Every nation has the right to demand proper treatment and no country should
violate the territory of any other country.
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk
Introduction
From the early history itself it’s evident that many countries invaded other
countries for many purposes which included expanding their precious empire.Great
Britain is the best example for the military invasions, as it has invaded almost
90percent of the world’s countries.
”Sun never sets on the British Empire” is a
famous slogan that shows the power of the Great Britain by invading the countries.Similarly many other countries also tried their hand in invasion and
conquered and ruled them. Although every country has the right to not be
invaded, countries like Great Britain invaded other countries to strengthen
themselves and exploit the other.For these invasions they made use of their
military.
An invasion is a military offensive in which large numbers of combatants
of one geopolitical entity aggressively enter territory owned by another such
entity, generally with the objective of either conquering; liberating or
re-establishing control or authority over a territory; forcing the partition of
a country; altering the established government or gaining concessions from said
government; or a combination thereof. An invasion can be the cause of a war, be
a part of a larger strategy to end a war, or it can constitute an entire war in
itself. Due to the large scale of the operations associated with invasions, they
are usually strategic in planning and execution.
History
History of military invasions dates back decades and even centuries.For example,
German military operations conducted against Poland in 1939 which precipitated
World War II are often called the Invasion of Poland, while military operations
conducted against Nazi-controlled France in 1944 for the purpose of liberation
are called the Invasion of Normandy.[1] Archaeological evidence indicates that
invasions have been frequent occurrences since prehistory.
In antiquity, before
radio communications and fast transportation, the only way for a military to
ensure adequate reinforcements was to move armies as one massive force. This, by
its very nature, led to the strategy of invasion. With invasion came cultural
exchanges in government, religion, philosophy, and technology that shaped the
development of much of the ancient world.
Methods of military invasion
- Invasion by land:
Invasion over land is the straightforward entry of armed forces into another
country, using existing land connections, usually crossing borders or
otherwise defined zones, such as a demilitarized zone, overwhelming
defensive emplacements and structures. Although this tactic often results in
a quick victory, troop movements are relatively slow and subject to
disruption by terrain and weather. Furthermore, it is hard to conceal plans
for this method of invasion, as most geopolitical entities take defensive
positions in areas that are most vulnerable to the methods mentioned above.
- Invasion by Sea:
Invasion by sea is the use of a body of water to facilitate
the entry of armed forces into an area, through the sea, often to a landmass
adjoining the body of water or an island. This is generally used either in
combination with another method of invasion,such as entry through the sea
further requires entry to the land by invasion by land. And especially before
the invention of flight, for cases in which there is no other method to enter
the territory they used this method. The merits of this method includes of the
ability to perform a surprise attack from sea, or that naval defences of the
area in question are inadequate to repel such an attack.
But along with these
merits there are difficulties that the large amount of specialized equipment,
such as amphibious vehicles and the difficulty of establishing defences—usually
with a resulting high casualty count.Even though there are such a risk are
success rate is very low. These are often said as arguments against such an
invasion method. Underwater hazards and a lack of good cover are very common
problems during invasions from the sea. At the Battle of Tarawa, Marine landing
craft became hung up on a coral reef and were shelled from the beach. Other
landers were sunk before they could reach the shore, and the tanks they were
carrying were stranded in the water. Most of the few survivors of the first wave
ended up pinned down on the beach. The island was conquered but at a heavy cost,
and the loss of life sparked mass protests from civilians in the United
States.[2]
- Invasion by Air:
Invasion by air is an invention of the 20th century and
modern warfare. The idea involves sending military units into a territory by
aircraft. The aircraft either land in the other countries territory, allowing
the military units to debark and attempt their objectives, or the troops climb
down the aircraft while the aircraft is in the air itself, using parachutes or
similar devices to land, in the territory being invaded.
This type of invasion
also will follow a combination of methods of invasions, after landing from the
aircraft the troop should either invade by the land or by sea. Many times, air
assaults have been used to pave the way for a ground- or sea-based invasion, by
taking key positions deep behind enemy lines such as bridges and crossroads, but
an entirely air-based invasion has never succeeded.
Advantages of this method relate to the ability to target specific
areas that may not necessarily be easily accessible by land or sea, a greater
chance of surprising the enemy and overwhelming defensive structures, and, in
many cases, the need for a reduced number of forces due to the element of
surprise. Disadvantages typically involve the capacity to perform such an
invasion—such as the number of planes that would be needed to carry a sufficient
number of troops—and the need for a high level of intelligence in order for the
invasion to be successful.
Defence
States with potentially hostile neighbours typically adopt defensive
measures to delay or forestall an invasion ,may be by way of applying more
military force in the borders or building forts etc. in addition to utilizing
geographical barriers such as rivers, marshes, or rugged terrain. Such a defence
can be intended to actively prevent invading forces from entering the country by
means of an extended and well-defended barrier; the Great Wall of China [3],
Hadrian's Wall [4], and the Danewerk [5] are famous examples.
Such barriers have
also included trench lines and, in more modern times, minefields, cameras, and
motion-sensitive sensors to sense the presence of the enemy. However, these
barriers can require a large military force to provide the defense, as well as
maintain the equipment and positions, which can impose a great economic burden
on the country. Some of those same techniques can also be turned against
defenders, used to keep them from escape or resupply. During Operation
Starvation, Allied forces used airdrop mines to severely disrupt Japanese
logistical operations within their own border [6].
Impact of the invasions
The outcomes of an invasion may vary according to the objectives of both
invaders and defenders, the success of the invasion and the defence, and the
presence or absence of an agreed settlement between the warring parties. The
most common outcome is the loss of territory, generally accompanied by a change
in government and often the loss of direct control of that government by the
losing faction.
This sometimes results in the transformation of that country
into a client state, often accompanied by requirements to pay reparations or
tribute to the victor. In other cases the results of a successful invasion may
simply be a return to the status quo; this can be seen in wars of attrition,
when the destruction of personnel and supplies is the main strategic objective,
or where a nation previously subdued and currently occupied by an aggressive
third party is restored to control of its own affairs (i.e. Western Europe
following the Normandy landings in 1944 [7], or Kuwait following the defeat of
Iraq in 1991). In some cases, the invasion may be strategically limited to a
geographical area, which is carved into a separate state as with the Bangladesh
Liberation War in 1971.
Pacification
Pacification is an attempt to create or maintain peace. That can mean
appeasing a hostile country through diplomacy or even just by settling an
argument. A pacifist is someone who is against fighting and wars.Pacification is
the requirement of the time that these ambitious invasions leads to many
economical,geographical losses. While through the pacification the arguments
which may lead to war can be controlled by this peacemaking method.
Conclusion
China is constantly in the news for its ambition to be a super-power by
invading India and Taiwan.China tries to bring Taiwan to its control as it
brought out the control over Hong-Kong as part of their ‘One China
Policy’.Similarly many other countries also look forward to invade another
country and bring them to their control and thereby become a superpower in the
world which they things will definitely brings a benefit in many ways in terms
of trade benefits,legislation powers etc.but in this era it is important to make
a harmonious relationships with all countries.
References
-
https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Invasion#:~:text=For%20example%2C%20German%20military%20operations,called%20the%20Invasion%20of%20Normandy
- https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.history.com/.amp/topics/world-war-ii/battle-of-tarawa
- https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-china/great-wall-of-china
- https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.history.com/.amp/topics/ancient-rome/hadriansDanewirk
- https://www.britannica.com/topic/Danewirk
- https://www.historynet.com/operation-starvation.htm
- https://www.britannica.com/event/Normandy-Invasion
- https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.history.com/.amp/this-day-in-history/iraq-invades-kuwait
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