Army Chief flags fractured world order, pushes defence transformation

Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi on Thursday (November 27) said that the world has moved from the bipolarity of the Cold War era through a brief unipolar moment to the current “uncertain and fractured order", adding that the lasting piece is on the decline and the number of comprehensive conflicts is increasing.

‘Springboards to transform the Army’

Addressing the inaugural session of the third edition of Chanakya Defence Dialogue, a key conclave hosted by the Army, General Dwivedi outlined a "set of springboards" that will drive the years of transformation ahead for the force, so as to remain decisive and future-ready in this rapidly evolving global landscape.

Also Read: Operation Sindoor proved strength of Armed Forces is synergy: Gen Dwivedi

"We are living in an increasingly multipolar world, where major powers are continuously jostling and competing. The world has moved from the Cold War's bipolarity through a brief unipolar moment, into an uncertain and fractured order. The long piece is declining, and comprehensive conflicts are on the rise," he said.

50 ongoing conflicts

Pointing out that currently over 50 ongoing conflicts are going on across the world, the Army Chief said, "We live in turbulent times, which may actually be an understatement”.

He further stated that if the globe is swivelling towards national security, deterrence and war-fighting, it inevitably "raises a fundamental question for us-how must the Indian military transform to remain decisive and ready in this rapidly evolving global landscape.”

PM Modi’s 5Ss approach

Elaborating further, General Dwivedi said that the starting point to this question lies in the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 5Ss approach-'Samman, Samvad, Sayog, Samridhi, and Suraksha', meaning respect, dialogue, cooperation, prosperity and security.

Also Read: Pak posts, military infra at PoK's Leepa Valley decimated: Army

It guides how the whole-of-nation ecosystem must deliberate, coordinate and act through the 'Amrit Kal' towards a Viksit Bharat, he asserted.

The theme of Chanakya Defence Dialogue 2025 is "Reform to Transform: Sashakt and Aur Surakshit Bharat".

Senior officials of the Indian armed forces, and defence and strategic affairs experts from India and abroad, have gathered in Delhi for this two-day conclave hosted at the Maneksahw Centre in Delhi Cantonment.

'Decade of transformation’

In his address, General Dwivedi recalled the 'Decade of Transformation' vision earlier announced by the Army for the period 2023-2032, and outlined a three-phase plan to make it a future-ready force.

Phase one, 'hop', set the agenda for the journey of the force by 2032. Phase two, for 2037 vision, is a five-year consolidated period, drawing on the gains from phase one, and phase three, 'jump', with a 2047 vision, to graduate to the next level of "integrated future-ready force design", General Dwivedi said.

'Year of Reforms'

This trajectory has been further strengthened by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh earlier designated 2025 as the 'Year of Reforms', and it proved its merit in Operation Sindoor, where years of reforms and readiness translated into "decisive outcomes".

Also Read: India approves Rs 79,000 crore defence procurement for Army, Navy, IAF

"So, as we carry this sovereign strategic success forward for future operations, and the larger aspirations of a Sashakt, Surakhshit and Viksit Bharat, the real question before us is what must propel our next leap," the Army chief said.

He outlined a set of springboards that will drive the years of transformation ahead.

Emphasis on self-reliance

The first one is 'atmanirbharta', the self-reliance and empowerment through indigenisation.

The second one is accelerated innovation, he said, adding, "We must now move on from experimentation to enterprise-scale impact at a much faster pace in AI, cyber, quantum, autonomous systems, space and advanced materials." The other two springboards are adaptation and military-civil fusion.

Also Read: India carried out LoC deployments ahead of Operation Sindoor, says DGMO

General Dwivedi said he was confident that this conclave would deliver "actionable items".

President Droupadi Murmu was the chief guest at the inaugural session.

"Your presence here today as the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, is an inspiration, and acts as a catalyst in a journey to become a future-ready force capable of effective deterrence, and to prosecute decisive multi-domain operations," General Dwivedi said.

(With agency inputs)