WASHINGTON\u00a0\u2014\u00a0In a world where long-range guided missiles and sophisticated radars are the norm, analysts and lawmakers are urging the Pentagon to rethink the way it operates in the electromagnetic spectrum to gain new advantages over near-peer competitors, such as\u00a0Russia and China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Over the past few decades, competitors’ advancements in sensor and missile technology have forced the U.S. military to operate farther and farther away from its intended targets, according to a report released this week by the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessment (CSBA).\u00a0The Pentagon must shift toward using low-power countermeasures to defeat enemy sensors, as well as low-power sensors and communications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During a Dec. 2 \u00a0event on Capitol Hill to release the report, the report’s\u00a0co-authors and CSBA senior fellows Mark Gunzinger and Bryan Clark said the military must invest in technology to avoid detection and confuse enemy air defenses \u2014\u00a0for instance stealth aircraft, electronic jammers and decoys. Cheap, expendable unmanned vehicles, in the air or undersea, are crucial to this approach, they said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n