NEW DELHI: Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan on Thursday addressed the Chanakya Defence Dialogue in Delhi, outlining major shifts in the nature and domains of warfare. He emphasised that new arenas such as cyberspace, space, and cognitive warfare are eroding traditional notions of borders, territorial integrity, and even citizenship, making sovereignty increasingly "functionally porous." Citing "Operation Sindoor," he noted that modern capabilities can now target an adversary's natural, network, economic and information spaces, demonstrating how national infrastructure has become a core component of contemporary conflict.
General Chauhan observed that these trends are visible in ongoing conflicts in Eastern Europe and West Asia, where borders are being redefined and claims over sovereign territories, such as those involving Greenland, highlight the dilution of sovereignty. He warned that the utility of conventional deterrence is diminishing, with a narrowing gap between rhetorical threats and demonstration of actual capability contributing to instability in the global nuclear domain.
Discussing the inevitable expansion of technology-driven warfare, the CDS said that the greater the reliance on a domain or capability, the more attractive it becomes for an adversary to deny it through force. This, he argued, will accelerate the growth of multi-domain operations-across cyber, space, media, and emerging technologies-which will form a natural part of future warfare as human dependence on technology deepens.
General Chauhan stressed that warfare can no longer be restricted to land, sea, or air. Instead, it must be fought simultaneously across all existing and emerging domains. He highlighted two key trends: the spatial expansion of the battle space and rising non-linearity in conflict. Traditional ideas of frontlines, depth, and intermediate zones have collapsed, as modern weaponry places almost the entire physical and informational ecosystem of an adversary within reach-again demonstrated by Operation Sindoor.
Concluding his address, the CDS underscored the unpredictability of time and conflict, echoing Chanakya's emphasis on strategy, self-knowledge and intellectual honesty. He said that technological advances-from AI and hypersonics to robotics, autonomous systems and sensor-driven transparency-are diminishing the role of geography and driving a revolution in military affairs. With sovereignty eroding and nuclear risks rising, he urged India's armed forces to evolve doctrines for multi-domain operations to secure the vision of Viksit Bharat@2047. (ANI)
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