Lessons From Ukraine: Command Posts Must Be More Agile (From 1945)

Without question, the war in Ukraine is full of lessons for observers and analysts willing to learn. Many of the takeaways focus on the impacts on warfare of new or advanced technologies and systems. These include the effects of long-range precision strike systems, the growing role of unmanned systems, the importance of air and missile defenses, and the need for highly sophisticated electronic warfare capabilities. One lesson for which sufficient data already exists is the vulnerability of traditional command posts (CPs). Ukrainian forces have demonstrated an ability to use Western long-range precision fires systems to strike Russian CPs rapidly and effectively. They have also been quite successful in using electronic support measures and classic eavesdropping techniques to target high-ranking Russian officers. Ongoing efforts by armies around the world to shorten sensor-to-shooter timelines will almost certainly sound the death knell for the old ways of organizing and operating CPs. I have written more on this subject here.