text: Chapter 1
  or large-scale combat operations to ensure enduring political outcomes favorable to U.S. interests. Examples
  of armed conflict include the Vietnam War, OPERATION DESERT STORM, and OPERATION
  INHERENT RESOLVE. (See Chapter 6 for a detailed discussion of Army forces conducting operations
  during armed conflict. See Chapter 7 for a discussion of Army forces in large-scale combat in maritime
  environments.)
  CONSOLIDATING GAINS
  1-74. Army commanders must exploit successful operations by continuously consolidating gains during
  competition, crisis, and armed conflict. Consolidate gains are activities to make enduring any initial
  operational success and to set the conditions for a sustainable security environment, allowing for a transition
  of control to other legitimate authorities (ADP 3-0). Consolidation of gains is an integral and continuous part
  of competition, and it is necessary for achieving success across the range of military operations. Successful
  consolidation of gains requires a realistic and pragmatic assessment of strategic conditions, ally and partner
  legitimacy, friendly and adversary relative advantages, and the viability of a sustainable political outcome.
  Operations to inform and influence foreign audiences also play a key role in achieving lasting outcomes.
  1-75. During competition, Army forces may consolidate gains from previous conflicts for many years as
  JFCs seek to maintain relative advantages against a specific adversary and sustain enduring political
  outcomes. U.S. forces in Europe, Japan, the Republic of Korea, and the Middle East remained in place for
  decades to consolidate gains made in earlier conflicts. Army forces also consolidate gains by continuously
  developing multinational interoperability and readiness for large-scale combat operations.
  1-76. During armed conflict, Army forces deliberately plan to consolidate gains throughout an operation as
  part of defeating the enemy in detail to accomplish overall policy and strategic objectives. Early and effective
  consolidation activities are a form of exploitation performed while other operations are ongoing, and they
  enable the achievement of lasting favorable outcomes in the shortest time span. Tactical units consolidating
  on an objective can be the first step in consolidating gains. In some instances, Army forces will be the lead
  for integrating forces and synchronizing activities to consolidate gains. In other situations, Army forces will
  be in support of allies and partners. Army forces may consolidate gains for a sustained period over large land
  areas. Military governments in occupied territories stabilize civilian populations. Military authorities may
  temporarily govern areas until populations are stable enough for transition to legitimate civilian authorities.
  This transition of control to civil authorities reduces demands on combat power.
  1-77. While Army forces must continuously consolidate gains throughout an operation, consolidating gains
  becomes the overall focus of Army forces when large-scale combat operations have concluded. During
  competition, Army forces may consolidate gains from previous conflicts for many years as JFCs seek to
  maintain relative advantages against a specific adversary. During crisis, Army forces seek to consolidate
  whatever gains are made relative to a specific adversary so that the crisis does not occur again.
  UNDERSTANDING AN OPERATIONAL ENVIRONMENT
  Since men live upon the land and not upon the sea, great issues between nations at war
  have always been decided—except in the rarest of cases—either by what your army can do
  against your enemy’s territory and national life, or else by fear of what the fleet makes it
  possible for your army to do.
  Sir Julian Corbett
  1-78. An operational environment is the aggregate of the conditions, circumstances, and influences that
  affect the employment of capabilities and bear on the decisions of the commander (JP 3-0). For Army forces,
  an operational environment includes portions of the land, maritime, air, space, and cyberspace domains
  understood through three dimensions (human, physical, and information). The land, maritime, air, and space
  domains are defined by their physical characteristics. Cyberspace, a manmade network of networks, transits
  and connects the other domains as represented by the dots shown in figure 1-4.