CONSOLIDATING GAINS AND THE CONSOLIDATION AREA IN NATO DOCTRINE

Consolidating gains is an integral part of combat operations that leverages tactical, operational, and strategic level advantages to retain the initiative and create irreversible momentum towards the desired end state (TRADOC, 2017). How successfully armed forces consolidate their gains often informs the outcome for how a conflict is viewed today. Successfully consolidating gains in NATO operations have a clear impact at the tactical, operational, and strategic levels of war. By increasing the importance of consolidating gains and incorporating the consolidation area as a new geographic framework within Alliance doctrine, NATO will be better prepared to maintain the initiative, while creating the required momentum to achieve the military and political end state.