Source : India Times
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This time a new exercise has been conducted by the Indian Army in Ladakh sector which has been termed as Blitzkrieg, a method of offensive warfare. The technique is believed to have been adopted from military of Nazi Germany in the Second World War.
The GOC-in-C Northern Command, Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi, spent five days in Ladakh last week where, among other things, he evaluated the conduct of Exercise Blitzkrieg, The Indian Express reported. The Blitzkrieg tactics of Nazi Germany’s Army comprised using combined elements of tanks, motorised infantry, foot infantry, artillery and air force to attack the opponent’s defences on a narrow front and penetrating deep into the enemy territory, leaving the rear and flanks to be protected by the elements following the strike groups.
The combined arms Corps Level exercise was conducted to validate several operational concepts as an aftermath of the standoff with the Chinese PLA in eastern Ladakh.
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While almost all armies in the world have drawn valuable lessons from the German conduct of operations in the Second World War, it is assumed that the Northern Command had a similar concept of speed and manoeuvrability in mind when it named the exercise after the German tactics.
As far as using the term, Blitzkrieg, for an exercise in Ladakh is concerned, it may project an image divorced from reality. It may also give the Chinese the idea that some Blitzkrieg tactics may be in offing in the area which may not be the right impression to give in the current strained circumstances. Given the propensity of the Chinese to micro-analyse announcements, particularly military, any other name like ‘Firm Resolve’ or something similar would have been more neutral and not open to misunderstanding.
For those unaware of the concept of Blitzkrieg, The Imperial War Museum (IWM) defines it as the “lightening war which was the method of offensive warfare responsible for Nazi Germany’s military successes in the early years of the Second World War”. It involves striking deep into enemy territory to seize objectives.
On the intervening night of June 15th and 16th, two years completed after massive clashes between Indian and Chinese forces broke out in the Galwan valley- but a confusion, insecurity still prevails and talks are on.
