Joint Operations and Indo-Pacific Command: Development and Implementation of the Multi-Domain Battle Concept

Abstract

U.S. military planners have long said that there is a need to promote jointness among military service branches. However, what is different about the recent debate over Multi-Domain Battle (MDB) from past discussions regarding jointness is that the new thinking assumes that in its future operational environments, the U.S. military will not continue to enjoy superiority in all domains. The U.S. military has more recently assumed an operational environment in which hostile states with similar capabilities are developing the ability to compete across all domains and are also engaged in activities that do not rise to the level of a “conventional war.” In other words, there is a growing understanding that enhancing jointness is no longer a choice but a necessity. This chapter discusses how the U.S. military thinks the operational environment surrounding it is changing today, what kind of operational concept they consider MDB to be, and what form MDB will take in the Western Pacific region, which is INDOPACOM’s area of responsibility. Finally, we explore the implications of the implementation of the MDB concept by the U.S. military and INDOPACOM for Japan's defense policy and the Japan–U.S. alliance. (All descriptions reflect situations a the time of the original writing in 2018.)