Navy Chief elaborates SLN role & future strategies at Future Naval
Plans 2008- UK
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During his visit Navy Commander Vice
Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda met with Sir Jonathon Band KCB,
Commander-in-Chief Fleet (CINCFLEET), Commander-in-Chief East
Atlantic (CINCEASTLANT), Commander Allied Naval Forces North (COMNAVNORTH),
CINCFLEET Royal Navy, |
Commander of Sri Lanka Navy, Vice Admiral Wasantha
Karannagoda delivering a lecture at an international defence education
forum recently explained the role of Sri Lanka Navy and its future
strategies. Addressing the Future Naval Plans 2008, the leading annual
naval forum in Europe, Admiral Karannagoda elaborated the role of Sri
Lanka Navy will be increasingly governed by the international
requirements in the ever globalizing world.
Admiral Karannagoda was the first Sri Lankan navy
officer to deliver a lecture at the forum in which high profile Navy
officials across the world came together and discussed the future needs
and doctrinal evolution. The forum was organized in London for the 7th
time by Defence IQ, an organization setup to deliver critical
information to senior decision makers in the domain of defence..
Admiral Karannagoda's speech in full:
ROLE OF SRI LANKA NAVY IN
THE LOCAL AND GLOBAL CONTEXT WITH EMPHASIS ON FUTURE STRATEGIES
Introduction
In an increasingly complex world, the mission of the
Navy is correspondingly more diverse and composite than ever before.
This complexity is global as well as regional, and is likely to remain
like this in the foreseeable future. The role of the Sri Lanka Navy, in
this increasingly interdependent and globalized world, will be as much
dictated by internal requirements as it will be, by the compulsions of
the outside world.
The Navy is essentially an instrument of state policy
and will reflect the aspirations, strengths and vulnerabilities of the
polity that sustains it. In turn the stance of this body politic can and
will be predicated on its intrinsic political, economic, military and
socio-economic capabilities. Therefore, in order to evaluate the role of
the Sri Lanka Navy in a local as well as a global context, a brief
examination of the prevailing frame of reference is essential , this is
largely defined by Sri Lanka's maritime interests and geopolitical
realities.
Sri Lanka's Strategic Imperative
Sri Lanka possesses a unique geographical location, at
the very centre of the Indian Ocean compelling her to play a vital role
in global maritime affairs. She occupies a central position on the main
trade routes between Europe and the Far East. 80% of ships that ply this
route converge off the South of Sri Lanka at Dondra head. Militarily,
the location of the port of Trincomalee on the Eastern seaboard of the
Island, and regarded as one of the world's finest natural deep water
harbours, adds to her strategic value.
In a nut shell Admiral Mahan caps it all in his
statement and I quote
"...Whoever controls the India Ocean dominates
Asia. This Ocean is the key to the seven sea's, In the 21st
Century the destiny of the world will be decided on its
waters..." -
Admiral Alfred T Mahan.
Maritime Interests
As a maritime nation our lifeline is the sea, we
cannot afford to let anyone strangle us by cutting our sea lines of
communication. To this end we have a well trained compact navy
predominantly to deter threats that challenge the control of our SLOC's
thereby endangering the nation.
Sri Lanka's Maritime interests are like that of other
nations based on Survival, Sovereignty and vital and value interests,
(Slide only)
1. Maintenance of maritime sovereignty and
territorial integrity
2. Critical infrastructure protection, security of
ports, harbours and other maritime installations.
3. Protection of - SLOCs and fisheries.
4. Counter Insurgency and counterterrorism,
prevention of piracy, smuggling, weapon proliferation, drug
trafficking etc.
5. To deter any potential adversaries or
terrorists from carrying out sea/air borne attacks.
6. Exploration, exploitation and protection of
marine and oceanic energy resources from EEZ and the continental
shelf.
7. Strengthening of diplomatic ties with regional
and friendly nations by employing naval diplomacy.
8. Providing assistance to regional Search and
Rescue (SAR) efforts.
9. Marine Environmental Control.
10. To undertake humanitarian and disaster relief
to the best of our capability
(Slide only)
Role of the Sri Lanka Navy
The core mission of any Navy continues to be
protecting the sovereignty and national interests of the state. The
raison de'tre of all navies including that of the Sri Lanka Navy will
remain unchanged - to assess the relative naval / military capabilities
of potential adversaries and to ensure that no hostile maritime / naval
presence can degrade the core national interest. Therefore, the Navy
continues to function on a triangular grid with the military role
underpinning two complementary roles - the politico-diplomatic and
constabulary. In addition a new role in terms of the benign application
of maritime power has been added as a recognized fourth role.
Against this backdrop of Sri Lanka's maritime
interests, its geo political realities and the role of navies in
general, the specific roles the Sri Lanka Navy would need to play hinges
on the traditional triangular grid and its newly acquired benign
dimension.
Military Role
The Sri Lanka Navy needs to play its military role on
two planes. Firstly, against the threat to sovereignty and territorial
integrity posed by non state actors and secondly, protecting its
national interests when conflicting national interests bring Sri Lanka
head on against another nation state. While the Sri Lanka Navy has been
very successfully playing the first role for the past quarter of a
century and developed very specific expertise in this kind of warfare,
it needs to continue honing its capability and skills to defeat this
threat decisively.
Therefore, the military role on this plane would need
to be fulfilled by collaboration and alliance rather than denial,
dominance and outright confrontation. In fact the role played by the Sri
Lanka Navy for this purpose is actually more in the realm of a politico
- diplomatic role rather than that of a military one.
Politico - Diplomatic Role
The Sri Lanka Navy may be required to play any of the
two traditional facets of politico - diplomatic role, either alone or in
conjunction with an alliance partner. In the post cold war period the
politico diplomatic role is manifest in an increasing degree of
multilateral naval cooperation that seeks to strengthen confidence
building measures among States.
The concerns at sea in the present day are common, be
they protection of SLOCS, piracy, trafficking in drugs or arms,
terrorism or transportation of WMDs by sea. To combat these common
concerns, the navies of the world are increasingly cooperating and
working together, even though they are not part of any military
alliance. The level of cooperation varies from navy to navy and is
influenced by political considerations. This philosophy has manifested
itself in areas of cooperation such as proliferation security initiative
(PSI) and '1000 Ship Navy Concept'. Sri Lanka's geo political situation
is ideally suited for this kind of role and she can effectively use its
Navy to build alliances and diplomatic leverages to enable protection of
her own national interests at the same time ensuring security of the
global maritime commons.
Constabulary Role
The constabulary role would be one of the most
demanding tasks for the Navy and enforcing law in the EEZ is also our
exclusive responsibility and would consume most of our effort.
This role is also very significant for the Sri Lanka
Navy as the process of instituting new political regime over hitherto
unclaimed and uncontrolled high sea initiated by UNCLOS has also set in
a process of creeping jurisdiction where many coastal states are
claiming greater sovereignty over waters adjacent to their respective
landmasses. We as a stake holder are optimistic that our reasonable
claim will materialize in the near future bringing with it an extension
of our seabed resources, the Navy with a mammoth area of sea to police.
Benign Role
The Sri Lanka Navy, is presently incapable of
undertaking large scale out of area humanitarian aid or disaster relief
but yet could undertake all possible benign missions as first responders
within its area of influence.
With the end of the Cold War, it was generally assumed
that the era of competitive military security paradigm was over and
geo-economics had emerged as the more important global characteristic.
This assumption ludicrously suggested that military capability would be
secondary and navies in particular would have lesser role to play.
However, the events between the end of the Cold War
and now have very clearly demonstrated that despite the changing
paradigms, the importance of military might holds its ground as firmly
as ever and would continue to do so in the foreseeable future as well.
In the case of the Navy, its role rather than
diminishing has become more prominent as the littorals have assumed afar
more significant role in the matter of national security to project
power from the sea and influence matters ashore. The power projection
has therefore shifted to the seas with greater emphasis towards the
littorals.
MARITIME TERRORISM
Moving on to the present status quo in the maritime
domain it is pertinent that we touch on maritime terrorism and its
implications. The sea being the primary conduit in today's globalized
economy and ocean-based trade, makes it a crucial component of the
world's economic well-being and is the reason why security and stability
is paramount in this realm.
For a coastal or island state, for example, nowhere is
it more vulnerable to attack or infiltration than along its sea borders.
Asymmetrical forces including terrorists, will always identify this
weak-link and exploit it when the time is right, particularly when a
nation is unprepared, or paradoxically, when it is over confident about
its maritime security.
It is therefore imperative that the necessary security
initiatives are implemented expeditiously by maritime nations of the
world in a cohesive effort to protect the sea lines of communication,
ships, offshore installations and ports.
THE CHOKEPOINTS AND FLOW OF TRADE
A terrorist will pick his time and place, and rest
assured he has already figured out the vulnerabilities of maritime
trade. It is obvious that shipping is most vulnerable in straits and
confined waters. Straits are also threatened by an increased percentage
of piracy at busy roadstead and chokepoints, especially in South East
Asia. It is a fact that oil tankers follow fixed and predictable routes
that make them so much more vulnerable.
Of the shipping lanes, the Malacca Straits may be the
most attractive target, considering the fact that one-third of all world
trade passes through it. Nevertheless, It is important to note that it
is primarily the trade to Asia including 80% of China's oil imports,
that depends on its security.
On the other hand, one has to consider the aim of the
terrorist and their objective. If the objective is to affect the flow of
trade primarily to the West, however, would a strike in the Malacca
Strait have the desired effect, or will it be the straits of Bab el
Mandeb, Hormuz, the Suez canal , or Gibraltar, that are targeted ?
The West is the largest oil consumer bloc, while the
Middle East is the biggest producer. This means oil as a commodity is
highly dependent on international maritime trade as two-thirds of this
requirement is shipped by tanker. With oil prices straining the global
economy, a disruption of the sea routes would precipitate a debilitating
crisis.
In October 2002, al-Qaeda rammed a boat full of
explosives into a French super tanker 'Limburg' stationed off Yemen.
Terrorists have also plotted attacks on oil tankers in the Persian Gulf
and off the Horn of Africa. These incidents, coupled with al-Qaeda plots
to attack US warships, including those transiting the Malacca Strait,
have fuelled concerns of a major catastrophe in the making.
THE ECONOMIC IMPACT
There are more ways than one in wearing down an
opponent, and, disruption of global trade is surely on the terrorist
target priority list. More developed countries could sustain an attack
on international trade, but for how long?
Furthermore, with our mounting dependence on
just-in-time delivery of commodities, even slowing the flow to inspect a
random selection of imports would very quickly be economically
intolerable to poor nations, and for the developed countries with time.
This highlights the need for formulation of innovative protection
strategies that will be workable worldwide.
TERRORIST GROUPS WITH MARITIME CAPABILITY
THE LTTE
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ellam have used the sea
for transport and to attack merchant shipping including local fishing
trawlers, off the coast of Sri Lanka over the last 20 years. The
organization has its own 'Black Sea Tiger' unit which operates on the
doctrine of the "Wolf Pack" which we now term "Swarm" using high speed
small combat craft. The craft the terrorists use are of varied
configuration depending on the mission and quite potent when operating
in the pack. They have also designed stealth craft which are used for
covert intrusion and suicide missions.
The group has also resorted to using commercially off
the shelf (COTS) underwater equipment and vehicles to attack shipping in
harbour as well as on fixed route passage. The LTTE is also the only
known terrorist organization to own and operate a fleet of deep sea
going ships used for the transport of large quantities of explosives,
arms, ammunition and other warlike material for themselves and other
terrorist groups in the region.
These ships fly flags of convenience and use the
freedom of the sea's to go about their deadly business. We cannot rule
out the possibility of these rogue ships carrying cargoes of lethal
chemicals, a "dirty bomb" or just high explosive material to be used as
a catastrophic weapon at any port they choose.
The Sri Lanka Navy in the last year have been capable
of identifying these floating warehouses and interdicting seven of them.
It should be noted here, that the lethal cargo being carried was not
destined merely for Sri Lanka and had they been successful in their
mission many innocent civilians somewhere in the world would have paid
with their lives.
Getting back to the catastrophic weapon, to give you
an insight into their ambitions let me just touch on an attack they
mounted unsuccessfully on Colombo Harbour in 1995. They used both
surface craft disguised as fishing vessels and underwater saboteurs to
target a liquid gas carrier which was alongside.
This attack was fortunately thwarted due to the high
state of preparedness. Analysis of the scale of destruction , if this
plan had succeeded revealed, total devastation within a radius of 1/4
mile and collateral damage extending to nearly 2 miles, which would have
been terrible in its carnage and otherwise.
AL- QAIDA
Drawing parallels from the attack on the Cole at Aden,
the attack on the US warships at Jordan and the French tanker Limburg as
examples, there is this similarity in modus operandi of the terrorist
groups that master minded those attacks and the style of the LTTE. The
connection cannot be ruled out and it is a fact that the LTTE presents
the other terrorist organizations with a source to plagiarize for
maritime terrorism know-how.
The al-Qaida network too is believed to have purchased
at least 15 ships in the last few years to be used in the same fashion
as the LTTE - to be involved in gunrunning, act as weapon and explosive
warehouses for terrorist groups and possibly be used for training of
bombers and saboteurs. They are also used as safe houses for terrorists
on the run. Further, the law of the sea is also advantageous to those
who do not comply with the rule of law, allowing them freedom of the sea
and manoeuvre until reaching shore.
The other terrorist groups that have and use maritime
assets on a smaller scale are as the following (Slide only)
-
ESO (External Security Organisation)
Hezbollah's military wing, Lebanon
-
ASG (Abu Sayyaf Group), Philippines
-
JI (Jemaah Islamiyah), SE Asia
-
NPA (New People's Army), Philippines
-
Palestinian groups (Al Aqsa Martyrs
-
Brigade/HAMAS/Palestinian Islamic Jihad)
-
Indonesian jihadi groups
-
GAM (The Free Aceh Movement) Indonesia.
The Emerging Threat
There is no doubt that in recent years maritime
terrorism has appeared as a very real threat and what I have briefly
elaborated on proves the point. There have been some notable attacks but
we have been fortunate in that a concerted and sustained attack on the
lifeblood of the global economy has not yet materialized.
Threats that have emerged today are mainly from non
state actors involved in terrorism, trans-national or otherwise,
international crime, insurgencies, including separatists and fanatics be
they ethnic or religious. Battling these threats was once considered low
intensity warfare but is this true in today's security environment? If
we are to be realistic,... global security will have to recognize,
understand and define this threat in order to successfully combat it or
chaos will follow.
Our clash is now more against ideologies and
fanaticism, which brings along with it an unconventional threat which is
indiscriminate in its targeting ... it threatens us all irrespective of
who we are or where we come from.
Conventional forces that are controlled and
disciplined will always be at a disadvantage in this battle field as
they are limited in their actions and not prepared or trained to react
to the threat.
As a result modern forces need to think outside the
box and begin to train, estimate and fight differently. As a matter of
fact a radical shift in the surface warfare thought process may be
necessary to fight effectively in this age of Asymmetric warfare.
In the words of SUN TZU, in his treaty the art of war
he dictates
"Determine the enemy's plans and you will know which
strategy will be successful and which will not"
In other words empathize with the enemy and be
prepared to counter his action even before he acts.
THE LEGAL DIAMENSION
It is also pertinent that we focus on combat on the
high seas which has been confined to state actors who's conduct of war
is regulated through accepted norms of international law. Here
traditional law dealing with maritime affairs has been designed to
regulate actions recognizing states as the primary actors. The threat
from non state actors and terrorism has not been anticipated and no
provision has been made in this context which in actual fact makes the
law seem obsolete. The only non state actor considered is a pirate and
it also leaves us with the question "Does the global war on terrorism"
give states the right to act otherwise.
We have already crossed a new threshold in this age of
terrorism that necessitates a fresh look at the legal dimension in
re-appreciating the law, to combat maritime terrorism in the present day
and age. This will provide states in issuing practical and unambiguous
ROE's to our mission commanders simultaneously restricting the terrorist
in his sphere of manoeuvre.
The Way ahead- Examining Future Strategies and Shaping the Right
force
The Sri Lanka Navy over the last two decades has
transformed from a small ceremonial unit to a fully fledged compact
fighting force. It is probably the only navy at present that faces a
continuous active terrorist threat at sea. The threat it faces is mainly
in the littorals but does extend into the deep sea at times. The
fighting is high intensity, with the threat mainly being multiple swarm
attacks including explosive laden suicide craft. We face an innovative
and ruthless enemy who when cornered will not hesitate in using
desperate means to achieve his ends.
The Present battle space environment that my Navy
faces is dynamic, high speed, dangerous and unpredictable. However the
Sri Lanka Navy is a battle hardened force which has a cadre of over 50%
who have been involved in active combat operations both on land and sea.
This experience doubtless gives us the edge in predicting the future
battle - environment, particularly in the littorals and of the
asymmetrical kind. Looking ahead the path I believe the Sri Lanka Navy
will follow will be on the following lines
-
As I have said before "To think differently,
to train differently and to fight differently". The secret in
Combating asymmetric warfare is to deliver an unconventional
response. To meet this end forces need to transform in the way
they train, plan and fight. We may not need to develop new
equipment, but we need to have the right attitude and use the
right equipment efficiently.
-
Traditional Naval missions / tasks will
continue to exist, but the edge will be with those capable of
meeting the unexpected by preparing for it.
-
We have to train our young officers and
planners to empathize with our opponents in countering threats
even before they are encountered- this is the way ahead.
-
Legacy systems will remain to be our mainstay,
but the essence will be to morph them with the future
capabilities in a balanced fashion in order to be practical for
that security environment.
-
Today's asymmetric warfare - shifts warfare
into a higher gear but also into a more human domain like in the
past. This paradox arises from the fact that - warfare today is
shifting away from the machine to the more human on human
domain. For example the suicide cadre who can emerge from any
dimension. Machines will continue to find it difficult to cope
with this threat and only human on human will bring about
results.
-
We have to understand that the terrorist
willing to die for a cause, motivated by radicalism, brain
washing and religious fervour, will match against training,
physical strength, mental awareness and morale of our troops. Of
course our machines and platforms will aid us but it will
ultimately be the quality of the man who matches the threat. *
-
For small combatant platforms, operating in
shallow waters ,speed stealth and manoeuvrability means
survivability. Good sensors and high rate of fire weapons that
can acquire and target small stealthy craft affectively will
emerge victors. Fast attack craft including inshore patrol craft
will have to operate together, in numbers and dilute the enemies
swarm. Isolating and destroying the stragglers.
-
The navy will have to foster a new breed of
surface warfare fighter who will take the initiative and be
aggressive and daring. Naval officers and men will have to form
special operation units for this is type of engagement and work
in an environment similar to Special operation forces.
-
Officers and men need to be trained to act on
instinct and be capable of profiling enemy craft that lurk
within fishing fleets and pleasure craft,.......and they will
have to take certain tactical risks to be successful and
maintain the initiative.
-
Unfortunately there will be losses - but we
will need to invest our time on training our crews to survive -
by giving them the best survival training and equipment -
Littoral SAR will become an important mission too.
-
Of course the design of a concept craft which
will be survivable, fast, manoeuvrable and stealthy with the
necessary punch will be on our future agenda. The correct mix of
craft for defence in depth will also be included.
-
Upgrading of necessary weapon systems, sensors
and equipment will be necessary with the old being phased out.
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Last but not least we will encourage and
strive for International maritime Co-operation with Friendly
Navies. Regional, Bilateral and multi lateral agreements and
exercises will build confidence and understanding between
forces.
-
The 1000 ship navy concept appeals to
countries such as ours, as it means we will all have a part to
play maintaining global maritime security regardless of size.
-
Navies such as ours with years of battle
experience in the littorals have a unparalleled experience in
this area and are capable of disseminating that particular core
competence to the rest of the maritime community by providing
resource personal and training in the field.
Carl von Clausewitz whose thought yet influences the
battle space environment and will continue to do so in the future too
puts it very simply , and I quote
"Everything in war is very simple, but the simplest
thing is very difficult"
Carl Von Clausewitz
The way ahead will not be a cake walk and the
challenges that the future will pitch at us will not be easy.... Only
timely and proper preparation will ensure success.
Conclusion
Today, the security and economic prosperity of our
nations is utterly dependent on ensuring that the freedom of the seas is
maintained and this will continue to be the case as the pace of
globalization continues. The magnitude of civilian shipping and our
dependence on free trade cannot be overstated. Piracy or terrorism,
asymmetric warfare or simply the random laying of a few sea mines, would
seriously disrupt trade and increase transportation costs dramatically.
To ensure maritime security and stability, it is very clear to me, that
maritime security should be a cohesive effort and requires an
international solution for it has altered the dynamics of security
paradigms worldwide.
I can assure you that the Sri Lanka Navy will continue
to do its part and we are confident that friendly nations around the
world will continue to share information and support us in accomplishing
our mutual task in keeping the maritime environment safe and stable.
Ultimately, defence of international maritime assets and trade will be
the shield created by Global cohesive action, which will ensure that the
maritime dimension will never be used to threaten mankind.
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