The initiative is the lifeblood of military victory. To win a war, both sides strive for the initiative and avoid being passive. Under the conditions of informationized and intelligent warfare, grasping the initiative in combat has new requirements, new connotations, and new characteristics.
New capabilities replace the old; the initiative in combat is based on the new. “New things are strong.” The new essential requirement is to achieve a “differential advantage” in warfare through the “generational gap” between the old and the new. The mode of operation must be new. With the accelerated evolution of warfare forms, new types of combat styles are emerging. Future warfare will exhibit characteristics of “technology-driven, all-domain interaction, intelligent infiltration, and asymmetric diffusion,” which will have combat effectiveness that is superior to traditional combat styles through dimensionality reduction strikes. Continuous strengthening of technological empowerment, intelligent empowerment, and algorithmic empowerment is necessary to promote innovation and transformation in combat styles, occupy new advantages in combat styles, and win the initiative in future wars. The combat philosophy must be new. The combat philosophy is a rational understanding of the essence of war, the laws of warfare, and combat methods. It combines the practice of war and the development of the times to scientifically foresee future wars, design future warfare effectively, continuously innovate combat philosophies, and leverage advanced concepts to guide war practices, leading future warfare. The combat equipment must be new. By systematically optimizing research and development processes, integrating resources, and innovating technologies, the development of new types of weapons and equipment can be promoted, shortening the iteration cycle of equipment development while accelerating the adaptation speed of new weapons and equipment, deeply tapping into their combat potential, and achieving hard victories in weapon performance and technical parameters through the new advantages of weaponry.
Speed can overcome slowness; the initiative in combat relies on speed. “The essence of troops lies in speed.” The essential requirement for speed is to gain an advantage in velocity, creating a “fast defeats slow” situation, thereby winning the initiative. Combat preparation must be quick. “Preparation leads to success; lack of preparation leads to failure.” It is essential to strengthen the awareness among officers and soldiers that “war will break out tonight,” solidly carry out practical training for combat readiness, and ensure proper allocation and replenishment of materials, achieving comprehensive, detailed, and thoughtful preparations to complete combat readiness ahead of the enemy and create a “pre-positioned advantage” in combat preparation. Combat layout must be quick. Comprehensive consideration of strategic objectives, enemy and friendly situations, and battlefield environments is necessary, fully anticipating possible combat scenarios, meticulously designing combat plans, troop deployments, and coordination schemes, and completing combat layout ahead of the enemy. Seizing time and space must be quick. “Seize the opportunity and act without delay.” In combat, it is essential to leverage advantages in manpower, firepower, and speed to seize critical moments and key nodes, creating a situation where points break through surfaces, achieving a high combat effectiveness-to-cost ratio.
Precision can overcome roughness; the initiative in combat stems from precision. “Troops are not numerous but precise.” The essential requirement for precision is to achieve refined grouping of combat forces and meticulous control of the combat process through technological empowerment. Accurate calculation and planning. Based on big data and artificial intelligence, “battlefield precision calculation” requires dynamic quantitative analysis of resource consumption, combat risks, and action effects, avoiding the extensive model of “spare no effort” in traditional warfare, achieving combat objectives at minimal costs. For example, optimizing firepower allocation through intelligent algorithms to reduce redundant strikes. Precise perception and strikes. Utilizing multi-sensor fusion, smart munitions, and unmanned platforms to achieve precise control over target identification, tracking, and damage throughout the process. For instance, intelligent munitions can adjust trajectories based on real-time data, reducing strike errors to centimeter levels. Fine coordination and support. Relying on network information systems to achieve seamless links of cross-domain resources, such as logistics support through intelligent demand forecasting and dynamic resource matching, achieving “point-to-point” precise delivery, avoiding the lag and waste of traditional support, thus realizing high-efficiency combat support.
Superiority can overcome inferiority; the initiative in combat is achieved through superiority. “Attack the enemy’s weaknesses with your strengths.” The essential requirement for superiority is to “concentrate strengths to win,” emphasizing the creation of overall advantages through system integration, efficiency release, and resource optimization to form sustainable suppression capabilities and build a multi-dimensional strategic advantage system. Forming advantages in combat systems. By constructing a cross-domain collaborative network supported by technology, breaking down the boundaries of weapon platforms, and shortening the kill chain closure time; widely adopting blockchain technology for “decentralization,” achieving autonomous networking and dynamic reconstruction of combat units, compressing system recovery time, and transitioning to a “systemic emergence.” Forming advantages in combat effectiveness. In future warfare, the probability of winning through sheer numbers will decrease, while the characteristics of defeating the enemy through quality and efficiency will become increasingly evident. Therefore, it is essential to accurately release combat effectiveness against combat targets, achieving effectiveness multiplication and forming an “instant multi-dimensional high-intensity” overwhelming advantage. For example, improving the accuracy of battlefield target recognition through AI assistance and replacing linear “kill chains” with an all-domain “kill web” to achieve synchronized release of multi-domain forces, enhancing strike precision and damage levels. Forming advantages in resource allocation. In future warfare, resource allocation will shift towards “dynamic optimization.” It is crucial to focus on real-time optimization of resource allocation, ensuring resources are allocated reasonably to maximize combat effects from unit resources. For instance, utilizing intelligent systems to allocate various support resources effectively, leveraging resource allocation advantages to ensure every support resource is fully utilized, ultimately achieving an effective leap from “logistics support” to “combat power engine.” (Zhang Baoshuai)
