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Attributes and quality of the security system of the Czech Republic depend on the quality of human potential, which is part of institutions to guarantee security in the broadest sense of the word. The preparation of the staff of each part of the security system, as defined in the Security Strategy of the Czech Republic (2011), is performed in universities, colleges, and middle schools, training facilities, scientific research facilities and by employers. The capacity of educational institutions, in effect exceeds requirements of practice. The coordination of their activities and the content of education are managed by twelve-year-old conceptual document that has been in need of updating. This paper discusses those aspects and points out directions and ideas for addressing of some problems of current practice, and also some of the challenges of the future.

The paper presents reflections over the issue of armed forces capabilities. It is a phenomenon much discussed and written earlier, namely from the point of its building, estimation and development. Nevertheless the question is whether practical experiences are backed by theory fundamentals. Now we have a chance to introduce the live theory of quality management [1] into this specific and frequented military problem. The article is a polemic consideration over possibilities of introducing capabilities management into command and control capabilities system in armed forces.

The article deals with the possibility of using simulation technologies in the training of students of the University of Defence in tactical training and seeks to answer the question whether the use of these means brings demonstrable effectiveness by means of an experiment. First-year students in a Field Training course were randomly divided into 42 sections of approximately equal numbers and then assigned to 3 categories based on their use of live and virtual simulation. All groups were assigned points for a specific tactical activity during the final exercise. The total scores of all groups were subjected to a subsequent statistical investigation using a one-factor analysis of variance on the data to examine whether there were statistically significant differences between the groups. Although students' use of modern simulation technology had a perceived positive effect on improving the quality of training, there was no evidence of statistically significant differences between the groups studied using statistical methods. However, the results of the experiment do show to some extent that some differences do exist between the groups and therefore leaves some opportunity to conduct similar, or more extensive research, in an effort to promote the attractiveness of the training process to military school students.

The article analyzes key aspects of the development of the Czech Republic‘s defense policy since 1989, with a focus on the role of strategic culture. It examines historical, political, and social factors that have shaped the Czech Republic‘s approach to defense and security issues. Special attention is given to the transformation of the Czech Armed Forces, the transition to a professional military model, and responses to changing geopolitical threats. The analysis also considers public perceptions of the military, the influence of historical narratives on strategic culture, and the attitudes of political elites toward defense matters. The article highlights the importance of strategic culture as an analytical framework for understanding long-term trends and the evolution of defense policy, while suggesting potential avenues for future research in the Czech context.

The article analyzes loitering munition as a distinct category separate from traditional UAVs and examines its role in recent armed conflicts. Drawing on qualitative and quantitative analysis, it finds that these systems have become a persistent feature of modern warfare, which is also reflected in the rapid expansion of acquisition efforts within NATO countries after years of stagnation. Building on these findings, the article introduces four functional criteria defining loitering munition and provides a targeted DOTMLPFI mapping that outlines the key requirements and indicative metrics needed to achieve full operational capability. The study shows that progress across all DOTMLPFI domains is essential for effective and sustainable integration, particularly in smaller armed forces.

Accurate meteorological data is crucial for precise artillery fire, yet its availability can be compromised in combat conditions. This study investigates the impact of limited meteorological information on artillery accuracy and explores potential mitigation strategies. By analysing upperair data from a single weather station, we simulated various scenarios of reduced meteorological support. Our findings highlight the significance of meteorological factors on artillery performance and the potential consequences of inadequate data. We developed a foundational framework for offline artillery support products, emphasizing the need for robust methods to estimate atmospheric conditions in data-scarce environments. Future research will focus on incorporating advanced modelling techniques and additional data sources to enhance the accuracy and applicability of these products.

In this article the author thinks over one of many variants the mortar units could be deployed into battalion combat task forces to support developing operations. It is a process of gradual compatibility with the units of North Atlantic Alliance and modernizing mortar weapons system with regard to prospective personnel reductions. It is important for joint commanders to be familiar with this kind of combat support, so that they could use it effectively in land operations.

The article deals with the general considerations on the relationship between Public and Private Law and on the relationship of the Professional Soldiers Act (Act no. 221/1999 Coll., on Professional Soldiers) to other legal regulations. The contribution also defines and interprets certain terms (family, household/shared household, close person, child, spouse/partner) at which demonstrates the combination of both legislative branches. It attempts to demonstrate that the laws so called armed legislation, particularly the Professional Soldiers Act is not a world closed on itself, but rather an area that is a part of the unified legal system linked to a number of laws, including Private Law (especially to the CivilCode and Labour Code).

Dear readers,
We would like to present to you an article published in our journal in No. 10/1923. It is the contribution by CPT R. Wolf "Sorting of military sciences and decimal bibliographic system".
You can read or download the continuation of this article on the website of our journal www.vojenskerozhledy.cz in the Archive menu.

The article deals with the interpretation of the term "armed forces" in the context of the current legal system of the Czech Republic. The authors propose to distinguish between the armed forces in the institutional concept and in the functional concept. The essence of the solution is the interpretation of Section 3(1) of the Armed Forces Act (No. 219/1999 Coll.) in the functional concept, i.e. in such a way that the armed forces are understood to include soldiers assigned to the Ministry of Defence, military schools, the Military Police and the Military Intelligence. Another solution could be to add a paragraph to the Armed Forces Act stating that "The provisions on members of the armed forces shall apply mutatis mutandis to soldiers on active service assigned to the Ministry of Defence, military schools, the Military Police and the Military Intelligence." The aim of the article is initiation professional discussions about the issue in question, as well as indications of directions as to how it would be appropriate to solve the matter.

The paper evaluates the level of cooperation between the Ministry of Defence and the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) in the field of procurement of military equipment. In the practical part, the results of the research on the level of participation of Czech-based suppliers in NSPA activities between 2018 and 2022 are presented. Pareto analysis comparing the participation of the Czech and international companies in contracts implemented by NSPA in terms of their subject, quantity and financial value is used. Qualitative case studies from three different areas illustrate in which NSPA projects the Czech Republic has already been involved in and which benefits and risks are associated with this cooperation for the MoD. Positives and drawbacks in the process of acquiring military equipment in-house and opportunities and threats that may arise from the acquisition of military equipment through the NSPA are summarised in the form of the SWOT analysis. Finally, recommendations are presented on how to improve the cooperation between the MoD and the NSPA in the field of acquisition.

This study aimed to explore the media’s perception of the military and militant activities, focusing on journalists’ professional conduct and their commitment to the national cause. In-depth interviews were conducted with Pakistani journalists reporting from conflict zones. The findings suggest that Pakistan is engaged in a war on terror and that the media plays a key role in glorifying the security forces in their fight against militants who challenge the authority of the state. Journalists expressed the view that the government and military should take realistic measures to combat this threat. While journalists described militants as terrorists, they also noted that their professionalism is often influenced by patriotism and a national duty to serve the country. However, objectivity remained a key element of their reporting. The media, considered the fourth pillar of the state, should have the necessary freedom to report on conflicts. At the same time, self-censorship was considered necessary to prevent content that could lead to radicalization.

The article addresses the issue of the emergence of new technologies and their impact on the capabilities of the Czech Armed Forces (CAF). A summary of the recommendations is presented. In particular, there is a need for a conceptual approach to the integration of new systems in order to avoid spontaneous purchasing, which could be very logistically demanding. The very rapid development in the field of unmanned autonomous systems using elements of artificial intelligence offers opportunities to use them in support of the tasks of CAF. Due to the breadth of this issue, the scope is limited to the area of the Special Forces, which introduce these new sophisticated means into use throughout the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic.

This article deals with the use of constructive simulation software in the planning process of military engineer staff personnel. The possibilities regarding the implementation of MASA SWORD simulation software are demonstrated on specific data from the Engineer Support Management Course, with overlapping applications to other specialized military troops. Three scenarios were used for the simulations, which were practiced and verified during the course’s  exercise. Each scenario was evaluated in silico within the simulation environment, incorporating analytical and graphical outputs. Utilizing the MASA SWORD analytical module, each scenario underwent comparative analysis using statistical tests to assess the fulfilment or failure of the assigned task. The findings emphasize the promising role of constructive simulation in enhancing military personnel training and planning process on tactical level.

Maintenance and repair (M&R) of military equipment are crucial for operational readiness. The article highlights challenges faced by military forces, particularly in the US, with significant equipment non-operable due to inefficient M&R. It emphasizes modernizing M&R through Predictive Maintenance (PM) and 3D Printing (AM). PM employs AI and data analytics for real-time monitoring and foreseeing malfunctions, signifying a strategic shift in M&R. AM significantly curtails downtime by enabling on-demand spare parts production, presenting a solution to traditional military M&R challenges. The article also underscores the economic advantages and potential for operational efficiency improvements through these technologies. However, it points out hurdles in implementing PM and AM, including high initial costs, lack of trained personnel, and the threat of counterfeit production in AM.

The article is a thematic sequel of a previous work addressing the concept of Multi-Domain Operations (MDO) in the context of modern warfare. It highlights the differences in the conceptual approaches to MDO as applied by the U.S. Armed Forces and NATO in response to current security challenges. The study outlines the shift by NATO and the U.S. from traditional joint operations to integrated strategies within respective operational domains. Based on a literature review and content analysis of doctrinal documents, it identifies a fundamental difference in the conceptual approaches of NATO and the U.S. to MDO. While the U.S. approach emphasizes a military-oriented model that generates synergistic effects through coordinated operations and technologically driven dominance, NATO’s framework favours a comprehensive civil-military model of strategic integration.

Biosafety and biodefense (i.e. all countermeasures preventing the spread of biological agents in the environment and population) are on the regular agenda of states and their militaries. Somewhat aside are global catastrophic biological risks (GCBR), which can destroy human society as a biological species. Although a precise definition of what constitutes a global catastrophic biological risk is still being sought, it can be considered the impact of potential global catastrophic risks (GCR) on the social, economic and biological structure of human existence. This implies that GCBRs are a subset of GCRs. It is also open to discussion whether in the case of GCBRs the risk must necessarily be biological agents, from viruses to humans, or whether anthropogenic threats can also be accepted as risk factors, or what the impact must be for a risk to be included under the designation GCBR.

Most experts believe that urban operations will gain importance in the future, but even though we have sufficient examples and experience at hand, we still struggle with the development of the necessary skills and capabilities. The resulting gaps are a combination of different tasking and shrinking resources in the past decades, the difficulty of training for and a mere misunderstanding of the urban environment and harmful innovations - we seem to find ourselves always in the beginning. Fighting in isolated "prisms of responsibility" requires flexible task forces with all necessary enablers at hand and well-trained commanders exercising mission command and understanding their role, task, and the purpose of action. Mastering the urban environment on all three levels of movement is a very challenging task and requires focused attention on various aspects, inter-actor interaction and interdisciplinary research and development. The development of a methodology suitable for looking into the hidden aspects and contextualizing them with current activities and future developments is key to capability development.

The article brings a comparison of the approaches to the strategic defence analysis (SDA) and developing future Defence Concepts (DFDC) of the Czech Republic and Norway. The countries are in a different geopolitical situation, NOR being a country with borders that are part of the outer border of the Alliance, the Czech Republic being a country surrounded by three member countries of the Alliance and one PfP country. On the basis of the comparison of the two approaches, the authors identified differences and common points of the two. Based on the findings, the discussion provides inspiration for possible enhancements in the approach of the Czech Republic to SDA to ensure the future defence of the country. All that in context of current Security developments in Europe, that have an impact on how NATO member countries might deal with Article 3 and Article 5 of the Washington Treaty.

The center of gravity in military affairs represents a dominant element of military art, used in the planning and conduct of military operations. The doctrine defines it as the main source of power that provides the actor with his strength, freedom of action and/or the will to fight. This article examines Clausewitz’s concept of center of gravity through selected philosophical perspectives and clarifies its significance in military theory and practice. It presents the doctrinal development of the concept, discusses its context, and concludes that the concept of the center of gravity remains a key doctrinal and practical element of operational art.

The article follows the author's comparative analysis of American and Russian nuclear doctrines and armaments from the fall of 2021. It presents the current nuclear strategy of the United States of America based on a content analysis of three specific areas of the updated version of the Nuclear Posture Review. Applying interpretive analysis and a rich secondary sources apparatus, the author also reflects on his 2021-formulated assumptions and expectations about the further development of American nuclear strategy under President Joe Biden. The author analyzes the influence of the presidential administration's ideological and political ambitions together with the decisive geopolitical events of 2022 and concludes that mainly due to the second factor, the current shape of American nuclear strategy has not undergone any revolutionary changes and continues to maintain a long-standing continuity and consensus about its basic principles.

The purpose of this paper is to present some particularities of mission command during the conflict in Ukraine. Intended as a  framework of analysis, it describes the ways in which the involved parties manage warfighting from the perspective of practicing mission command as a method to enhance military effectiveness. Using qualitative methods, combining literature review, critical analysis of relevant resources, comparative analysis and indirect observation, the findings are related to aspects of mission command that are critical for enhancing operational and decision-making resilience, through identifying and examining various situations involving Ukrainian and Russian military forces. At the same time, the results of the study highlight some potential ways of innovating the principle

This study deconstructs the concept of active measures through the prism of information influence. It understands it as sophisticated methods of influencing public opinion and political decisions, originally used by the Soviet Union and now adapted to cyberspace by the Russian Federation. In the analysis, the concept is contrasted with the general abstraction of information influence. This helps to better understand the proximity of active measures to similar concepts. We conclude that abstractions of information influence are also valid for conceptual understanding and practical examples of contemporary Russian active measures. Active measures are subsidiary to information influence, serving as tactical means to achieve the latter's strategic goals. Furthermore, the author states that the information environment is the operational theatre for active operations, cyber operations can be its manifestation, information operations support as a key component of a broader information operations strategy, and psychological operations are its critical element.

The paper is focused on research of military operations planning with the purpose of defining an efficient decision-making model at the tactical level for brigade-level offensive operation. Suggested model applies methods of multi-criteria decision-making – DIBR II (Defining Interrelationships Between Ranked Criteria II) and EDAS (Evaluation based on Distance from Average Solution) in order to decrease subjectivity while evaluating and ranking criteria, but also to select the most optimal course of action (COA). DIBR II method is used for the evaluation and determination of criteria coefficients, while the EDAS method enables choice between the most optimal COA. Application of simple and effective methods of multi - criteria decision - making accelerates the planning process and enables commanding officer to make optimal troop employment decision in a given operation.

Cognitive warfare is a new phenomenon that differs from any forms of action previously used in the information space aiming to affect the thinking of target groups. The main difference consists in the targeted and sophisticated use of scientific knowledge from neuroscience, with special attention on consciousness and perception of reality. This deeper understanding of how the human mind works has impacted distributed narratives and the choice of the most suitable technological platforms for their distribution to the target audience. This article presents a conceptual classification of cognitive warfare and defines its three core segments: neuroscience, technology and aspects of social science.

The article deals with the issue of identification and evaluation of the competencies of senior officers of the Czech Armed Forces. Paper investigates the role of the authorities responsible for military branches and military occupation specialties in the system of defining officer´s competencies. It was also examined the scope of possible application of the competency model of a professional soldier defined by the National System of Occupations in the process of career management. As a comprehensive and optimal solution, a full application of competency model is proposed. The partial application of the competency model is based only on the use of the soft competencies component. Both of these proposals are formulated primarily for the purpose of describing the job position and official evaluation. The paper also brings a number of proposals in the conceptual and normative area circumscribing and strengthening the role of the responsible authorities in the process of defining the officer´s competencies.

The article presents more than ten years of experience in testing the abilities of pilots during flight control on flight simulators. A hypothesis is stated about the possibilities of finding common features in flight control, the basic mathematical apparatus for evaluation is presented, the flight simulators used and, of course, the achieved results are presented. 110 pilots have already been tested and a total of 2360 missions - test flights - have been simulated. Subsequent mathematical analysis provided approximately 40,000 results suitable for further statistical processing. This amount of data obtained from realistically simulated flights provides a prerequisite for defining applicable conclusions to the proposed mortgages. For the needs of subsequent certification, a proposal for the pile measurement methodology was also prepared, which summarizes both the theoretical approach to pile testing and the procedure for carrying out tests on individual simulators. Part of the proposed methodology includes an overview of the software created to facilitate the recording of data from individual missions, as well as software for own analysis of the measured data from the missions.

Russia has always had a keen interest in the Western Balkans. It was historically realised in the context of geopolitical continuities of the expansion of its territory and influence. Russia has tried to gain influence in this region for political, economic, identity and strategic reasons. However, after the start of military aggression against Ukraine in 2014, Russia opted for a confrontation in the Western Balkans where it opposes the EU and NATO expansion policies and influence of the West in this region. Key Russian leverage for spreading its influence in the region is the Serbian geopolitical design of military neutrality and the convergence of strategic interests of the two countries. Russia wants to exert a strong influence on the Western Balkans, and thus on the security of the EU. On the other hand, Serbia wants to position itself as the main actor of power in the region with simultaneous support from both Russia and the West.