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RUSI Land Warfare Conference

Major presentations delivered at the RUSI Land Warfare Conference 23-25 June 2009

General Sir David Richards outlines his vision of the future character of war

General Sir David Richards, Commander-in-Chief Land Forces and designate Chief of the General Staff, outlined his vision of the future character of warfare for which the British Army should prepare. Training and equipping for conventional or unconventional warfare need no longer be distinct, for even state actors will increasingly seek more irregular means to prosecute war. Future war will continue to be a battle for the hearts and minds of the people, but the revolution in communications will transform the way this is fought.

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Defence Minister Quentin Davies reveals long-awaited government policy on the future of the Armoured Fighting Vehicles (AFV)

Quentin Davies MP announced a new strategy for the procurement of Armoured Fighting Vehicles (AFV). He stated that the UK was now prepared to purchase AFV from the international market place, given the ability to make future modifications based on owning the design rights to them. Previous rules, where major contractors were given the exclusive rights, were deemed ‘no longer appropriate’ by the procurement minister. These remarks make official Davies’ view that armoured fighting vehicles should be taken from anywhere, as long as they are able to be maintained locally; industry specialists said that the announcement formalised a situation that has existed in reality for about two years.

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General Sir Richard Dannatt

As he prepares to step down from the post of Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Richard Dannatt opened the RUSI Land Warfare Conference with a speech that did much to outline the British Army’s analysis of recent conflicts and the lessons drawn for future conflict. In advance of a future Defence Review, he moved to quash speculation of inter-service rivalry and identified core areas of agreement in defence policy between the three services.

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General George Casey

The US Army Chief of Staff, General George Casey, speaking at the RUSI Land Warfare Conference provided an insight into the US Army’s transformation to meet the challenges of twenty-first century warfare. He discussed the doctrinal, operational and organisational reforms undertaken in response to the changing character of war since 2001 and emphasised the continual nature of this process.

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