Lessons from Nagorno-Karabakh and Ukraine: India's Armored Combat Strategy Needs Evolution
Recent conflicts in Ukraine, Nagorno-Karabakh, and Gaza demonstrate that tanks fighting in isolation, without integrated support, suffer unsustainable losses. Conversely, tanks operating within a combined arms team remain crucial for decisive battles, exploiting success, and holding ground. This observation is particularly relevant for India, which needs to evolve its armored combat strategy from a platform-centric approach to a capability-centric modernization. The focus should shift from merely improving individual tanks to enhancing the entire armored combat system. This involves implementing a uniform battle management system across formations, establishing a common operational picture down to the brigade level, and integrating sensors, drones, artillery, and air defense into a cohesive network. Additionally, attention must be paid to less glamorous but vital components of the order of battle, such as organic air defense for armored formations, which is identified as one of the least modernized element...
