The Warriors and Weapons on the New Battlefields

Contents: Preface. 1. Information based warfare : the new battlefields. 2. Tactical nuclear weapons and missile defence systems. 3. Computer warfare and battlefield information networks. 4. Asymmetric warfare. 5. Integrated cyber space warfare. 6. Nanotechnology weapons on future battlefields. 7. Military movement toward space weapons. 8. Drone warfare the new battlefield. Bibliography. Index. 

The innovation of more advanced and autonomous ICTs has engendered a new revolution in military affairs, which encompasses nations use of ICTs in both cyberspace and the physical battlefield to wage war against their adversaries. The three most prevalent revolutions in military affairs come in the form of cyber attacks, autonomous robots and communication management. Nuclear weapons played a pivotal role in international security during the latter half of the twentieth century. Despite rapid increases in communications, transportation, and weapons technology, there has been no large-scale strategic conflict since the Second World War. Nuclear weapons, as the most destructive instruments ever invented, has a stabilizing effect on superpower relations by making any conflict unacceptably costly. However, geopolitical change and the evolution of military technology suggest that the composition of our nuclear forces and our strategy for their employment may be different in the twenty-first century. The time is right for a fundamental rethinking of our expectations and requirements for these unique weapons. In a defence environment, mission critical information is essential to command and control and other logistics, and can come in the form of intelligence, surveillance, or reconnaissance. Consider the advantages this information could provide if it were simultaneously broadcast from a single network across the chain of command down to battlefield operating systems. Through a computer revolution that has rapidly turned science fiction into fact, the face of war has changed to such a degree that technology has become the dominant aspect.