Wanted: A Mahan For Cyber Space; Next Domain Of Great Power Conflict

February 28, 2014 ·

Wanted: A Mahan for Cyberspace 

Cyber Is the Next Domain of Great Power Conflict 

http://www.realcleardefense. com/articles/2014/02/27/ wanted_a_mahan_for_cyberspace_ 107112.html

By Christopher Fitzpatrick 

This year marks an important but likely overlooked anniversary – 100 years since the death of Alfred Thayer Mahan. A notable military officer and scholar, Mahan revolutionized military strategy and security policy with his 1890 book The Influence of Sea Power Upon History. Supporting vigorous engagement in the international community, he argued that states could best build and maintain strength through powerful navies, which open foreign markets and deter foreign aggressors. 

Though based on historical example, his message was particularly prescient for the 20thcentury, in which the great naval armadas of two world wars moved men and materiel in unprecedented quantities to the far reaches of the earth. One could hardly dispute that naval strength remains relevant today. Aircraft carrier groups, for example, are a critical tool of power projection, and essential sea lines of communication and trade rely on naval protection. 

The 21st century, however, brings new battlefields and new challenges. In the early 2000s, the most visible of these has been asymmetric engagements with non-state actors. But the continued rise of China and the resurgence of Russia’s regional ambitions have reopened the door for great power conflict. Fortunately, international norms and economic integration make conventional warfare unlikely and Cold War fears of nuclear conflict almost unimaginable. 

Nevertheless, incompatible visions of the international order and simmering tensions in the Middle East and the South China Sea make conflict of some sort a distinct possibility. Though traditional military forces – including navies – will be essential to deter or respond to such conflict, the great battlefields of the 21stcentury may lie on an existential plane where land, sea, or aerial forces cannot venture – cyberspace. 

Dominance of cyberspace is essential for many aspects of national security. Just as control of the seas sustained trade in the era of Mahan, control of cyberspace is essential for modern economic security. The digital transfer of information and financial transactions is perhaps more important than the ships carrying goods from port to port. A state that corrupts or manipulates that digital flow on a large scale could devastate the targeted nation’s economy, bringing a country to its knees without firing a single shot. Likewise, security of critical infrastructure, such as the power grid, also requires a strong and proactive cyber defense. Finally, fire superiority in the digital realm bears relevance to traditional military operations by allowing for the disruption of enemy command and control structures, or perhaps even diminishing the effectiveness of weapons in the field. 

Skirmishes are already taking place on digital battlefields. Signals intelligence measures employed by organizations like the NSA and Britain’s GCHQ are now well known, as are some isolated cyber attacks like the Stuxnet worm. Though Beijing denies it, China is also widely believed to conduct regular attacks against private and public sector targets in the United States, Japan, and South Korea through a specialized unit of the PLA. Though less discussed in the media, Russia boasts highly advanced cyber capabilities. The digital arms race has begun, and nations that would wield influence in the international community must keep up. 

The Obama administration has admitted that the United States is not adequately prepared to counter the growing threat of cyber warfare. Remedying this lack of preparedness must be an immediate priority for the United States. The country must maintain its technological advantages by encouraging private sector innovation in technology. It must adequately fund and support Cyber Command, recognizing cyberspace as a primary battlefield all its own. 

Finally, it must remember the lesson learned by those who declared “peace in our time” in 1938: Great power conflict often emerges when least expected. Perhaps America needs a 21stcentury Alfred Thayer Mahan to guide it. If so, one can only hope that he does not emerge too late. 

Christopher M. Fitzpatrick is a graduate of Boston College and a J.D. candidate at Cornell Law School.