Touchstones for the Military Leadership Engaged in Asymmetric Warfare
Abstract
While asymmetric warfare has undertaken a new and a broader dimension, especially in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks of 911, the title of this paper refers to counterinsurgency warfare wherein terrorism is employed by the irregular adversary as a means to subvert the rule of law and effect change through violence and fear. This war is being waged in some form or the other in almost 71 countries of the world and the perceivable contours of the future international security landscape portend a threat for its proliferation. As a result, militaries around the world will have to gear up to counter this scourge, which offers different battlespace dynamics and challenges for military leadership. Such warfare underscores the need for different knowledge structures, wherein military's mass and energy, in concert with other elements of national power, are applied for control versus destruction. This paper attempts to capture the key features of an asymmetric warfare arena that may provide military leadership suitable touchstones for the planning and conduct of a counterinsurgency campaign. Besides digging into a plethora of literature on the subject, this effort also blends the experiential base of the author in counterinsurgency warfare in Jammu and Kashmir and the Northeastern states of India. (10 figures, 34 refs.)
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 19, 2004
- Accession Number
- ADA424177
Entities
People
- Bikram Singh
Organizations
- United States Army War College