Defense (military) - Citizendia

National Defence redirects here. For a volunteer Polish unit (1937-1939) see National Defence (Poland).

In military science, defence (International) or defense (U. Military Science is the process of translating National defence policy to produce Military capability by employing Military scientists including S. Spelling) is the art of preventing an attack, or minimizing the damage of an attack, e. g. by preventing an enemy from conquering territory. Types of administrative and/or political territories include Many types of legally administered territories, each of which is a non-sovereign geographic area

Thus, if a party attacks an enemy who is about to attack that party, this could be called defense. However, this leaves room for interpretation.

Typically defensive are e. g. armor and a bunker. Armour (or armor) is protective covering most commonly manufactured from metals to prevent damage from being inflicted to an individual or a vehicle through use of direct contact A military bunker is a hardened shelter often buried partly or fully underground designed to protect the inhabitants from falling bombs or other attacks Also defensive are guns, rockets, etc. with a range within the defenders territory: they can only attack an attacker. If the weapon is mobile it may also be used in an attack, after moving it.

Defense may also be a euphemism for war, such as Ministry or Department of Defence, although this does not carry the negative connotation of war. A euphemism is a substitution of an agreeable or less offensive expression in place of one that may offend or suggest something unpleasant to the listener or in the case of doublespeak War is an international relations Dispute, characterized by organized Violence between National Military units War is an international relations Dispute, characterized by organized Violence between National Military units Usage in this way has broadened the term to include most military issues. A military is an Organization authorized by its Nation to use force usually including use of Weapons in defending its Country (or by attacking

Territorial defense

In the strictnational level, and territorial defense is synonymous with national defense. In Political geography and International politics, a country is a Political division of a geographical entity

Modern [[collective ome of these traditional views. During the Cold War, the defense of most countries was dominated either by the United States or by the Soviet Union. Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Most Western European countries were organized within NATO, while most Eastern European countries were united within the Warsaw Pact. Western Europe at its most general meaning means 'all the countries in the West of Europe ' The North Atlantic Treaty Eastern Europe is a general term that refers to the Geopolitical region encompassing the easternmost part of the European continent. The Warsaw Pact (see Nomenclature) was an organization of Communist states in Central and Eastern Europe.

[[Image:Beleg. Oostende(01). jpg|thumb|350px|right|The rampart defenses of [[Ostend]. See also List of cities with defensive walls A defensive wall is a Fortification used to defend a city or settlement from potential aggressors ]]]

Defense through the ages

Historically, it was generally true that defenders had an advantage over attackers. Battles commonly focused on sieges of important cities, allowing defenders to strengthen their position. They had the ability to make preparations for the battle to protect themselves from the enemy while making the enemy vulnerable, e. g. preparing positions such as trenches and fortifications or in more recent times laying obstacles such as land mines and tank traps. A trench is a type of excavation or depression in the ground Trenches are generally defined by being deeper than they are wide (as opposed to a wider Gully or Ditch Fortifications are Military Constructions and Buildings designed for defense in Warfare Humans have constructed defensive works for A land mine is an Explosive device designed to be placed on or in the ground to explode when triggered by an operator or the Proximity of a vehicle person During World War II the term " dragon's teeth " came to designate square-pyramidal fortifications used to impede the progress of mechanized armies However in encounters larger than the small scale the attacker may often have the advantage, since they get to choose the time and place of battle. An attacker may concentrate their entire force on a small part of the defended area, while the defender is forced to spread their forces over the possible area of attack.

In the modern era the defenders' advantage has been gradually reduced, due to factors like the increased mobility of the modern forces, better communication technology and increased destructiveness of weaponry - reinforced underground bunkers which would previously have been unassailable can be eliminated instantly by bunker-buster missiles or tactical nuclear weapons. A bunker buster is a Bomb designed to penetrate hardened targets or targets buried deep underground A tactical nuclear weapon (or TNW) refers to a Nuclear weapon which is designed to be used on a battlefield in military situations