Unconventional Warfare : Strategy and Tactics in Internal Political Strife

Abstract

The analysis of unconventional warfare and its strategy and tactics in internal political strife presents problems of definition arising from the frequent involvement of foreign powers in the internal war of a country and from the fact that secession is often the rebel's object of internal war. The mili tary strategy and tactics of guerrilla war have been highly developed, notably by Clausewitz and Mao. It is generally recognized that, in the conduct of internal war, the political competition between the belligerents plays a major, and often decisive, role in determining the outcome. However, the theory of the political struggle, and of the interdependence of military and political capabilities and actions, is as yet rudi mentary. The following paper indicates a number of prob lems concerning political structures and processes. These problems may lend themselves to generalization. The next step is an empirical effort to obtain the relevant data, not now available, for the comparative analysis from which fruitful hypotheses may be derived. There can be developed, however, a conceptual framework and a list of questions and tentative hypotheses which can give direction to the empirical effort.