Best Practices in Irregular Warfare Combined Operations
Abstract
What lessons can be learned from combined Irregular Warfare activities to inform United States Special Operations Forces (SOF) operating in today's competition continuum? To counter adversaries competing with the United States, small SOF units deploy to over 70 countries yearly seeking to enhance ally and partner relationships, to bolster deterrence, and create opportunities. The United States Army's 1st Special Forces Command dubs this the indigenous approach, which stresses that interoperability with local partners is the key to forming and operating as an Irregular Warfare force. This thesis employed the independent variables of Information, Support, and Talent to examine two cases involving small teams that deploy and operate with local forces. Both cases were graded using a qualitative ordinal scale to measure the degree the three independent variables played in generating interoperability between the two elements. This research found that selecting flexible personnel prior to deployment of the team, working with a willing local partner force,and leveraging external logistical support networks improved the interoperability of the small team and its local counterparts. This thesis recommends that continued study of combined Irregular Warfare missions willarm current SOF with lessons that can be applied to today's competition continuum.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 2023
- Accession Number
- AD1224959
Entities
People
- Daniel L. Ciampini
Organizations
- Naval Postgraduate School