Lessons from the Past: Vital Factors Influencing Military Advisors in Korea, Vietnam, and Afghanistan

Abstract

Security assistance and cooperation operations are a pivotal aspect of U.S. foreign and security policy. The United States has a long history of assisting friendly foreign nations with financing, training, and equipment as a means of furthering U.S. interests in the region. Inherent within these operations is the role of the military advisor. This thesis represents a historical analysis of advisory operations, specifically systematic case studies of Korea and Vietnam, and provides seven vital factors that have significant influence on an advisor's ability to effectively promote increased military capabilities of his indigenous counterpart. These vital factors are then applied to contemporary advisory operations within Afghanistan as a means of critiquing progress thus far. The concluding chapter makes policy reform recommendations for future operations based on the narrative developed throughout the systematic case studies.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 01, 2012
Accession Number
ADA560642

Entities

People

  • David T. Gardner

Organizations

  • Naval Postgraduate School

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Human Systems

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Afghanistan Conflict
  • Combat Operations
  • International Organizations
  • Management Personnel
  • Military Advisors
  • Military Capabilities
  • Military History
  • Military Personnel
  • Military Tactics
  • Military Training
  • National Politics
  • National Security
  • Organizational Structure
  • Treaties
  • United States
  • Vietnam War
  • Warfare

Fields of Study

  • Political science

Readers

  • East Asian Political and Security Studies within the Soviet Union
  • Military and Counterinsurgency Studies.
  • Systems Analysis and Design