This article was initially published in the Security and Land Power Journal
Vol. 2 N.° 2 (2023): April – June
DOI: https://doi.org/10.56221/spt.v2i2.26
Summary
The need to find an adequate articulation of intelligence as a fundamental instrument to develop military power generated a greater impact on the armies of several countries; In this regard, the regional analysis carried out allows for a more timely view of how the use of this capacity can be guided and prepared at the strategic, operational and tactical levels.
This article uses the methodology called Analytical Research compilation, developed in three parts: a conceptualization of intelligence and its value, the element of national power that allows facing the threat, as well as the conceptual articulation that can be provided to both.
Keywords: Intelligence, Military Power, Armies, National Power, Threat.
Introduction
A great constant that was historically present was intelligence, but not related to wisdom or skill, but to the act of trying to obtain information, data or clues about scenarios where an enemy seeks to conceive a battle.
Prieto says that intelligence,[1] understood as an act or art, tirelessly seeks through mechanisms or techniques, the intentions, capacities, dispositions, vulnerabilities and strengths of the adversary.
However, these are not decided on their own. For this, there must be the ideal judgment value to be able to receive the information and process it, classifying it according to its value, weight, structure or source; however, the uncertainty that exists can be wide and difficult to dispel, especially on issues related to the state and military power. In this line, intelligence acquires an additional word that contextualizes a new definition. The emergence of military intelligence as a concept linked to the State projects an ideal planning on specific aspects in the execution of acts related to this end.
Given these new circumstances, it is explicit to understand that, in a State, “all armies in peacetime prepare for the next war.”[2] Thus, it is considered that military power and its dimensions are affected, due to the great importance and value of intelligence in each activity for decision making.
Analysis
The Diplomatic Academy of Peru Foundation (FADP) suggests that,[3] in the construction of knowledge and understanding of the weight of intelligence in military power, it is essential to identify that it is necessary for decision-making at the highest level. That is, at the political level, strategic intelligence will be used to formulate public policies with their respective strategies.
Intelligence and the Weight of its Value
For Aguirre,[4] strategic intelligence is “a concept traditionally used in military defense contexts and even as a government secret, although there are timid applications of an academic and administrative nature.”
In this framework, intelligence has a greater importance at the highest level, since it influences different disciplines. In addition, it is related to different tools associated with the concepts of technological surveillance, road mapping, strategic foresight and even knowledge management.
Kent, quoted by Martinez,[5] considered the father of intelligence, defines strategic intelligence as the knowledge that a state must possess to ensure that all its interests do not fail. In this sense, its value lies in the analysis of this considered a threat. Likewise, there are elements that influence the perception of the context, the actors and the intelligence process itself in the military field.
Element of National Power That Enables Threats to Be Confronted
The relationship that exists between public potential and national power, in accordance with the concept established by the FADP, allows us to understand that -as a fundamental element- the State is the only one that has the responsibility to transform tangible resources, merge them with intangible ones and integrate them in order to achieve their objectives in the internal or external sphere, resulting in the emergence of national power.[6]
Therefore, when mentioning national power, it is necessary to contextualize it around the resources that make it up: economic, military, social and cultural. As part of the economic and military resources, the importance of military power is analyzed, which includes the “set of land, naval, air, space capabilities …”,[7] as well as the civil, technological and industrial field that can contribute to war.
The military power of a nation brings together the capabilities to face the multiple threats that jeopardize the country’s strategic objectives, which are aligned with national strategic roles.
Intelligence and Military Power
Every element of military power requires intelligence to fulfill its purpose and maximize its efforts by employing particular capabilities, institutional or joint.
Military institutions need to have not only the means, but also the human factor capable of processing data and transforming it into information. In this sense, at present, it is considered that efforts in the processing of intelligence are developed in all domains of military power independently and jointly. It is in this part of the process where the information obtains the ideal weight, when processed for a specific task, helping in the choice of the appropriate military capacity.
When we talk about the use of capabilities there is a great risk of not giving adequate weight to intelligence; However, it is necessary to know the appropriate process that must be had with the information to be able to use it in the best way in the decisions that are taken on the challenges or threats to our nation.
Conclusions
In general terms, it can be said that intelligence has a weight at strategic, operational or tactical levels; This is because the needs are similar. In addition, each management of the process by levels for its exploitation is interdependent, but synchronized.
On the other hand, military power and its dimensions are affected, due to the great importance and value of intelligence in terms of decision-making, which can be determined not only with doctrinal contributions, but being contrasted with the historical, national and international reality. Consequently, it is necessary to understand that the weight of intelligence affects decisions in the use of military power capabilities in response to threats and challenges in the defense of national objectives.
Endnotes:
- Tomás Fernando Prieto del Val, “La inteligencia militar, una constante histórica”, Instituto Español de Estudios Estratégicos (July 18, 2014), 1-19, https://acrobat.adobe.com/link/track?uri=urn:aaid:scds:US:56588842-ad55-32b1-86b1-8404329c3ba6 ↑
- Carlos Javier Frías Sánchez, “El poder militar al inicio del siglo XXI”. Dialnet (2011) 51-66, https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=3850950 ↑
- FADP, “Poder militar”, Fundación Academia Diplomática del Perú (2022), 3, https://aulavirtual.fundacionadp.edu.pe/virtual/sesion?id=47800711 ↑
- Joao Aguirre, “Inteligencia estratégica: un sistema para gestionar la innovación” Universidad ICESI (2015), 100-110, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0123592314001594 ↑
- David Armando Martínez Ardila, “La inteligencia estratégica militar como elección racional del estado hacia una política sostenible de seguridad nacional”, Universidad Pontificia Javeriana (2015), https://repository.javeriana.edu.co/bitstream/handle/10554/18521/MartinezArdilaDavidArmando2015.pdf?sequence=3 ↑
- FADP, “Poder militar”, Fundación Academia Diplomática del Perú (2022), 4. ↑
- Ibid, 7 ↑
