The purpose behind this monograph was to explore the moral level of war in the context of Operation Iraqi Freedom and the larger framework of counterinsurgency operations. Operation Iraqi Freedom is a war fought in the moral realm and the resulting...
Both the National Security Strategy and the National Defense Strategy recently recognized that insurgency is causing an increased threat to the security of the world. This recognition combined with the fact that the military’s counterinsurgency...
Given ongoing conflicts and the likelihood of executing counterinsurgency in the future, it is vital to conduct effective campaign planning for counterinsurgency. Additionally, effective campaign planning is essential for rapid and effective...
The enemy in Iraq has been able to use small, tactically insignificant attacks, amplified by the media, to erode the will of the American people to prosecute the war in Iraq. This monograph uses the model for a revolution in military affairs...
The United States enjoys a significant benefit from the dollar’s status as the predominant international currency. These financial benefits translate into increased state power through autonomy and the ability to shape the rules of the...
Leaders that fail to follow command policies or disregard their own policies, erode away the foundation of trust and cohesion within the unit thus causing discontent among the troops. When a leader loses his integrity within the unit, the leader...
The U.S. Army has experienced a disproportionate decline in Black recruitment. Blacks, who once represented 23 percent of annual recruits, now only represent less than 14 percent. What factors have caused the disproportionate decline in Black...
In 1954 the French Armed Forces began a campaign in Algeria against the insurgent Front de Liberation Nationale (FLN) which had started a bloody uprising against French sovereignty. Initially, the French military did not have a viable...
This monograph examines the evolution of the British Army's tactics and doctrine during its employment in support of the civil powers in Northern Ireland and compares these evolutions to its conventional warfighting doctrine. The ultimate objective...
War, diplomacy and economic sanctions are three cornerstones of strategy that have, in the past, successfully coerced rogue regimes to capitulate. However, it may be time to look beyond these persuasion techniques and develop a new method that can...
Interagency coordination organizations at the combatant command level contribute significantly to irregular warfare (IW) planning and execution but need reform to become more effective. The challenges presented to the United States by IW are...
While all warfare is an expression of politics, none is more pervasively so than irregular conflict. The irregular side, most probably employing a mixture of guerilla tactics and terrorism, will seek favorable political effect from several courses...
The national will of the United States, and other democratic nations, is far more vulnerable today than in the past. Changes in society and technology have allowed enemies to adapt. The character of war has evolved into a more unorthodox type of...
Since the horrific attacks of September 11, 2001, the nation has seen the largest expansion and reorganization of government since the National Security Act of 1947, transforming the nation’s homeland security system around, amongst other things,...
Despite its domination of conventional warfare the United States military finds itself in a quagmire concerning the unconventional fight in Iraq. Never a strong suit of the United States military, the insurgency is testing both the patience and the...
Islamic Terrorism in Southeast Asia constitutes the second front in the Global War on Terrorism. Jemaah Islamiyah and Abu Sayyaf, transnational terrorist organizations with ties to Al Qaeda, have frustrated U.S. efforts to eradicate terrorism and...
The Battle of Taji and Battle Command on the Move. Lieutenant Colonel Edward J. Erickson, U.S. Army, Retired with Major General Raymond T. Odierno, U.S. Army; During the Battle of Taji on 16 April 2003, battle command in the 4th Infantry Division...
In this edition of the Center for Army Lessons Learned (CALL) Special Operations newsletter, we will examine the special operations forces (SOF) perspective of irregular warfare (IW) at the operational and tactical levels through a selection of...
Nearly twenty years ago, as a new student in the Army's Command and General Staff Officer's College, Infantry Branch officers introduced to me the relatively newly codified doctrinal term "center of gravity." Throughout the "best year of our lives"...