The peace organisation of the Army will still be concentrated in the areas of Troms and south eastern Norway. The land activities of the Navy must be limited to what is strictly necessary. It is also a goal to concentrate the activities of the Air Force to fewer stations.
The peace organisation is to resolve the tasks of the Armed Forces in times of peace, and develop and maintain its forces. The restruction of the organisation will release resources to implement the main priorities of the Armed Forces.
Cost efficient measures should be carried out irrespective of services and sectors. Thus it is crucial to think comprehensively. In order to achieve cut backs through organsational measures, it is necessary to see different resources (personnel, materiel, porperties, and infrastructure) in context. Based on experiences, considerable savings can primarily be achieved by reducing the number of service areas.
The supreme organisation of the Armed Forces must be developed. Joint functions and activities that are subordinated to the Headquarters Defence Command must be reviewed in order to facilitate future activities and comprehensive solutions. It is also a principal goal to provide logistical services that are better and more cost effective than the current ones.
The peace organisation of the Army will still be concentrated in the areas of Troms and south eastern Norway. It will be necessary to close down and merge functions and facilities across the branches in order to reduce the number of garrisons and service stations. The number and location of the district commands and the territorial regiments will be evaluated in connection with the development of the national war and command structure. Merging and larger cooperation between the educational garrisons of the Army will be considered. It is necessary to establish particular skills for the officers and servicemen who form the basis for recruitment to international operations. This is currently taken care of by the Telemark Battalion. Over time, it could also involve other units within the framework of a brigade.
As a link to utilise the technical and educational skills of the Home Guard, a merger between the two Home Guard training centres and parts of the additional officer training will be considered. The operational level of the Home Guard will be maintained at approximately the current level.
The land based activities of the Navy must be reduced to what is strictly necessary. By placing emphasis on the materiel commands and a minimal number of naval stations and bases, the need for regional structures will be reduced. The naval districts may be replaced by a base and stationary organisation with a reduced number of tasks compared to that of the present districts. The number and locations of the naval stations and bases will be evaluated. The peace time manning of the Navy, the Coast Guard, and the Coast Artillery units will be kept at a level which ensures necessary competence during times of peace and war.
It is a goal to concentrate the activities of the Air Force to fewer air stations. The Government will soon present a proposal of changes to Parliament. The organisation of air stations in times of peace will be based on a number of main air stations and two air stations which respectively are to support maritime patrol aircraft and medium sized transport aircraft. The relation between the number of main air stations, air stations, and air stations with cadre/mobilisation status will again be evaluated in due time based on experiences with the new organisation.
The upholding of the main residential patterns and the development of sustainable regions in all parts of the country are central goals of the Government's policy. Continued restruction of the Armed Forces will involve new reductions and closures. Many municipalities and local communities will be affected by these changes. Still, the Armed Forces will uphold the national activities that are important for local communities in terms of habitation, employment and other activities in several municipalities and local communites, especially in Northern Norway. The Government will make the restructuring process as smooth as possible for the personnel of the Armed Forces, as well as for the municipalities and local communities that are affected.
Topic: New Military Operational Concept
The fundamental principles governing the use of forces in a military operation is referred to as a military operational concept. Norway is a small country . In the event of any conflict, it must therefore be prepared to face an enemy who is greatly superior both numerically and in weight of forces available. The new military operational concept is based on the ability to identify an enemy's weakest points and to strike at these. Weak points may not necessarily be military combat units, but could just as well be command and control arrangements, lines of communication, infrastructure or critical resources.
The operational concept is also based on manoeuvre warfare in which rapid and unexpected manoeuvres are employed to attack and neutralise the enemy's weak points. In this way even numerically inferior forces can force an opponent to abandon his military aims without necessarily defeating him physically. Manoeuvre warfare presupposes a high degree of flexibility, highly mobile units, initiative and speed. The new military operational concept is very demanding in terms of intelligence, modern weapon systems and versatile combat units. It also requires highly skilled and highly trained personnel at all levels. It is important, therefore, that there should be frequent opportunities for realistic exercises in peacetime.
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