Military strategy

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Military strategy is a set of ideas implemented by military organizations to pursue desired strategic goals.^[1] Derived from the Greek word strategos, the term strategy, when first used during the 18th century,^[2] was seen in its narrow sense as the "art of the general",^[3] or "the art of arrangement" of troops.^[4] and deals with the planning and conduct of campaigns, the movement and disposition of forces, and the deception of the enemy.

The father of Western modern strategic studies, Carl von Clausewitz (1780–1831), defined military strategy as "the employment of battles to gain the end of war."^[5] B. H. Liddell Hart's definition put less emphasis on battles, defining strategy as "the art of distributing and applying military means to fulfill the ends of policy".^[6] Hence, both gave the pre-eminence to political aims over military goals.

Sun Tzu (544–496 BC) is often considered as the father of Eastern military strategy and greatly influenced Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Vietnamese historical and modern war tactics.^[7] The Art of War by Sun Tzu grew in popularity and saw practical use in Western society as well. It continues to influence many competitive endeavors in Asia, Europe, and America including culture, politics,^[8][9] and business,^[10] as well as modern warfare. The Eastern military strategy differs from the Western by focusing more on asymmetric warfare and deception.^[7] Chanakya's Arthashastra has been an important strategic and political compendium in Indian and Asian history as well.^[11]

Strategy differs from operations and tactics, in that strategy refers to the employment of a nation's entire military capabilities through high-level and long-term planning, development, and procurement to guarantee security or victory. Operations and tactics is the art of organizing forces on or near the battlefield to secure objectives as part of the broader military strategy.