reprinted from
Luthorian Central News Network
Landscape shift forces Armed Forces reorganisation
Internal reorganisation programme aims to orient armed forces towards preparedness for new threats.
♕:A Samaritan 2 main battle tank of 2nd Battalion, Royal Armoured Regiment, during combat exercises
15th April, 4375.
The Luthorian Armed Forces is expected to undergo a massive overhauling, including structural changes and the implementation of practical technologies and the formation of a new doctrine that would alter the way the Luthorian Armed Forces wages conflicts, trains and communicates on a strategic basis. This was announced by the Office of the Chief of Defence, who placed an emphasis on the importance of the reorganisation of the armed forces amid the shifting international landscape. According to an official from Carlton House, although the Luthorian Armed Forces was in the process of transitioning for defensive to expeditionary, various structural elements from its period of "total and unconditional defence" remain and are actively plaguing the combat effectiveness and general structure of the armed forces. One of these core issues come in the distribution of troops within the armed forces. Due to the fact that previously commanders have placed an extreme emphasis on the defence of Luthori, the nation's rapid reaction capabilities has been significantly reduced. Although it has been cited that the size of the Imperial Marines had been "feasible," Admiral Lucas McCarthy stated that the Imperial Marines must be expanded.
According to an official from the Office of the Chief of Defence, although the global landscape is changing, the chances of squaring off with a rival military has not been reduced but has increased as the armed forces takes on intensified international obligations. “The Armed Forces, specifically the Land Forces are a huge mass of troops and adapting them to the conditions of modern warfare is expensive and difficult,” an official from the Ministry of Defence stated. The armed forces has spent the last millennia securing its strategic interests and putting into motion various contingency plans for specific scenarios expected within their respective environments. This spans from the Arctic to the nation's regional obligations. The nation's involvement in various international alliance, notably the Northern Council acts also as a catalyst for this much needed reorganisation. As the Northern Council seeks to promote the sentiments of peace and collective security, it also intends on orienting its members towards "humanitarian affairs", citing that the armed forces of the organisation's member-states should not be utilised simply for offensive or defensive purposes, but should be utilised for promoting/facilitating humanitarian efforts. Although the threat of organised paramilitary organisation hangs over the head of the armed forces as it is surrounded by nations that promote the idea (whilst it is an offence to form or be a member of a paramilitary/militia organisation), the reorganisation intends on taking this factor into consideration greatly as the nation seeks to expand its involvement in international specifically in the fight against international communism and fascism.
The reorganisation programme is intended to focus on placing the armed forces in a position that would enable for it to capitalise on its current equipment. According to the MoD, the armed forces needs to "shake off" its defensive posture and champion its expeditionary posture. Minister of Defence, Graham Whitehead stated that the procurement of additional combat equipment, was not done as a means of adding the aesthetics of the armed forces. He stated that although the armed forces had utilised the equipment, it had been done in a manner in which one would say is reminiscent of a defence force rather than an expeditionary armed forces. This defensive tendency could also be tied to the fact that the armed forces has ran into multiple issue whether it pertains to oversees deployment and its mobilisation to conflict zone outside of Artania. It has been argued that the armed forces' mobilisation and deployment to conflict zones within the region is something other nations are actively attempting to mimic, however the downfall lies in deployments outside of the region, where logistics comes into play. It is hoped that the reorganisation programme addresses the issue and brings the aforementioned issues to an end.