American Counter-Insurgency: Strengths and Weaknesses Essay (Critical Writing)

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The US possesses immense military capabilities. The US military uses a combination of modern technology and ancient military techniques to counter its enemies. The military capabilities of the US make enemies result to non-military means in order to defeat the US army. The US and allied forces have conducted counter-insurgency operations in several areas. Counter-insurgency refers to military, paramilitary, political, or psychological actions by a government to subdue an insurgent group (Rineheart, 2010). For counter-insurgency to be successful, the military must win the support of the local people. In addition, the military should promote good governance and maintain a certain number of troops to maintain security after defeating the insurgents (Mahnken & Maiolo, 2008). The political power of the US enables it to gain support from other countries to conduct counter-insurgency operations. However, in some instances the US may lack the support of the local population.

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The success of a counter-insurgency operation requires the military to have a safe haven in a bordering country. The safe haven provides a location from where the military may start attacking the insurgents. This enables the military to venture into the region occupied by the insurgents systematically (Mahnken & Maiolo, 2008). The US has many friendly nations that are willing to provide a safe haven from where it may conduct counter-insurgency operations. The US wields immense political power. The US government may use several avenues to seek support for counter-insurgency operations. Friendly nations usually provide military personnel that aid in counter-insurgency strikes. Britain is one of the major allies of the US. In addition, the US has highly advanced military technology that enables the military commanders to conduct real-time counter-insurgency operation from a safe distance. This reduces the casualties that the military may incur. In fact, in some instances the military may not incur any casualty. Drones are the most recent military equipment that the American military uses to conduct counter-insurgency operations.

Counter-insurgency requires the military to gain the support of the local population. Therefore, the military must promote good governance. The US should help in the establishment of governments that adhere to the rule of law. The new government of the country should not exploit the local population or engage in unlawful activities. Lawful governments lead to long-term stability of the country after the withdrawal of the military (Mahnken & Maiolo, 2008). Afghanistan is one of the countries that the US conducts counter-insurgency operations. The US helped in the formation of the government of President Hamid Karzai.

However, a poll of Afghans determined that the judiciary and the police are the most corrupt government departments (Rineheart, 2010). Therefore, the inability to eliminate corruption reduces the support that the US receives from local population. The US uses drones regularly to conduct counter-insurgent operations. Despite the fact that drones are extremely lethal, they usually cause unpremeditated civilian casualties. The Pakistani government condemns US drone strikes within its borders. This is one of the major sources of conflict between the Pakistani administration and the US government.

The US conducts counter-insurgency operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. The availability of highly advanced military technology is one of the major strengths of the American military. Highly advanced military technology enables the military to conduct counter-insurgency operations from a safe location. However, use of drones creates unintended civilian casualties. This makes the US military lose the support of the local population.

References

Mahnken, T.G. & Maiolo, J.A. (2008). Strategic studies: A reader. London: Routedge.

Rineheart, J. (2010). Counterterrorism and counter-insurgency. Perspectives on Terrorism, 4(5), 5-10.

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IvyPanda. (2020, May 20). American Counter-Insurgency: Strengths and Weaknesses. https://ivypanda.com/essays/american-counter-insurgency-strengths-and-weaknesses/

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"American Counter-Insurgency: Strengths and Weaknesses." IvyPanda, 20 May 2020, ivypanda.com/essays/american-counter-insurgency-strengths-and-weaknesses/.

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IvyPanda. (2020) 'American Counter-Insurgency: Strengths and Weaknesses'. 20 May.

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IvyPanda. 2020. "American Counter-Insurgency: Strengths and Weaknesses." May 20, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/american-counter-insurgency-strengths-and-weaknesses/.

1. IvyPanda. "American Counter-Insurgency: Strengths and Weaknesses." May 20, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/american-counter-insurgency-strengths-and-weaknesses/.


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IvyPanda. "American Counter-Insurgency: Strengths and Weaknesses." May 20, 2020. https://ivypanda.com/essays/american-counter-insurgency-strengths-and-weaknesses/.

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