi
as well as Durgiana temple in Amritsar are targets of the terrorists. Some of
the churches are also on their list.
Important dams like Bhakra Nangal and bridges too call for vigil. Other places
on their list are airports, fire stations, police headquarters, hospitals and
high - rise building, including that of newspaper offices throughout the
country.
Religious fanatics are at the forefront of this campaign. It is of utmost
importance that the potential communal agitators are kept under watch as also
the anti-social elements. Minority communities authorities and ambulance vans
must be kept on maximum alert to provide prompt medical aid to the affected
people.
The causes behind communal disturbances must be carefully studies. To combat
such disturbances, police ought to know the factors responsible for these. Any
incidents, howsoever innocuous looking, involving members of different
communities, must be attended to at a senior level from the very beginning.
Communal tensions usually erupt from objectionable speeches and writing, dispute
over places of worships and their desecration.
The intelligence machinery must be geared up. Collection of intelligence through
under-cover sources and information about the plans of subversive elements is
the prerequisite for any successful operation.
Terrorist outfits in the name of Jehad have been able to enlist the support
separatists. The Lashkar-i-Toiba found it easy to whip up communal trouble and
create a sense of insecurity. L-e-T terrorists are more sophisticated in their
training and as such more ruthless. They are better armed and have set up their
own intelligence network in the Valley to have an upper hand on Indian
intelligence units.
It is, therefore, imperative that police and security forces should be armed
with latest weaponry and their intelligence system be improved. It is a matter
of serious concern and as such adequate measures need to be taken to counter the
espionage and sabotage activities of outfits like Jaish-e-Mohammad and L.e.T in
J&K.
Further, the intelligence agencies must work in unison. None of these should try
to eclipse the other. Terrorists and subversives are trained by vested interests
to create chaos in big cities and State capitals. They choose such areas, as it
is easier to whip up communal trouble there.
Terrorists usually buy information and with the help of their chosen people mix
with ordinary folks for sometime before implementing their nefarious plans. It
will be imperative to keep an eye on potential trouble - makers. Their list
should be ready with the police. And all places like hotels, sarais, guest
houses, houses of dancing girls etc. must be kept under constant vigilance. Well
prepared is well armed.
-- CNF