Global order is uncertain, fractured: Army chief

Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi on Thursday said the world has moved from the Cold War’s bipolarity through a brief unipolar moment into an “uncertain and fractured order”, as he underlined that the long peace is declining and comprehensive conflicts are on the rise.

In his address at the inaugural session of the third edition of Chanakya Defence Dialogue, a key conclave hosted by the Army here, he outlined a “set of springboards” that will drive the years of transformation ahead for the force, so as to remain decisive and future-ready in this rapidly evolving global landscape.

“We are living in an increasingly multipolar world, where major powers are continuously jostling and competing. The world has moved from the Cold War’s bipolarity through a brief unipolar moment, into an uncertain and fractured order. The long peace is declining, and comprehensive conflicts are on the rise,” General Dwivedi said.

He underlined that with over 50 ongoing conflicts worldwide, to say “we live in turbulent times, may actually be an understatement”.

So, if the globe is swivelling towards national security, deterrence and war-fighting, it inevitably “raises a fundamental question for us — how must the Indian military transform to remain decisive and ready in this rapidly-evolving global landscape,” the Army chief said.

The starting point to this question lies in the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 5Ss approach — ‘Samman, Samvad, Sayog, Samridhi, and Suraksha’, meaning respect, dialogue, cooperation, prosperity and security, the general officer said.

It guides how the whole-of-nation ecosystem must deliberate, coordinate and act through the Amrit Kal’ towards a Viksit Bharat, he asserted.

The theme of Chanakya Defence Dialogue 2025 is “Reform to Transform: Sashakt and Aur Surakshit Bharat”.

In his address, General Dwivedi recalled the ‘Decade of Transformation’ vision earlier announced by the Army for the period 2023-2032, and outlined a three-phase plan to make it a future-ready force.

The phase one, ‘hop’, set the agenda for the journey of the force by 2032.

Phase two, for 2037 vision, is a five-year consolidated period, drawing on the gains from phase one, and phase three, ‘jump’, with a 2047 vision, to graduate to the next level of “integrated future-ready force design”, Gen Dwivedi said.