Ability Versus Will: The Reason Insurgents Surrender
Abstract
This study analyzes the concept of surrender in both conventional and unconventional war. It closely investigates the ties between military ability and political will in the inducement of surrender. The study begins with a discussion of terminology and definitions as boundaries for the arguments that follow. It then argues that the three main decision points in war all involve a choice: to start a war, to continue a war, and to end a war. The remainder of the work contends that success in war centers on altering the pertinent aspects of that decision making. The study then examines the German and Japanese situations in World War II that ended in their surrender. The author highlights both ability and will as components that form what the author refers to as capability level. He then explains that the nation(s) with superior relative capability levels have better chances for wartime success. Absolute superiority is not as important as relative superiority in war. The study then examines unconventional war from a general perspective and discusses the applicable differences between it and conventional war with regard to military ability, political will, and surrender. The discussion dissects the French-Algerian War using it as an exemplar for an insurgency that, by conventional standards, should have surrendered but did not. The author proposes that efforts focused incorrectly on military ability and not political will ultimately granted the FLN political victory even though they were militarily defeated. The conclusion is that while there is no template solution that when applied yields an insurgent surrender, one should consider several factors in order to increase the chances of the enemy choosing surrender. The main idea is to focus on military ability when engaged in conventional war and political will when engaged in unconventional war in attempt to change enemy decision making variables.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 01, 2010
- Accession Number
- AD1019123
Entities
People
- Jason Rueschhoff
Organizations
- Air War College