A Contemplation of Maneuver Motivated by the 2008 Israeli Armor Corps Association "Land Maneuver in the 21st Century" Conference
by Dr. Russell W. Glenn, Small Wars Journal
Questioning a Deity (Full PDF Article)
On September 16-17, 2008, the Israeli Armor Corps Association hosted its second annual conference, this entitled "Land Maneuver in the 21st Century. The centerpiece for speaker presentations and related discussions was "maneuver:" what it is, what it should be, and its relevance to security operations in light of the 2006 Second Lebanon War, ongoing operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, and other recent or continuing conflicts. An international speaker slate proposed a broad spectrum of thinking in that regard, a spectrum ranging from general acceptance of the current definition of maneuver to considerably expanding what the concept encompasses.
This document considers maneuver in light of these speaker presentations and the discussion stimulated by them. First sampling maneuver historically, it follows with an analysis of how theorists, doctrine writers, and military personnel conceive of maneuver in the first decade of the 21st century. These dual foundation stones of history and current thinking serve to underpin presentation of the treatment given the topic during the conference. The closing analysis considers the implications of thinking of maneuver in terms different than is currently the case...or, contrarily, the impact if it instead remains unchanged.
The document will be of interest to individuals in the armed forces, academics, and others desiring to investigate alternative conceptualizations of maneuver in the 21st century.
