From 'shock and awe' to 'hearts and minds': the fall and rise of US counterinsurgency capability in Iraq

This article recounts the initial difficulties of the US occupation of Iraq that enabled the growth and maturation of the Iraqi insurgency. The focus will be on how the US military adapted, while in combat, to a situation for which its prior training and doctrinal focus had left it ill prepared. The...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Third world quarterly 2007-03, Vol.28 (2), p.217-230
Main Author: Sepp, Kalev I
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Armies
Civil wars
Coalitions
Cold War
Combat
Counterinsurgency
Decision making
Foreign occupation
Insurgency
Invasion
Iraq
Iraq War-2003
Military defense
Military doctrines
Military intervention
Military occupations
Military operations
Military policy
Military Strategy
Part I: The Long War and the Comparing and Modelling of Insurgency, Counterinsurgency and Collapsing States
Rebellions
Shock and awe
Strategic planning
Strategies
Terrorism
U.S.A
United States of America
War
Warfare
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Summary:This article recounts the initial difficulties of the US occupation of Iraq that enabled the growth and maturation of the Iraqi insurgency. The focus will be on how the US military adapted, while in combat, to a situation for which its prior training and doctrinal focus had left it ill prepared. The article will explain the challenges faced by military leaders to move from a hierarchical, cold war-designed approach to warfare, to a more adaptive, decentralised mode of operations that requires distributed authority and decision making. The story will be told from the perspective of two strategic planners who helped shape the campaign plan for the coalition forces in Iraq, including the challenges they encountered when attempting to unify all elements of US national power against the Iraqi insurgency.
ISSN:0143-6597
1360-2241
DOI:10.1080/01436590601153606