Military Transformation: Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance
Publication Date: January 2003
Publisher: Library of Congress. Congressional Research Service
Author(s):
Research Area: Military and defense
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Abstract:
The Department of Defense (DOD) indicates it is undertaking a major alteration in its capabilities, from a force designed to fight the Soviet Union to one tailored to 21st century adversaries including terrorism. This shift has been prompted by the perception of a changing threat and improved technology, especially information technology. As the military services attempt to increase the agility and versatility of their weapon systems, they also see a need to increase the capabilities of military intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) to support the new weapon systems and operating methods against these new threats.
To judge whether service activities are likely to help the military "transform," the head of DOD's Office of Force Transformation, retired Vice Admiral Arthur Cebrowski (U.S. Navy) has proposed three criteria whether the proposed capability can communicate and operate easily in conjunction with the other services, whether it helps the military develop new methods of warfighting, and whether it will be useful against a wide range of threats. In addition, ISR activities should, in the aggregate, provide a world-wide perspective of the threat, "fuse" all types of intelligence into one picture, access extensive details about the enemy, and monitor specific targets for long periods of time.
All of the services are planning ISR programs which exhibit at least some attributes of transformation. Many observers believe military ISR has already achieved some transformation, as shown in the war in Afghanistan by the military's ability to detect a target and destroy it within minutes. The military's ability to move intelligence quickly has improved dramatically. However, many observers are concerned that analysis may be lagging behind. Proposals to make revolutionary changes in analysis include using contractors to produce competing unclassified analyses, developing artificial intelligence capabilities for database work, and establishing more operations analysis centers.
The military intelligence community is supported by the national intelligence community, which even before the September 11 attacks was under intense scrutiny. Therefore, the aspects of the national intelligence community's operations in which Congress has expressed interest directly affect the quality of military intelligence. In addition, DOD's plans for improving its ISR capabilities raise potential issues for Congress with regard to cost, the balancing of potentially competing efforts to improve the flow of intelligence and the quality of the data, and the support of military leadership. Finally, the consequences of the military's role in homeland defense, and intelligence community reform may generate concern. Discussion of these issues is provided as background as Congress considers ISR programs as part of defense and intelligence authorization and appropriations legislation. This report will not be updated.