ARRC JOURNAL
a staff capable of critical and creative
thinking. The aforementioned benefits
work to support the overarching value
of deception, which is contributing to the
accomplishment of the friendly mission.
The Challenges of Deception
Despite the benefits, deception does
come with a range of challenges; not
least of which is that not all deem
deception as an acceptable tactic,
opposing it on political or ethical
grounds, and viewing it as ‘cheating’. Yet
deception is a legitimate military activity,
belonging to the ruses of war, but must
comply with the Law of Armed Conflict.
National caveats often apply as well, for
example not misleading a nation’s own
public. Unlawful deception includes:
1. Feigning surrender to lure the enemy
into a trap
2.
Misuse of protective signs and
symbols to injure, kill, or capture the
enemy
Despite its challenges,
deception is a
beneficial endeavour
and should be
planned centrally to
maintain operational
security (OPSEC) and
continuity from the
strategic to tactical
level.
3.
Using an ambulance or medical
aircraft marked with the Red Cross
or Red Crescent to carry armed
combatants, weapons, or ammunition
to attack or elude the enemy.
Another challenge with deception is the
perception that it is a waste of time and
resources and, therefore, not pragmatic.
This is a plausible counter on a number
of fronts – the diminishing size of many
nations’ armed forces, the increasing
capability of ISTAR technology, and the
near real-time access to information
through news and social media. Even
Clausewitz described deception as
having greater risks than value and
suggested against its use. In truth,
deception does take time and resources
however, history is full of examples
where deception helped achieve military
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objectives more efficiently than other
options. Deception can save resources
and lives while causing the enemy to
waste combat power with inappropriate
or delayed actions. Nevertheless, in a
NATO operation, ensuring a deception
plan meets national caveats, does not
offend certain states’ sensitivities to the
topic, and is perceived as a worthwhile
endeavour is challenging.
Equally challenging is generating the
desired enemy reaction. Deception
targets the adversary decision makers,
those with the authority to make the
decision that will achieve the goal of our
deception plan. The entire deception
operation focuses on a key individual,
so understanding how that individual
perceives events and the conduits
through which information flows to him are
further challenges to effective deception.
The enemy may react to the deception
plan in a totally unexpected way, and
in doing so jeopardise the success of
the operations the deception plan was
intended to benefit. Further, the enemy
intelligence staff and other conduits
to the target may filter, misinterpret or
misrepresent the deception messages
before they reach the enemy decision
maker.
Protecting the qu