Artillery - missile force constitutes a vital component of the combat system, providing the principal ground-based firepower in operations. Consequently, to meet the demands of fire support in a strategic counter-offensive, battlefield artillery commanders and their staff must implement a comprehensive range of measures across personnel, technology, tactics, and operational art. Among these, the transformation of the posture from strategic defence to strategic counter-offensive is of paramount importance and requires thorough study to ensure the highest level of effectiveness in execution.

In a Fatherland protection war (should it occur), effective strategic defensive operations would inflict losses upon the enemy, weakening its offensive strength. At the opportune moment, our forces would shift to a strategic counter-offensive aimed at annihilating a substantial portion of the enemy, thereby altering the course of the battlefield and hastening the conclusion of the war. Strategic counter-offensive operations are typically conducted by manoeuvrable main-force corps, with the participation of arms and services, while being supported by the defensive operations of military regions and defensive zones. Within this framework, artillery - missile force plays a crucial role. Transitioning from defensive to counter-offensive operations demands that the battlefield and all participating forces undertake a comprehensive series of tasks and solutions, ranging from deception and posture-setting to mission adjustment, decision revision, and coordinated assurance. Here, the flexible and timely transformation of the disposition is of decisive significance. As the principal ground-based firepower, artillery and missile forces must not only provide fire support for the reconfiguration of the battlefield but also directly adjust and transform the operational disposition to guarantee the success of the strategic counter-offensive under extremely urgent conditions. This is an intricate undertaking, requiring commanders and artillery-missile staff to display exceptional acuity and flexibility in grasping opportunities, commanding, directing, and coordinating. Within the scope of this article, several principal aspects of transforming the artillery-missile strategic defensive disposition into a counter-offensive posture will be examined for discussion and exchange.

Missile Brigade 490 in practice of combat readiness

Firstly, it is essential to rapidly adjust the organisation and employment of artillery-missile force to satisfy the requirements of fire support in strategic counter-offensive operations. This constitutes a particularly important element when shifting the artillery-missile force into counter-offensive combat. The reason lies in the very nature of counter-offensive operations, which primarily employ offensive and counter-attack campaigns against an enemy already in an attacking posture, thereby creating a far greater demand for artillery-missile firepower. To meet this requirement, the artillery-missile command must base adjustments upon the operational determination of the theatre commander, modifying plans, scale, and forms of organisation to suit the new tasks and conditions of combat. Accordingly, adjustments should be made by redeploying artillery-missile units from secondary areas and axes of operation to the main directions of combat, by committing part of the reserve forces to battle, and, additionally, by mobilising reserve forces to reinforce manpower and equipment for artillery - missile units that have sustained losses in defensive operations. Such adjustments must ensure that, on each axis of the counter-offensive, the artillery-missile force amounts to one or several brigades. Furthermore, depending on the situation and developments in the theatre, commanders may establish specialist artillery units at battalion scale, organised into teams of roughly company size, to infiltrate deep and strike decisively, conducting interspersed attacks within enemy formations.

The adjustment process must conform to the principles and requirements of organisation and force employment, while remaining consistent with the technical and tactical characteristics of each type of artillery. Particular attention should be paid to transforming artillery-missile units, which in strategic defensive operations are typically organised at smaller scales and deployed in dispersed formations, into larger, more concentrated groupings in order to maximise firepower and provide effective support in counter-offensive operations.

Secondly, it is necessary to redeploy the artillery-missile force in a manner that ensures secrecy and surprise, thereby meeting the requirements of fire support for strategic counter-offensives. This constitutes the most fundamental element of the art of transforming the artillery-missile posture from strategic defence to strategic counter-offensive. It is the basis upon which the artillery - missile force can suppress and destroy enemy targets from long to short range, across multiple depths and directions with flexibility, thereby providing effective support to combined-arms units in engaging the enemy. Moreover, redeployment is designed to concentrate forces and firepower along the principal axis and in key areas of the counter-offensive, particularly at decisive battles and engagements within campaigns, most notably those at the campaign-strategic level. To effect redeployment, forces must be manoeuvred and battle formations reconfigured to suit the requirements of strategic counter-offensive operations. Commanders and artillery-missile staff must therefore act with determination, flexibility, and creativity in directing units to move swiftly and safely so as to deploy in time for combat. The configuration of battle formations should exploit advantageous terrain, with firing positions located within effective range of the target area. It should implement the principle of “weapons dispersed, firepower concentrated” in order to limit the enemy’s reconnaissance and strike capabilities.

When adjusting the disposition, comprehensive consideration must be given to the system of observation posts, command centres, primary firing positions, as well as temporary and reserve positions across different axes and operational areas. At each firing position, both a primary site and alternative locations must be prepared to allow movement after each firing phase or after a set period, thereby reducing vulnerability to enemy counter-battery fire. Transforming the artillery-missile posture from strategic defence to counter-offensive must establish an initial posture that is cohesive, resilient, and flexible, while simultaneously creating favourable conditions for further transformations so as to maintain a dominant position throughout the operation. In addition, during such transformations, close coordination must be maintained with the firepower of air defence, air force, navy, armour, mechanised units, and infantry to protect firing positions and marching formations during manoeuvre. Hence, even in peacetime, artillery commanders and staff at all levels must prepare suitable base areas for artillery-missile units so that they can be readily deployed under operational plans. In particular, attention must be paid to anticipating the employment of artillery-missile forces in strategic counter-offensive operations across each battlefield. On this basis, the Artillery Command, artillery staff at all levels, and artillery-missile units must prepare in advance part of the combat infrastructure, logistical and technical depots, and movement routes for deployment; they must also establish a dense network of artillery reference points across projected areas of operations, in line with operational plans.

Artillery troops practice long marching

Thirdly, adjustments to support operations must be made so as to meet the requirements of the artillery-missile posture in strategic counter-offensive operations. The artillery - missile force possesses long-range strike capabilities, flexible mobility in both weapons and firepower, and operate in a highly coordinated manner; their requirements for support are therefore extensive. To ensure a favourable transformation of the artillery-missile posture in counter-offensive operations, it is necessary, alongside rational organisation and deployment of forces, to execute thorough adjustments in the field of operational support to suit the new disposition. In doing so, commanders, staffs, and artillery-missile units must provide comprehensive and timely coordination. Key aspects include reconnaissance, target designation, fire control calculations, communication, camouflage and deception, mobility, and logistical and technical assurance.

When the battlefield shifts from strategic defensive to counter-offensive operations, the enemy remains in an attacking posture, meaning that targets are dynamic. Thus, artillery-missile staffs must direct units to perform reconnaissance and target designation rapidly and accurately, ensuring constant monitoring of enemy activities for timely and precise fire missions. To enhance reconnaissance and targeting capabilities, full advantage must be taken of existing equipment, while closely coordinating with other battlefield forces for the exchange and provision of operational intelligence.

Logistical and technical support for the artillery-missile force in counter-offensive operations is of critical importance, given the vast material requirements and the susceptibility of artillery and missile weaponry to damage and losses in combat. To achieve effectiveness, units must not only redeploy and adjust their dispositions but also establish new logistical and technical depots suited to the requirements of counter-offensive operations. Simultaneously, artillery and ammunition must be kept in a high state of technical readiness, with substantial reserves of materials and spare parts. In particular, the logistical and technical services must ensure the uninterrupted supply of ammunition throughout the transformation of the battlefield posture, thereby enabling the artillery-missile force to engage the enemy effectively.

Establishing reliable communications for artillery-missile command in the new conditions of strategic counter-offensive operations is especially complex, given the enemy’s strong electronic warfare capabilities. Moreover, artillery-missile units must constantly implement a “shoot and move” doctrine to preserve their strength. Accordingly, units must prepare multiple communication plans, intensify measures to improve the effectiveness of both radio and wire systems in combat, while also exploiting the communications infrastructure of defensive zones and allied units. Equally decisive to the timeliness and effectiveness of the artillery-missile posture in transitioning from strategic defence to counter-offensive is mobility support. To ensure effective manoeuvre, artillery-missile commands and units must draw up meticulous plans, conduct close coordination, and execute movements at the right moment with secrecy and safety, always remaining combat-ready. During manoeuvre, measures must be taken to counter enemy reconnaissance and strikes by dispersing movements, applying effective camouflage, and strengthening defences against enemy air power, artillery, and unmanned aerial vehicles. In modern warfare, the enemy’s reconnaissance and precision strike capabilities can inflict rapid and accurate attacks on our artillery-missile force during manoeuvre or deployment. Hence, to preserve combat power and maintain advantageous conditions, the artillery-missile operational posture must be cohesive, resilient, and capable of flexible transformation. With these considerations in mind, even in peacetime, artillery-missile forces must intensively train for scenarios involving adjustments in organisation, manoeuvre, and battle formation deployment. They must enhance their ability to establish positions swiftly, conduct rapid and accurate fire missions, and withdraw immediately afterwards in order to preserve combat power and respond effectively under all circumstances.

Transforming the artillery-missile posture from strategic defence to strategic counter-offensive in a war of homeland defence is a matter of profound significance. While not entirely new, it belongs to the art of war, which is ever evolving and developing, and therefore requires continuous research, supplementation, and refinement both in theory and in practice.

Senior Colonel, Dr KIEU HUU KIEN, Principal of the Artillery College