strategic initiative
전략적 주도권
Strategic initiative is the ability, in a war or theater of operations, to impose one's will on the opponent over an extended period and determine the timing and direction of operations. Seizing and maintaining it is regarded as a central condition for successful strategic operations.
In depth
Operational meaning
Strategic initiative does not mean merely winning one battle or being on the offensive. The key question is which side sets the timing and direction of successive strategic operations and compels the opponent to respond.
In the Eastern Front context, the concept describes the shift after the Battle of Stalingrad. The Soviet forces moved from defense and counteroffensive to sustained large-scale offensives, and military-history research characterizes 1943 as decisive in their seizure of the strategic initiative, which they did not subsequently lose before the war ended.
Related historical events
Sources
- Wikipedia (RU) supports the definition of strategic initiative as imposing one's will over time and its seizure and retention as a condition of successful strategic operations.
- apps.dtic.mil supports the Eastern Front claim that 1943 was decisive in the Soviet seizure of the strategic initiative and that it was not subsequently lost.