Combat and capability:military trends since 9/11

摘要

By 11 September 2001, Western armed forces were 12 years removed from those that had, during the Cold War between the late 1940s and 1989, generally trained for potential war in Europe. The period from 1989 to 2001 saw them engaged on a wide range of operations. By 2001, these forces were confident they could conduct peace-support operations as well as combat operations against state actors. At the same time, some military professionals and analysts considered that the 'Revolution in Military Affairs' (RMA) would combine greatly improved surveillance, communications and precision-strike weapons, resulting in superior knowledge of the enemy and better targeted and more effective strikes.