Sun Pin (born c. 380 BC), a Chinese strategist often portrayed as a descendant or relative of Sun Tzu, was the author of the military treatise “Military Methods”. This work, less creative than Sun Tzu’s treatise, is devoted mainly to tactical issues. His work was lost in the 7th century, but it was found in a Han dynasty tomb discovered by archaeologists in 1972.
Logistics in military operations
Before commencing military operations, it was necessary to accumulate sufficiently large stocks of material and technical resources. This applied to every participant in a campaign: “Before setting out for battle, the commander issues orders for every man to prepare a three-day ration of food”. He saw a close connection between the state of available resources and the efficiency of operations and the combat capability of the troops, for in his view, possessing adequate material and technical resources was a prerequisite for defeating the opponent: “If someone goes to war without any logistical support, and yet achieves a small victory, they owe it to the influence of the stars”.
According to Sun Pin, in assessing and comparing the opponent’s forces with one’s own, one should include such components of their combat potential as: supplies, numbers, weapons and equipment, organization, and training, as these are the determinants of achieving victory. He wrote as follows, Tactics constitute:
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“if your supplies do not match those possessed by the enemy, do not draw him into a long fight,
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if the number of your soldiers does not match theirs, do not engage in battle,
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if your weapons and equipment do not match theirs, do not compete with them on closed terrain,
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if your organization does not match theirs, do not stand to fight on a wide front,
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if your training does not match theirs, do not oppose their strength.”
If these five criteria are clear, the army can advance without obstacles”.
To prevent interruptions in deliveries resulting from troops being cut off from supply sources or the enemy seizing them, Sun Pin advocated the decentralization of depots and the diversification of supplies, as “Numerous sources of supplies and dispersed reserves are methods of facilitating victory”.
Analyses conducted by Sun Pin proved that an army that commands respect can cover its needs more easily than one that no one counts with: “If an army shows respect twice – it will find no provisions anywhere, and if four times – it will have no food”. In the case where the enemy army “is fearful and suspicious”, he advised, among other things, to “hinder their supply deliveries”, which would contribute to lowering their already low enthusiasm for fighting.
In the chapter Ten Questions, Sun Pin says: “Attack positions that they will be forced to defend”. The list of sensitive targets, forcing the opponent to “hurry”, includes supplies (food), water, fords, roads, gorges, easy terrain, and everything “that he values”. When an army heads towards them, it forces the opponent to concentrate defense on these points and resources, as they determine his survival; if it attacks and captures them, it prevents the opponent from using them, thus disorganizing his operations. A “scorched earth area” was for him a “deadly terrain” – devoid of resources necessary to satisfy the needs of the troops, which is why he advised: “one can attack the troops that occupy it”, as he was convinced they must be weakened. In order to cut off supplies to the enemy’s troops, he envisioned the use of “chariots and fire during attacks on supply transports”.
The article comes from the magazine “Logistyka” 4/2011.