Publication

This paper discusses the modern insurgency operations the US has been facing in both Afghanistan and Iraq, known as fourth generation warfare. As the author explains, this type of warfare is aimed primarily at political rather than military success, rendering it inherently difficult to defeat for conventional state armies. The author outlines the main strategic, political, operational, and tactical aspects of fourth generation warfare. He concludes that, in order to defeat its enemies in Iraq and Afghanistan, the US must itself adopt fourth generation techniques, rather than attempt to force its opponents to fight the short, high technology wars it easily dominates.