FoG:IS
Civil-Military Relations
in the Information Age
Ralf Bendrath, Berlin
FoG:IS
Forschungsgruppe
Informationsgesellschaft und
Sicherheitspolitik
Research Group
Information Society and
Security Policy
International School on Disarmament and Research on Conflicts
ISODARCO
Trento/Italy, August 2002
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Overview
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What are civil-military relations?
Are they in a crisis?
Are they changing?
Some theory (only some!)
Examples
 C4ISR / “system of systems”
 critical infrastructure protection
 information warfare
Conclusion
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Civil-Military Relations (CMR)
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Traditionally understood as:
 relations between military commanders and
the civilian government
 clear distinction btw. civil and military
spheres, roles, duties etc.
 professional identity of the soldier as the
exclusive “manager of organized violence” (S.
Huntington: The Soldier and the State)
 “Politicians decide about war, Soldiers wage
war”
 aim: civilian control of the military
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CMR in a Crisis? Not really!
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1990s: “Crisis of CMR” all over
but: just some generals too much
interested in politics and some president
not too much interested in war
simple solutions: fire the CJCS, elect a
new president, throw money at it, ...
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“We give special
thanks to Mr. Bush and
all the allies:
the British, the French,
the Egyptians, CNN.”
A Man from Kuwait, 1991
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CMR in a Crisis? Well...
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maybe not that simple?
political impact of military action
in times of worldwide media
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“If you spend all day on a
computer typing,
that warrior ethos goes
away, and pretty soon
you´re just a diary clerk or a
supply guy.”
Master Gunnery Sgt. Cardo Urso,
chief instructor at the Marine Corps´
Martial Arts Training Program
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“Our future leaders of command
must understand the
interrelationships among
military power, diplomacy, and
economic pressure, as well as
the role of various government
agencies and nongovernmental actors, in
achieving our security
objectives.”
Joint Chiefs of Staff: Joint Vision
2010, Washington D.C. 1996
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“IO greatly expands the
commander’s battlespace,
including interaction with the
media, industry, joint forces,
multinational forces and
computer / satellite
networks worldwide.”
Arneson/Starry, FM 100-6:
Information Operations, in:
Military Review, 1996
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“We are not in the
business of killing.”
General Norman Schwarzkopf
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CMR in a Crisis? Well...
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post-heroic / no direct combat / tooth-to-tail
military profession & exclusivity
C4ISR / micro-management
intelligence
information warfare
national security and defense / CIP
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Information age: systemic crisis of CMR?
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Theory I: Crisis
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Crisis of
 man (identity / the subject)
 the state (networked state)
 war (postmodern, info, cyber, hightech, hyperreal, ...)
Crisis of modernity?
 ”The most significant fact
about civil-military relations is
the modernity of the concept”
(Amos Perlmutter, Political Roles and Military
Rulers, London 1981)
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Theory II: The system of CMR
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Crisis as a property of the system
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individual
 military profession
 role / identity / exclusivity
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social agents:
 state, military - and others?
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systemic norms:
 civilian control of the military -
what else?
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Change - What Change?
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change within the military
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change within the system of CMR
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change of the system of CMR
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Examples
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C4ISR / “system of systems”
for conventional war
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critical infrastructure protection
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information warfare
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C4ISR / “System of Systems”
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Network of everything
 from individual soldier to White House
 political micro-management
 the end of mission tactics
• less command, more control
 Air Force without pilots?
 FOFI for the single soldier
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Real-time
 computer-aided warfare
 formal models of professional war
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C4ISR / “System of Systems”
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Computer-mediated perception
 reducing complexity
 dissemination, need-to-know
 simulation & over-specialization
 C4KISR: control by machines?
 Integration of intelligence systems
 open source intelligence
 tactical info for political bargains
 intelligence units closer to fighters
 Predator: CIA-operators as soldiers?
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C4ISR / “System of Systems”
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Civil providers
 IT-contractors on the battlefield
 NMCI example
 post-heroic military profession?
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CIMIC
 info-sharing with INGOs & NGOs
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Critical Infrastructure
Protection
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New enemies and threats
 Teenagers?
 Hacktivists?
 Criminals?
 Terrorists?
 States?
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Attack from at home or abroad?
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Critical Infrastructure
Protection
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Who is in charge?
 Military?
 Law enforcement agencies?
 Intelligence?
 Owners of the infrastructures?
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What´s it in the end?
 IT security
 IT forensics
 coordination
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Critical Infrastructure
Protection
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protect your own network!
info-sharing between LEA, Intelligence,
private companies, IT-Sec community
new complexity
what is security?
 national security?
 economic security?
 IT-security?
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„national security“ obsolete for
transnational networks?
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Information Warfare
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distinctions become blurry:
Targets: military / civilian?
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Joint Chiefs of Staff: JP 3-13, Joint Doctrine for
Information Operations, Washington D.C.,
October 1998, p. I-17
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Information Warfare
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distinctions become blurry:
Targets: military / civilian?
Time: war - peace?
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Joint Chiefs of Staff: JP 3-13, Joint Doctrine for
Information Operations, Washington D.C.,
October 1998, p. II-8
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Information Warfare
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Targets: military / civilian?
Time: war - peace?
Space: battlespace / info-environment /
cyberspace?
Operational: IO central, not only support
Identity: hackers, journalists, ...?
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Info-Ops = Counterinsurgency?
“Low-intensity conflict is basically
a struggle for people´s minds. (...)
In such a battle, psychological
operations are more important
than fire power (...) Insurgencies,
therefore, are primarily political
and psychological struggles;
military considerations are
secondary.”
U.S. Army TRADOC: Joint Low-Intensity
Conflict Project Final Report, Vol. 1: Analytical
Review of Low-Intensity Conflict, 1986
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Information Warfare
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Soft Power / Noopolitik
Who targets information?
 State Department?
 White House?
 Pentagon PA?
 Pentagon Info-Ops?
 VoA?
 CNN?
 MTV?
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parlamentary & public control?
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Change of CMR?
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Change within the military
 end of mission tactics
 de- / re-centralization
 new tasks
• info-ops
• CIP
 more tail than tooth
 post-heroic soldiers
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change already halfway done
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Change of CMR?
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Change within the system of CMR
 political fine-tuning of operations
 but: some are like covert operations
 parlamentary oversight?
 politically / culturally educated soldiers
 End of the “American Way of War”
 intelligence closer to shooters
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still in the process of change
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Change of CMR?
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Change of the system of CMR
 CIP: domestic / international security?
 info-ops: non-physical violence
 Soft Power
 the end of war as we know it
 cf. Foucault on domestic violence
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much resistance against change
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It could be just junk mail, Colonel, or
the beginning of a major enemy attack...
FoG:IS
Thanks for listening !
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Dipl. Pol. Ralf Bendrath
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mailto: ralf.bendrath@fogis.de
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http://www.fogis.de
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http://userpage.fu-berlin.de/~bendrath
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http:// archive.infopeace.de