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Elite WarriorsSpecial Operations Forces of the World

ContentsArticlesOverview 1

Unconventional warfare 1Irregular warfare 3Asymmetric warfare 8Jungle warfare 17Arctic warfare 21Mountain warfare 22Desert warfare 30Guerrilla warfare 32Urban guerrilla warfare 41Urban warfare 45Psychological warfare 50Black operation 55Low intensity conflict 56Special forces 58Commando 64Terrorism 73

Special Operations Forces of the World 89

Philippines 90Special Operations Command (Philippines) 901st Scout Ranger Regiment 921st Special Forces Regiment (Airborne) 95Light Reaction Battalion 98710th Special Operations Wing 100Naval Special Warfare Group 103Philippine Marine Corps Force Recon Battalion 105Presidential Security Group 109Special Reaction Unit 114Special Action Force 115Philippine National Police Aviation Security Command 121

Australia 122

Special Operations Command (Australia) 122Australian Special Air Service Regiment 1251st Commando Regiment (Australia) 1342nd Commando Regiment (Australia) 137Incident Response Regiment (Australia) 140Tactical Assault Group 142

New Zealand 145New Zealand Special Air Service 145

United Kingdom 151United Kingdom Special Forces 151Special Air Service 154Special Boat Service 162Special Forces Support Group 168Special Reconnaissance Regiment 171

United States of America 174United States Special Operations Forces 174Joint Special Operations Command 178United States Special Operations Command 183United States Army Special Operations Command 202160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (United States) 20675th Ranger Regiment (United States) 213Special Forces (United States Army) 221Delta Force 237Air Force Special Operations Command 245Air Force Special Operations Weather Technician 251United States Air Force Combat Control Team 256United States Air Force Pararescue 260Tactical Air Control Party 272United States Naval Special Warfare Command 275United States Naval Special Warfare Development Group 284United States Navy SEALs 292Special Warfare Combatant- craft Crewmen 303United States Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command 310United States Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance 317Intelligence Support Activity 333

National Clandestine Service 338Special Activities Division 344Special Reaction Teams 367Air Force Security Forces 370Pentagon Force Protection Agency 375SWAT 378Hostage Rescue Team (FBI) 387

Austria 394Austrian Military Police 394Jagdkommando 398EKO Cobra 400

Argentina 40212th Jungle Huntsmen Company 4024th Parachute Brigade (Argentina) 402601 Air Assault Regiment 403601 Commando Company 404602 Commando Company 4056th Mountain Cazadores Company 4068th Mountain Cazadores Company 406Amphibious Commandos Group 407Fuerza de Despliegue Rpido (Argentina) 408Grupo Alacrn 409Grupo Albatros 409Jungle Huntsmen 410Mountain Huntsmen (Argentina) 410Special Operations Forces Group 411Special Operations Group (Argentina) 412Tactical Divers Group 413

Azerbaijan 414Azerbaijani Special Forces 414

Bangladesh 419Army Commandos 419Rapid Action Battalion 426SWAT (Bangladesh) 429

Belgium 432Special Forces Group (Belgium) 432

Brazil 4331 Batalho de Forcas Especiais 433Batalho de Infantaria de Montanha 434Batalho de Operaes Policiais Especiais 436Brazilian Marine Corps 439Brazilian Special Operations Brigade 448Brigada de Infantaria Pra- quedista 450COMANF 451CORE (Brazil) 452COT Comando de aes tticas 454GOE (Brazil) 455GRUMEC 456Grupo de Aes Tticas Especiais 457National Force of Public Safety 458Para- SAR 461Rondas Ostensivas Tobias de Aguiar 463

Canada 465Canadian special forces 465Canadian Special Operations Forces Command 466Canadian Special Operations Regiment 468Joint Task Force 2 471

Chile 4761 Compaa de Comandos "Iquique" 476Agrupacin Antisecuestros Areos 476Comandos de Aviacin 477

China, People's Republic of 478Chinese special forces 478People's Liberation Army Special Operations Forces 480

Colombia 482Agrupacin de Comandos Especiales Areos 482Agrupacin de Fuerzas Especiales Antiterroristas Urbanas 483

Fuerza de Despliegue Rpido 486

Croatia 487Special Operations Battalion (Croatia) 487

Czech Republic 490601st Special Forces Group 490

Denmark 491Danish Frogman Corps 491Huntsmen Corps (Denmark) 492Special Support and Reconnaissance Company 493

Egypt 495Unit 777 495

Finland 497Utti Jaeger Regiment 497

France 499French Army Special Forces Brigade 4991st Marine Infantry Parachute Regiment 50113th Parachute Dragoon Regiment 504ALAT detachment for Special Operations 506Naval Commandos 507Commando Hubert 508Groupement des commandos parachutistes 511French Foreign Legion 512

Germany 528Division Special Operations (Germany) 528Kommando Spezialkrfte 531Fernsphkompanie 534German Air Force Regiment 536German commando frogmen 539GSG 9 543

Greece 5501st Raider/ Paratrooper Brigade (Greece) 550Underwater Demolition Command 554

Special Anti- Terrorist Unit 556

Guatemala 558Kaibiles 558

Ireland 561Irish Army Rangers 561G2 (Republic of Ireland) 568Emergency Response Unit (Garda) 569

India 573Special Forces of India 573Ghatak Force 574Para Commandos (India) 575Garud Commando Force 581MARCOS (India) 585

Indonesia 589Kopassus 589Batalyon Raiders 594KOPASKA 596Denjaka 599Taifib 600Satgas Atbara 601

Iran 603Takavar 603Quds Force 604

Iraq 611Iraqi Special Operations Forces 611Iraqi National Counter- Terrorism Force 613Iraqi 36th Commando Battalion 614

Israel 619Sayeret Matkal 619Duvdevan Unit 624Shaldag Unit 626Mossad 628

Italy 639Italian special forces 6399th Parachute Assault Regiment 642Italian commando frogmen 645San Marco Regiment 65017 Stormo Incursori 655Gruppo di Intervento Speciale 656

Japan 658Central Readiness Force 658Special Operations Group (Japan) 6631st Airborne Brigade (Japan) 6671st Helicopter Brigade 672Special Boarding Unit 675

Korea, Democratic People's Republic of 679Special Operation Force 679

Korea, Republic of 681Special Warfare Command 681707th Special Mission Battalion 684ROKN SEALs 686

Latvia 687Latvian Special Tasks Unit 687

Lithuania 689Lithuanian Special Operations Force 689

Lebanon 692Lebanese Special Operations Command 692Lebanese Commando Regiment 693Lebanese Navy SEALs Regiment 696

Malaysia 699Grup Gerak Khas 699Rejimen Gerak Khas 709Royal Malaysian Navy PASKAL 719PASKAU 729

Mexico 738Grupo Aeromvil de Fuerzas Especiales 738Grupo Aeromvil de Fuerzas Especiales del Alto Mando 741Fuerzas Especiales 742FES 743

Netherlands 745Korps Commandotroepen 745Unit Interventie Mariniers 750

Norway 753Forsvarets Spesialkommando (FSK) 753Hrens Jegerkommando 759Marinejegerkommandoen 762

Pakistan 765Special Service Group 765Special Service Wing 773Special Service Group Navy 776

Poland 778GROM 7781st Special Commando Regiment 784Formoza 786

Portugal 788Portuguese Army Commandos 788Special Operations Troops Centre 794Special Actions Detachment 796

Romania 7981st Special Operations Battalion 798Detaamentul de Intervenie Rapid 800307th Marine Battalion 802Serviciul de Protecie i Paz 803

Russia 804Spetsnaz 804Alpha Group 809

Russian Airborne Troops 812Vympel 821GRU 822Spetsnaz GRU 828

Singapore 830Singapore Armed Forces Commando Formation 830Special Operations Force (Singapore) 838Singapore Guards 841Naval Diving Unit (Singapore) 846

Slovenia 847Specialna Enota Policije 847

Spain 849Unidad de Operaciones Especiales (UOE) 849Special Operations Command (Spain) 852Unidad Especial de Intervencin 854Grupo Especial de Operaciones 856

South Africa 861South African Special Forces Brigade 861

Sri Lanka 865Sri Lanka Army Special Forces Regiment 865Sri Lanka Army Commando Regiment 870Special Boat Squadron (Sri Lanka) 875Sri Lanka Air Force Regiment Special Force 877Special Task Force 879

Sweden 884Fallskrmsjgarna 884Fallskrmsjgarskolan 887Srskilda Inhmtningsgruppen 888Srskilda Skyddsgruppen 889

Switzerland 891Army Reconnaissance Detachment 10 891Parachute Reconnaissance Company 17 896

Thailand 898Royal Thai Navy SEALs 898

Taiwan 900MPSSC 900

Turkey 901Su Alt Taarruz 901Su Alt Savunma 902

ReferencesArticle Sources and Contributors 903Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors 918

Article LicensesLicense 930

1Overview

Unconventional warfareUnconventional warfare (abbreviated UW) is the opposite of conventional warfare. Where conventional warfare isused to reduce an opponent's military capability, unconventional warfare is an attempt to achieve military victorythrough acquiescence, capitulation, or clandestine support for one side of an existing conflict.On the surface, UW contrasts with conventional warfare in that: forces or objectives are covert or not well-defined,tactics and weapons intensify environments of subversion or intimidation, and the general or long-term goals arecoercive or subversive to a political body.

ObjectivesThe general objective of unconventional warfare is to instill a belief that peace and security are not possible withoutcompromise or concession. Specific objectives include inducement of war weariness, curtailment of civilianstandards of living and civil liberties associated with greater security demands, economic hardship linked to the costsof war; hopelessness to defend against assaults, fear, depression, and disintegration of morale.The ultimate goal of this type of warfare is to motivate an enemy to stop attacking or resisting even if it has theability to continue. Failing this, a secondary objective can be to emasculate the enemy before a conventional attack.

Methods and organizationUnconventional warfare targets civilian population and political bodies directly, seeking to render the militaryproficiency of the enemy irrelevant. Limited conventional warfare tactics can be used unconventionally todemonstrate might and power, rather than to substantially reduce the enemy's ability to fight. In addition to thecoercive use of traditional weapons, armaments that primarily target civilians can be used: atomic weapons, urbanincendiary devices, white phosphorus or other such weapons.Special Forces, inserted behind an enemy's front line, can be used unconventionally to spread subversion andpropaganda, to aid native resistance fighters, and to ultimately build environments of fear and confusion. Tactics ofdestroying non-military infrastructure and blockading civilian staples are used to decrease the morale of civiliansand, when applicable, also the soldiers in the field through concern for their families. Globalization dissentersbroadly criticize the managed-trade system as a planet-wide version of the blockading tactic of unconventionalwarfare.

Definitions

Unconventional warfare structure by guerillaorganizations.

The United States Department of Defense defines UW as a broadspectrum of military and paramilitary operations, normally of longduration, predominantly conducted through, with, or by indigenous orsurrogate forces who are organized, trained, equipped, supported, anddirected in varying degrees by an external source. It includes, but is notlimited to, guerrilla warfare, subversion, sabotage, intelligenceactivities, and unconventional assisted recovery. Organization variesby culture and type of conflict.

Unconventional warfare 2

In the People's Wars conflicts of Vietnam and China, a clear structure of rural bases, different troop types andleadership by a strong centralized political group or party prevailed. In other conflicts the pattern is morefragmented, and unconventional warfare need not rely on rural bases at all. Generally, organization is divided intopolitical or military wings.

See also Asymmetric warfare Coercion Conventional warfare Fourth generation warfare Operation Gladio Guerrilla warfare Irregular military Irregular Warfare Low intensity conflict NLF and PAVN strategy, organization and structure NLF and PAVN logistics and equipment NLF and PAVN battle tactics Operation Phantom Fury Partisan (military) Psychological warfare Resistance movement Special forces Terrorism Unrestricted Warfare Special Activities Division A seminal work on unconventional stay-behind warfare is Major Hans von Dach's Der Totale Widerstand (Total

Resistance (book)).

External links Insurgency Research Group [1] - Multi-expert blog dedicated to the study of insurgency and the development of

counter-insurgency policy. Allied war terminology (File #5a) [2]

goarmy.com/special_forces/unconventional_warfare [3]

Unconventional Warfare: Definitions from 1950 to the Present [4]

Instruments of Statecraft: U.S. Guerrilla Warfare, Counterinsurgency, and Counterterrorism, 1940-1990 [5]

Pentagon plans cyber-insect army [6]

Unconventional warfare 3

References[1] http:/ / insurgencyresearchgroup. wordpress. com/[2] http:/ / www. ibiblio. org/ pub/ academic/ history/ marshall/ military/ mil_hist_inst/ w/ warfr5. asc[3] http:/ / www. goarmy. com/ special_forces/ unconventional_warfare. jsp[4] http:/ / www. highbeam. com/ library/ docfree. asp?DOCID=1G1:78397582& ctrlInfo=Round18%3AMode18c%3ADocG%3AResult& ao=[5] http:/ / www. statecraft. org/ index. html[6] http:/ / news. bbc. co. uk/ 1/ hi/ world/ americas/ 4808342. stm

Irregular warfareIrregular warfare (IW) is warfare in which one or more combatants are irregular military rather than regular forces. Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare, and so is asymmetric warfare.Irregular warfare favors indirect and asymmetric warfare approaches, though it may employ the full range ofmilitary and other capabilities, in order to erode an adversarys power, influence, and will. It is inherently aprotracted struggle that will test the resolve of a nation and its strategic partners.[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] Concepts associatedwith irregular warfare are not as recent as the irregular warfare term itself.[6] [7]

History

Regular vs. irregularThe word "regular" is used in the term "regular armed forces" which comes from the Third Geneva Convention of1949. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is a non-governmental organization primarilyresponsible for, and most closely associated with, the drafting and successful completion of the Third GenevaConvention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War (GPW). The ICRC provided commentary saying that"regular armed forces" satisfy four Hague Conventions (1899 and 1907) (Hague IV) conditions.[8] In other words,"regular forces" must satisfy the following criteria: being commanded by a person responsible for his to a party of conflict having a fixed distinctive emblem recognizable at a distance carrying arms openly conducting operations in accordance with the laws and customs of warOn the other hand, Irregular Forces is a term in international humanitarian law referring to a category of combatantsconsisting of individuals forming part of the armed forces of a party to an armed conflict, international ornon-international, but not belonging to that party's regular forces and operating in or outside of their own territoryeven if the territory is under occupation.[9] As such, it is implicit that irregular warfare is warfare where a major partyin the conflict is part of Irregular Forces.

Early useOne of the earliest known uses of the term irregular warfare is in the 1986 English edition of "Modern IrregularWarfare in Defense Policy and as a Military Phenomenon" by Friedrich August Freiherr von der Heydte. Theoriginal 1972 German edition of the book is titled "Der Moderne Kleinkrieg als Wehrpolitisches und MilitarischesPhnomen". Curiously, the German word "Kleinkrieg" is literally translated as "Small War".[10] The word"Irregular", used in the title of the English translation of the book, seems to be a reference non "regular armedforces" as per the aforementioned Third Geneva Convention.

Irregular warfare 4

US DoD useWithin United States Department of Defense, one of the earliest known uses of the term IW is in a 1996 CentralIntelligence Agency document by Jeffrey B. White.[11] Major military doctrine developments related to IW weredone between 2004 to 2007[12] as a result of the September 11 attacks on the United States.[13] [14] A key proponentof IW within US DoD is Michael G. Vickers, a former paramilitary officer in the CIA.[15]

US CIA useThe CIA's Special Activities Division (SAD) is the premiere unit for unconventional warfare, both for creatingand for combating irregular warfare units.[16] [17] [18] For example, SAD paramilitary officers created and ledsuccessful irregular units from the Hmong tribe during the war in Vietnam in the 1960s[19] from the NorthernAlliance against the Taliban during the war in Afghanistan in 2001[20] and from the Kurdish Peshmerga againstAnsar al-Islam and the forces of Saddam Hussein during the war in Iraq in 2003.[21] [22]

ActivitiesActivities and types of conflict included in IW are: Insurgency/Counter-insurgency (COIN) Counter-terrorism Stabilization, Security, Transition, and Reconstruction Operations (SSTRO) Unconventional warfare (UW) Foreign internal defense (FID) Civil-military operations (CMO) Military Intelligence and counter-intelligence activities Transnational criminal activities that support or sustain IW:

narco-trafficking Illicit arms trafficking illegal financial transactions

Law enforcement activities focused on countering irregular adversaries

Irregular warsSome conflicts considered to be within the scope of irregular warfare are:[6] [11]

Afghan Civil War American Indian Wars American Revolutionary War[23]

Arab Revolt Chinese Civil War Cuban Revolution First Chechen War First Sudanese Civil War Iraq War Kosovo War Lebanese Civil War Portuguese Colonial War Rwanda Civil War Second Boer War Second Chechen War

Irregular warfare 5

Second Sudanese Civil War Somali Civil War Philippines War Vietnam WarWhile sometimes portrayed as an "irregular war" the American Revolutionary War was in fact fought by regularforces using regular methods for most of its duration.[24]

Wargames and exercisesThere have been at least two key military wargames and military exercises associated with IW: Unified Action [25] Unified Quest [26]

Modeling and simulationAs a result of DoD Directive 3000.07[3] , United States armed forces are studying irregular warfare concepts usingmodeling and simulation.[27] [28] [29]

Other definitions IW is a form of warfare that has as its objective the credibility and/or legitimacy of the relevant political authority

with the goal of undermining or supporting that authority. IW favors indirect approaches, though it may employthe full range of military and other capabilities to seek asymmetric approaches, in order to erode an adversaryspower, influence, and will.[30]

IW is defined as a violent struggle among state and non-state actors for legitimacy and influence over the relevantpopulation(s)

IW involves conflicts in which enemy combatants are not regular military forces of nation-states.[31]

IW is "war among the people" as opposed to "industrial war" (i.e. regular war).[32]

See also

Arms trafficking Friedrich August Freiherr von derHeydte

Michael G. Vickers

Asymmetric warfare Guerrilla warfare Military intelligence Center for Irregular Warfare and Armed

Groups Hague Conventions (1899 and

1907) Network science

Che Guevara Illegal drug trade Psychological operations Chinese Civil War Information warfare Robert Rogers' 28 "Rules of Ranging" Civil-military operations Insurgency Siege Clarence Ransom Edwards Irregular military Small Wars Journal Counter-insurgency John R. M. Taylor Strategic Communication Counter-intelligence Law enforcement Stabilization, Security, Transition, and Reconstruction

Operations Counter-terrorism T. E. Lawrence Third Geneva Convention Endemic warfare Long War (21st century) Unconventional warfare Foreign internal defense Low intensity conflict Fourth generation warfare

Irregular warfare 6

External links Military Art and Science Major - Irregular Warfare Specialty Track [33] Pincus, Walter, "Irregular Warfare, Both Future and Present", The Washington Post, 7 April 2008 [34] Phillips, Joan T., Fairchild, Muir S.,"Irregular Warfare", Maxwell Air Force Base, March 2007 [35] Gustafson, Michael, "Modern Irregular Warfare & Counterinsurgency", Swedish National Defence College, 2009

[36] Coons, Kenneth C. Jr., Harned, Glenn M., "Irregular Warfare is Warfare", Joint Force Quarterly, National

Defense University, 2009 [37] Naval Postgraduate School (NPS) Center on Terrorism and Irregular Warfare (CTIW) [38] United States Joint Forces Command (USJFCOM) Joint Irregular Warfare Center (JIWC) [39]

References[1] "Irregular Warfare (IW) Joint Operating Concept (JOC)", Version 1.0, United States Department of Defense, 27 February 2009 (http:/ /

morsnet. pbwiki. com/ f/ MORS+ IW+ Mini-Symposium+ TOR-final. pdf)[2] "US Irregular Warfare (IW) Analysis Workshop", Military Operations Research Society (MORS), 11 September 2007 (http:/ / www. dtic.

mil/ futurejointwarfare/ concepts/ iw_joc1_0. pdf)[3] "Irregular Warfare (IW)", DoD Directive 3000.07, United States Department of Defense, 1 December 2008 (http:/ / www. dtic. mil/ whs/

directives/ corres/ pdf/ 300007p. pdf)[4] "Quadrennial Roles & Missions (QRM) Review Report", United States Department of Defense, January 2009 (http:/ / www. defenselink. mil/

news/ Jan2009/ QRMFinalReport_v26Jan. pdf)[5] "Irregular Warfare", Doctrine Document 2-3, United States Air Force, 1 August 2007 (http:/ / handle. dtic. mil/ 100. 2/ ADA471742)[6] Gates, John M., "The U.S. Army and Irregular Warfare", The College of Wooster (http:/ / www3. wooster. edu/ History/ jgates/

book-contents. html)[7] Von der Heydte, Friedrich August Freiherr, "Modern Irregular Warfare in Defense Policy and as a Military Phenomenon", ISBN

0-933488-49-1, 1986 (http:/ / www. wlym. com/ pdf/ iclc/ modernwarfare. pdf)[8] Bybee, Jay S., "Status of Taliban Forces Under Article 4 of the Third Geneva Convention of 1949", 7 February 2002 (http:/ / www. usdoj.

gov/ olc/ 2002/ pub-artc4potusdetermination. pdf)[9] Boczek, Boleslaw Adam, "International law: a dictionary", ISBN 0810850788, ISBN 9780810850781, Scarecrow Press, 2005 (http:/ / books.

google. com/ books?id=NR7mFXCB-wgC& pg=PA437& lpg=PA437& dq=Geneva+ Irregular+ Forces& source=bl& ots=Q59rfFOnjY&sig=UnzbNWhvQpzR4y-eArHGWV-Nv34& hl=en& ei=YIIJSurfDY_IMqP0id8L& sa=X& oi=book_result& ct=result&resnum=4#PPA426,M1)

[10] Moses, A. Dirk, "German intellectuals and the Nazi past," ISBN 978-0-521-86495-4, 2007 (http:/ / books. google. com/books?id=P1KoR4vF3ysC& pg=PA206& lpg=PA206& dq=Kleinkrieg+ "Small+ War"& source=bl& ots=K4n_4koqOr&sig=edxYQjmQRaz1H3Z73IPzXkre_Ls& hl=en& ei=fEOYSjOpsfEGvf2BxgE& sa=X& oi=book_result& ct=result&resnum=2#v=onepage& q=Kleinkrieg "Small War"& f=false)

[11] White, Jeffrey B., "A Different Kind of Threat, Some Thoughts on Irregular Warfare", CIA, 1996 (https:/ / www. cia. gov/ library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/ csi-publications/ csi-studies/ studies/ 96unclass/ iregular. htm)

[12] "The National Military Strategy of the United States of America", United States Department of Defense, 2004 (http:/ / www.strategicstudiesinstitute. army. mil/ pdffiles/ ksil429. pdf)

[13] Miller, LTC Frank A., "Irregular Warfare Perhaps Not So "Irregular"", U.S. Army War College, 15 March 2006 (http:/ / www.strategicstudiesinstitute. army. mil/ pdffiles/ ksil429. pdf)

[14] "The National Security Strategy of the United States of America", National Security Council, 2002 (http:/ / www. globalsecurity. org/military/ library/ policy/ national/ nss-020920. pdf)

[15] Grant, Greg, "The Man Behind Irregular Warfare Push: Mike Vickers", DoD BUZZ, 7 April 2009 (http:/ / www. dodbuzz. com/ 2009/ 04/07/ the-man-behind-irregular-warfare-push-mike-vickers/ )

[16] Southworth, Samuel A., Tanner, Stephen, "U.S. Special Forces: A Guide to America's Special Operations Units: the World's Most EliteFighting Force", Da Capo Press, ISBN 0306811650, ISBN 978030681165, 2002

[17] Waller, Douglas, "The CIA Secret Army", Time Inc., 3 February 2003 (http:/ / www. time. com/ time/ covers/ 1101030203/ )[18] Stone, Kathryn, Williams, Anthony R., "All Necessary Means: Employing CIA operatives in a Warfighting Role Alongside Special

Operations Forces", United States Army War College (USAWC), 7 April 2003[19] "Shooting at the Moon: The Story of America's Clandestine War in Laos", Steerforth Press, ISBN 9781883642365, 1996[20] Woodward, Bob, "Bush at War", Simon and Shuster, ISBN 0743204735, 19 November 2002[21] Tucker, Mike, Faddis, Charles, "Operation Hotel California: The Clandestine War inside Iraq", The Lyons Press, ISBN 9781599213668,

2008[22] Woodward, Bob, "Plan of Attack", Simon and Shuster, ISBN 9780743255479, 2004

Irregular warfare 7

[23] American forces did become regular forces but cannot be considered regular forces during the entire period of the ARW. For example, theAmerican flag got established (1777) 2 years after the ARW started (1775). Also, the were great disparities between the American and Britishforces. It was not until France started to assist American forces (1778) that the disparity started to be narrowed. Conflict during the disparitysurely counts as Asymmetric warfare. Also, the Boston Tea Party (1773) can be viewed as guerrilla tactics. At the very least, a good portion ofthe ARW should be counted as IW although the entire ARW being counted as IW is controversial. However, since more than 1/2 of the ARWwas fought as ARW then it is thought that it is safe to classify it as IW even though that the American forces acted in all respects as regularforces towards the end of the conflict.

[24] " The Anerican Revolution 1774-1783 (http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=mQCRNfiB1-EC& pg=PA15& lpg=PA15& dq=american+revolution+ irregular+ warfare& source=bl& ots=5UkC2gYUlI& sig=QxrAmRIiXBmUETjP3AfyXQGZOUQ& hl=en&ei=mwagSs-pHKKy8QbCueTSDw& sa=X& oi=book_result& ct=result& resnum=4#v=onepage& q=american revolution irregular warfare&f=false)". .

[25] http:/ / www. citmo. net/ library/ Military%20Support%20to%20Unified%20Action%20-%20ROL%20Focus%20for%20Policing%20WS.ppt

[26] https:/ / unifiedquest. army. mil/[27] "U. S. Army Enhancement of Irregular Warfare Modeling & Simulation", United States Army Modeling and Simulation Office, 24 February

2009 (http:/ / www. ms. army. mil/ current/ IW Current Initiative. pdf)[28] "MORS Workshop Irregular Warfare (IW) II Analysis Workshop", Military Operations Research Society, 3-6 February 2009 (http:/ /

morsnet. pbworks. com/ f/ Carlucci+ -+ -+ Phalanx+ Article+ Irregular+ Warfare+ Analysis+ Workshop23Feb. pdf)[29] Cragg, Lt. Jennifer, "Behavior Studies May Improve Irregular Warfare Techniques", American Forces Press Service, 20 April 2009 (http:/ /

www. defenselink. mil/ news/ newsarticle. aspx?id=53997)[30] "Irregular Warfare Special Study", United States Joint Forces Command Joint Warfighting Center, 4 August 2006 (http:/ / merln. ndu. edu/

archive/ digitalcollections/ irregwarfarespecialstudy. pdf)[31] "Quadrennial Defense Review Report", United States Department of Defense, 6 February 2006 (http:/ / www. globalsecurity. org/ military/

library/ policy/ dod/ qdr-2006-report. pdf)[32] Benest, David, "British Leaders and Irregular Warfare," 29 August 2007 (http:/ / rdsc. md. government. bg/ BG/ Activities/ Publication/

MilitaryLead/ 3-4-Benest. pdf)[33] http:/ / www. usma. edu/ dmi/ irregular_warfare. htm[34] http:/ / www. washingtonpost. com/ wp-dyn/ content/ article/ 2008/ 04/ 06/ AR2008040601841. html[35] http:/ / www. au. af. mil/ au/ aul/ bibs/ irregular. htm[36] http:/ / www. kkrva. se/ Artiklar/ 091/ kkrvaht_1_2009_6. pdf[37] http:/ / www. ndu. edu/ inss/ Press/ jfq_pages/ editions/ i52/ 20. pdf[38] http:/ / www. nps. edu/ Academics/ Centers/ CTIW/[39] http:/ / www. jfcom. mil/ about/ abt_jiwc. html

Asymmetric warfare 8

Asymmetric warfareAsymmetric warfare is war between belligerents whose relative military power differs significantly, or whosestrategy or tactics differ significantly."Asymmetric warfare" can describe a conflict in which the resources of two belligerents differ in essence and in thestruggle, interact and attempt to exploit each other's characteristic weaknesses. Such struggles often involvestrategies and tactics of unconventional warfare, the "weaker" combatants attempting to use strategy to offsetdeficiencies in quantity or quality.[1] Such strategies may not necessarily be militarized.[2] This is in contrast tosymmetric warfare, where two powers have similar military power and resources and rely on tactics that are similaroverall, differing only in details and execution.

Definition and differencesThe popularity of the term dates from Andrew J.R. Mack's "Why Big Nations Lose Small Wars" article in WorldPolitics, in which "asymmetric" referred simply to a significant disparity in power between opposing actors in aconflict. "Power," in this sense, is broadly understood to mean material power, such as a large army, sophisticatedweapons, an advanced economy, and so on. Mack's analysis was largely ignored in its day, but the end of the ColdWar sparked renewed interest among academics. By the late 1990s new research building on Mack's insights wasbeginning to mature, and after 2004, the U.S. military began once again to seriously consider the problemsassociated with asymmetric warfare.Discussion since 2004 has been complicated by the tendency of academic and military communities to use the termin different ways, and by its close association with guerrilla warfare, insurgency, terrorism, counterinsurgency, andcounterterrorism. Military authors tend to use the term "asymmetric" to refer to the indirect nature of the strategiesmany weak actors adopt, or even to the nature of the adversary itself (e.g. "asymmetric adversaries can be expectedto...") rather than to the correlation of forces.Academic authors tend to focus more on explaining the puzzle of weak actor victory in war: if "power,"conventionally understood, conduces to victory in war, then how shall we explain the victory of the "weak" over the"strong"? Key explanations include (1) strategic interaction; (2) willingness of the weak to suffer or bear costs; (3)external support of weak actors; (4) squeamishness on the part of strong actors; (5) internal group dynamics [3] and(6) inflated strong actor war aims. Asymmetric conflicts include both interstate and substate wars, and over the pasttwo hundred years have generally won by strong actors. Since 1950, however, weak actors have won a majority ofall asymmetric conflicts.

Strategic basisIn most conventional warfare, the belligerents deploy forces of a similar type and the outcome can be predicted bythe quantity of the opposing forces or by their quality, for example better command and control of their forces. Thereare times where this is not true because the composition or strategy of the forces makes it impossible for either sideto close in battle with the other. An example of this is the standoff between the continental land forces of the Frencharmy and the maritime forces of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary and NapoleonicWars. In the words of Admiral Jervis during the campaigns of 1801, "I do not say, my Lords, that the French will notcome. I say only they will not come by sea",[4] and a confrontation that Napoleon Bonaparte described as thatbetween the elephant and the whale.[5]

Asymmetric warfare 9

Tactical basisThe tactical success of asymmetric warfare is dependent on at least some of the following assumptions: One side can have a technological advantage which outweighs the numerical advantage of the enemy; the decisive

English Longbow at the Battle of Crcy is an example. Training and tactics as well as technology can prove decisive and allow a smaller force to overcome a much

larger one. For example, for several centuries the Greek hoplite's (heavy infantry) use of phalanx made them farsuperior to their enemies. The Battle of Thermopylae, which also involved good use of terrain, is a well knownexample.

If the inferior power is in a position of self-defense; i.e., under attack or occupation, it may be possible to useunconventional tactics, such as hit-and-run and selective battles in which the superior power is weaker, as aneffective means of harassment without violating the laws of war. Perhaps the classical historical examples of thisdoctrine may be found in the American Revolutionary War, movements in World War II, such as the FrenchResistance and Soviet and Yugoslav partisans, and in the Irish Republican Army. Against democratic aggressornations, this strategy can be used to play on the electorate's patience with the conflict (as in the Vietnam War, andothers since) provoking protests, and consequent disputes among elected legislators.

If the inferior power is in an aggressive position, however, and/or turns to tactics prohibited by the laws of war(jus in bello), its success depends on the superior power's refraining from like tactics. For example, the law ofland warfare prohibits the use of a flag of truce or clearly-marked medical vehicles as cover for an attack orambush, but an asymmetric combatant using this prohibited tactic to its advantage depends on the superiorpower's obedience to the corresponding law. Similarly, laws of warfare prohibit combatants from using civiliansettlements, populations or facilities as military bases, but when an inferior power uses this tactic, it depends onthe premise that the superior power will respect the law that the other is violating, and will not attack that civiliantarget, or if they do the propaganda advantage will outweigh the material loss. As seen in most conflicts of the20th and 21st centuries, this is highly unlikely as the propaganda advantage has always outweighed adherence tointernational law, especially by dominating sides of any conflict.

As noted below, the Israel-Palestinian conflict is one recent example of asymmetric warfare. Mansdorf andKedar[6] outline how Islamist warfare uses asymmetric status to gain a tactical advantage against Israel. Theyrefer to the "psychological" mechanisms used by forces such as Hezbollah and Hamas in being willing to exploittheir own civilians as well as enemy civilians towards obtaining tactical gains, in part by using the media toinfluence the course of war.

The use of terrain in asymmetric warfareTerrain can be used as a force multiplier by the smaller force and as a force inhibitor against the larger force. Suchterrain is called difficult terrain.

The contour of the land is an aid to the army; sizing up opponents to determine victory, assessingdangers and distance. "Those who do battle without knowing these will lose." Sun Tzu, The Art ofWar

The guerrillas must move amongst the people as a fish swims in the sea. Mao Zedong.For a detailed description of the advantages for the weaker force in the use of built-up areas when engaging inasymmetric warfare, see the article on urban warfare.

Asymmetric warfare 10

War by proxyWhere asymmetric warfare is carried out (generally covertly) by allegedly non-governmental actors who areconnected to or sympathetic to a particular nation's (the "state actor's") interest, it may be deemed war by proxy. Thisis typically done to give deniability to the state actor. The deniability can be important to keep the state actor frombeing tainted by the actions, to allow the state actor to negotiate in apparent good faith by claiming they are notresponsible for the actions of parties who are merely sympathizers, or to avoid being accused of belligerent actionsor war crimes. If proof emerges of the true extent of the state actor's involvement, this strategy can backfire; forexample see Iran-contra.

Asymmetric warfare and terrorismThere are two different viewpoints on the relationship between asymmetric warfare and terrorism. In the moderncontext, asymmetric warfare is increasingly considered a component of fourth generation warfare. When practicedoutside the laws of war, it is often defined as terrorism, though rarely by its practitioners or their supporters.[7]

The other view is that asymmetric warfare does not coincide with terrorism. For example, in an asymmetric conflict,the dominant side, normally as part of a propaganda campaign, can accuse the weaker side of being bandits, pillagersor terrorists. Others argue that asymmetric warfare is called "terrorism" by those wishing to exploit the negativeconnotations of the word and bring the political aims of the weaker opponents into question. A problem associatedwith such a view is that the distinction between a terrorist and a freedom fighter is not clear cut. An example of thisis over Kashmir: the Pakistanis claim that a war of freedom for the Kashmiris is being fought with the Indians, whoin turn, label them as terrorists. The Iraqi insurgency is similarly labeled as terrorism by its opponents and resistanceby its supporters.[8] . Similarly the use of terror by the much lesser Mongol forces in the creation and control of theMongol empire could be viewed as asymmetric warfare. The other is the use of state terrorism by the superior Naziforces in the Balkans, in an attempt to suppress the resistance movement.

Representative list of asymmetric warsBelow is a representative list of interstate asymmetric wars fought between 1816 and 1991:[9]

Franco-Spanish War, First Anglo-Burmese War, Second Russo-Persian War, War of the Cakes, First British-AfghanWar, Uruguayan Dispute, Austro-Sardinian War, First Schleswig-Holstein War, Second Anglo-Burmese War,Anglo-Persian War, Italo-Roman War, Two Sicilies, Franco-Mexican War, Second Schleswig-Holstein War,British-Abyssinian War, Anglo-Egyptian War, Tonkin War, Franco-Siamese War, Second Italo-Ethiopian War,Second Boer War, Sino-Russian War, Tripolitanian War, Franco-Turkish War, Polish Revolution, Italo-EthiopianWar, Sino-Japanese War, German-Polish Confrontation of World War II, German-Danish Confrontation of WorldWar II, German-Norwegian Confrontation of World War II, German-Belgian Confrontation of World War II,German-Dutch Confrontation of World War II, Italo-Greek Confrontation of World War II, German-YugoslavConfrontation of World War II, Korean War, Himalayan War, Vietnam War, Second Sino-Vietnamese WarFor a more comprehensive listing, including outcomes, see Arreguin-Toft.[10] .

Examples of asymmetric warfare

The American Revolutionary WarFrom its initiation, the American Revolutionary War was, necessarily, a showcase for asymmetric techniques. In the 1920s, Harold Murdock of Boston attempted to solve the puzzle of the first shots fired on Lexington Green, and came to the suspicion that the few score militia men who gathered before sunrise to await the arrival of hundreds of well-prepared British soldiers were sent specifically to provoke an incident which could be used for propaganda purposes.[11] The return of the British force to Boston following the search operations at Concord was subject to

Asymmetric warfare 11

constant skirmishing, using partisan forces gathered from communities all along the route, making maximum use ofthe terrain (particularly trees and stone field walls) to overcome the limitations of their weapons- muskets with aneffective range of only about 5070 metres. Throughout the war, skirmishing tactics against British troops on themove continued to be a key factor in Patriot success; however, they may also have encouraged the occasionalincidents, particularly in the later stages, where British troops used alleged surrender violations as a justification forkilling large numbers of captives (e.g. Waxhaw and Groton Heights).Another feature of the long march from Concord was the urban warfare technique of using buildings along the routeas additional cover for snipers, which provoked the logical response from the British force destruction of thebuildings. When revolutionary forces forced their way into Norfolk, Virginia, and used waterfront buildings as coverfor shots at British vessels out in the river, the response of destruction of those buildings was ingeniously used to theadvantage of the rebels, who encouraged the spread of fire throughout the largely Loyalist town, and spreadpropaganda blaming it on the British. Shortly afterwards they destroyed the remaining houses, on the grounds thatthey might provide cover for British soldiers. On the subject of propaganda, it should be borne in mind that, contraryto the impression given in the popular American film The Patriot, British forces never adopted a popular response topartisan-style asymmetric warfare; retribution massacres of groups selected on a semi-random basis from thepopulation at large.The rebels also adopted a form of asymmetric sea warfare, by using small, fast vessels to avoid the Royal Navy, andcapturing or sinking large numbers of merchant ships; however the British responded by issuing letters of marquepermitting private armed vessels to undertake reciprocal attacks on enemy shipping. John Paul Jones becamenotorious in Britain for his expedition from France in the little sloop of war Ranger in April 1778, during which, inaddition to his attacks on merchant shipping, he made two landings on British soil. The effect of these raids,particularly when coupled with his capture of the Royal Navy's HMS Drake the first such success in Britishwaters, but not Jones's last was to force the British government to increase resources for coastal defence, and tocreate a climate of fear among the British public which was subsequently fed by press reports of his preparations forthe 1779 Bonhomme Richard mission.From 1776, the conflict turned increasingly into a proxy war on behalf of France, following a strategy proposed inthe 1760s but initially resisted by the idealistic young King Louis XVI, who came to the throne at the age of 19 a fewmonths before Lexington. France also encouraged proxy wars against the British in India, but ultimately drove itselfto the brink of state bankruptcy by entering the war(s) directly, on several fronts throughout the world. The laterentry of Spain (and the Dutch Republic, providing a lesson on the limits of neutrality which the Americans had tolearn for themselves in 1812) into the war, against Britain but not for America, effectively reversed the asymmetry most obviously from August to October 1781 and an interesting aspect of this war is what might be describedas an asymmetric peace, in which America and Spain received almost everything they demanded, but were forcedinto conflict with each other, while France and the Dutch Republic both did so badly that they suffered total statecollapse within a few years.

Asymmetric warfare 12

20th century asymmetric warfare

Second Boer War

Boer Commandos

Asymmetric warfare feature prominently during the Second Boer War.After an initial phase, which was fought by both sides as aconventional war, the British captured Johannesburg, the Boers' largestcity, and captured the capitals of the two Boer Republics. The Britishthen expected the Boers to accept peace as dictated by the victors in thetraditional European way. However instead of capitulating, the Boersfought a protracted guerrilla war. Between twenty and thirty thousandBoer commandos were only defeated after the British brought tobear four hundred and fifty thousand troops, about ten times as manyas were used in the conventional phase of the war. During this phasethe British introduced internment in concentration camps for the Boercivilian population and also implemented a scorched earth policy.Later, the British began using blockhouses built within machine gunrange of one another and flanked by barbed wire to slow the Boers'movement across the countryside and block paths to valuable targets.Such tactics eventually evolved into today's counter insurgency tactics.

The Boer commando raids deep into the Cape Colony, which wereorganized and commanded by Jan Smuts, resonated throughout thecentury as the British and others adopted and adapted the tactics usedby the Boer commandos in later conflicts.

World War I

Lawrence of Arabia and British support for the Arab uprising against the Ottoman Empire. The Ottomans werethe stronger power, the Arabs the weaker.

Austria-Hungary vs. Serbia, August 1914. Austria-Hungary was the stronger power, Serbia the weaker. Germany vs. Belgium, August 1914. Germany was the stronger power, Belgium the weaker.

Post-World War I

Abd el-Krim led resistance in Morocco from 1920 to 1924 against French and Spanish colonial armies ten timesas strong as the guerilla force, led by General Philippe Ptain.

TIGR, the first anti-fascist national-defensive organization in Europe, fought against Benito Mussolini's regime innortheast Italy.

Asymmetric warfare 13

World War II

Winter War - Finland opposed an invasion by the Soviet Union Warsaw Uprising - Poland (Home Army, Armia Krajowa) rose up against the German occupation. Germany in Yugoslavia, 194145 (Germany vs. Tito's Partisans and Mihailovic's Chetniks).

Britain

British Commandos and European coastal raids. German countermeasures and the notorious Commando Order Long Range Desert Group and the Special Air Service in Africa and later in Europe. South East Asian Theatre: Wingate, Chindits, Force 136, V Force Special Operations Executive (SOE)

United States

Office of Strategic Services (OSS) China Burma India Theatre: Merrill's Marauders and OSS Detachment 101

Post-World War II United States Military Assistance Command Studies and Observations Group (US MAC-V SOG) in Vietnam United States support of the Nicaraguan Contras

Cold War

The end of World War II established the two most powerful victors, the United States of America and the Union ofSoviet Socialist Republics (USSR, or just the Soviet Union) as the two dominant world superpowers.

Cold War examples of proxy wars

See also proxy warThe war between the mujahadeen and the Red Army during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan has been claimed asthe source of the term "asymmetric warfare"[12] - although this war occurred years after Mack wrote of "asymmetricconflict," it is notable that the term became well-known in the West only in the 1990s.[13] The aid given by the U.S.to the mujahadeen during the war was only covert at the tactical level, the Reagan Administration told the world thatit was helping the "freedom-loving people of Afghanistan". This proxy war was aided by many countries includingthe USA against the USSR during the Cold War. It was considered cost effective and politically successful,[14] as itgave the USSR a most humiliating military defeat and that defeat was a contributing factor to the implosion of theSoviet Union.

21st century

Israel/Palestinians

The battle between the Israelis and some Palestinian organizations (such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad) is a classiccase of asymmetric warfare. Israel has a powerful army, air force and navy, while these Palestinians organisationshave no access to large-scale military equipment; instead, they utilize asymmetric tactics, principally cross-bordersniping and rocket attacks,[] but also including suicide bombing.[15]

Iraq

The victory by the US-led coalition forces in the 1991 Persian Gulf War and the 2003 invasion of Iraq, demonstrated that training, tactics and technology can provide overwhelming victories in the field of battle during modern conventional warfare. After Saddam Hussein's regime was removed from power, the Iraq campaign moved into a different type of asymmetric warfare where the coalition's use of superior conventional warfare training, tactics and

Asymmetric warfare 14

technology were of much less use against continued opposition from the various insurgent groups operating insideIraq.

See also Counter-terrorism Fourth generation warfare Guerrilla warfare Irregular military List of guerrillas Lawfare Long War (21st century) Low intensity conflict Military use of children Partisan (military) Resistance movement Unconventional warfare Unrestricted WarfareUS organisations:

Center for Asymmetric Warfare (CAW) Asymmetric Warfare Group Special Activities DivisionDocuments:

Management of Savagery

Further readingBibliographies

Compiled by Joan T. Phillips Bibliographer at Air University Library: A Bibliography of Asymmetric Warfare[16], August 2005.

Asymmetric Warfare and the Revolution in Military Affairs (RMA) Debate [17] sponsored by the Project onDefense Alternatives

Books

Arreguin-Toft, Ivan, How the Weak Win Wars: A Theory of Asymmetric Conflict, New York & Cambridge,Cambridge University Press, 2005 ISBN 0-521-54869-1

Barnett, Roger W., Asymmetrical Warfare: Today's Challenge to U.S. Military Power, Washington D.C.,Brassey's, 2003 ISBN 1-57488-563-4

Friedman, George, America's Secret War: Inside the Hidden Worldwide Struggle between the United States andIts Enemies, London, Little, Brown, 2004 ISBN 0-316-72862-4

Paul, T.V., Asymmetric Conflicts: War Initiation by Weaker Powers, New York, Cambridge University Press,1994, ISBN 0 521-45115-5

J. Schroefl, Political Asymmetries in the Era of Globalization, Peter Lang, 2007, ISBN 978-3-631-56820-0 Kaplan, Robert D., Warrior Politics: Why Leadership Demands a Pagan Ethos, New York, Vintage, 2003 ISBN

0-375-72627-6 Merom, Gil, How Democracies Lose Small Wars, New York, Cambridge, 2003 ISBN 0-521-80403-5 Metz, Steven and Douglas V. Johnson II, Asymmetry and U.S. Military Strategy: Definition, Background, and

Strategic Concepts, Carlisle Barracks, Strategic Studies Institute/U.S. Army War College, 2001 ISBN

Asymmetric warfare 15

1-58487-041-9 [18] J. Schroefl, S.M. Cox, T. Pankratz, Winning the Asymmetric War: Political, Social and Military Responses, Peter

Lang, 2009, ISBN 978-3-631-57249-8 Record, Jeffrey, Beating Goliath: Why Insurgencies Win, Washington D.C., Potomac Books, 2007, ISBN

978-1-59797-090-7 Gagliano Giuseppe,Introduzione alla conflittualita' non convenzionale,New Press,2001Articles and papers

Ivan Arreguin-Toft, "How the Weak Win Wars: A Theory of Asymmetric Conflict", International Security, Vol.26, No. 1 (Summer 2001), pp.93128.

J. Paul Dunne, et al., "Managing Asymmetric Conflict," Oxford Economic Papers, Vol. 58 (2006), pp.183208. Fowler, C. A. "Bert" (March, 2006). "Asymmetric Warfare: A Primer [19]". IEEE Spectrum. Marcus Corbin Reshaping the Military for Asymmetric Warfare [20] CDI website October 5, 2001. Vincent J. Goulding, Jr. Back to the Future with Asymmetric Warfare [21] From Parameters, Winter 200001,

pp.2130. Hemmer, Christopher (Autumn 2007). "Responding to a Nuclear Iran [22]". Parameters (US Army). Andrew J.R. Mack, "Why Big Nations Lose Small Wars: The Politics of Asymmetric Conflict", World Politics,

Vol. 27, No. 2 (January 1975), pp.175200. Montgomery C. Meigs Unorthodox Thoughts about Asymmetric Warfare [23] (PDF) Richard Norton-Taylor Asymmetric Warfare: Military Planners Are Only Beginning to Grasp the Implications of

September 11 for Future Deterrence Strategy [24], in The Guardian, October 3, 2001 Michael Novak, "Asymmetrical Warfare" & Just War: A Moral Obligation [25] in NRO, February 10, 2003 Toni Pfanner, Asymmetrical warfare from the perspective of humanitarian law and humanitarian action,

International Review of the Red Cross Vol. 87 No. 857 (March 2005), p.149-174. Sullivan, Patricia. 2007. War Aims and War Outcomes: Why Powerful States Lose Limited Wars Journal of

Conflict Resolution 51 (3):496-524. Jonathan B. Tucker Asymmetric Warfare [26], a 6 page analysis, Summer 1999. Asymmetry and other fables [27], Jane's Defence Weekly, 18 August 2006 David Buffaloe 'Defining Asymmetric Warfare' [28] September 2006 Gates Assails Pentagon on Resources for Battlefields [29] Washington Post April 22 2008 Zhenyuan Zhao, Juan Camilo Bohorquez, Alex Dixon,and Neil F. Johnson "Anomalously Slow Attrition Times

for Asymmetric Populations with Internal Group Dynamics", [30], Physical Review Letters 103, 148701 (2009),2 October 2009

Mandel, Robert. Reassessing Victory in Warfare. Armed Forces & Society, Jul 2007; vol. 33: pp.461-495. http:// afs. sagepub. com/ cgi/ content/ abstract/ 33/ 4/ 461

Mandel, Robert. The Wartime Utility of Precision Versus Brute Force in Weaponry. Armed Forces & Society,Jan 2004; vol. 30: pp.171-201. http:/ / afs. sagepub. com/ cgi/ content/ abstract/ 30/ 2/ 171

References[1] Tomes, Robert (Spring 2004). " Relearning Counterinsurgency Warfare (http:/ / www. army. mil/ prof_writing/ volumes/ volume2/

march_2004/ 3_04_1. html)". Parameters (US Army War College). .[2] Stepanova, E (PDF). 2008 Terrorism in asymmetrical conflict: SIPRI Report 23 (http:/ / books. sipri. org/ files/ RR/ SIPRIRR23. pdf). Oxford

Univ. Press. .[3] Zhao, et al. (2 October 2009). " Anomalously Slow Attrition Times for Asymmetric Populations with Internal Group Dynamics (http:/ /

scitation. aip. org/ getabs/ servlet/ GetabsServlet?prog=normal& id=PRLTAO000103000014148701000001& idtype=cvips& gifs=yes)".Physical Review Letters 103, 148701 (2009) (APS). .

[4] Andidora, Ronald (2000). Iron Admirals: Naval Leadership in the Twentieth Century (http:/ / books. google. co. uk/books?id=0P-A8rIfO34C& pg=PA3& sig=ACfU3U1ZYobnpwfomjnxcnp0Z7W7ge4MYA). Greenwood Publishing Group. p.3. ISBN0313312664. .

Asymmetric warfare 16

[5] Nicolson, Adam (2005). Men of Honor: Trafalgar and the making of the English Hero. HarperCollins. p.73. ISBN 0-00719209-6.[6] Mansdorf, I.J. and Kedar, M. The Psychological Asymmtry of Islamist Warfare. Middle East Quarterly, 2008, 15(2), 37-44[7] Reshaping the military for asymmetric warfare (http:/ / www. cdi. org/ terrorism/ asymmetric. cfm) Center for Defense Information[8] Asymmetric Warfare, the Evolution and Devolution of Terrorism (http:/ / www. d-n-i. net/ fcs/ asymmetric_warfare_staten. htm) Emergency

Response & Research Institute[9] "Investment, Attrition, and War Continuation." Online: http:/ / wjspaniel. wordpress. com/ about/[10] Arreguin-Toft, Ivan (2005). How the Weak Win Wars: A Theory of Asymmetric Conflict. Cambridge University Press. p.228232. ISBN

978-0-521-83976-1.[11] Tourtellot, A.B. (August 1959). " Harold Murdocks The Nineteenth of April 1775 (http:/ / www. americanheritage. com/ articles/

magazine/ ah/ 1959/ 5/ 1959_5_60. shtml)". American Heritage Magazine 10 (5). . Retrieved 2008-01-13.[12] Chris Bray, The Media and GI Joe, in Reason (Feb 2002)[13] Oxford English Dictionary[14] Anonymous (Michael Scheuer), Imperial Hubris - Why the West is Losing the War on Terrorism, Washington DC, Brassey's (2004) ISBN

1-57488-849-8, Chap. 2[15] McCarthy, Rory (1 Jan 2008). " Death toll in Arab-Israeli conflict fell in 2007 (http:/ / www. guardian. co. uk/ world/ 2008/ jan/ 01/

israelandthepalestinians. international)". The Guardian. . Retrieved 2008-02-18.[16] http:/ / www. au. af. mil/ au/ aul/ bibs/ asw. htm[17] http:/ / www. comw. org/ rma/ fulltext/ asymmetric. html[18] http:/ / www. strategicstudiesinstitute. army. mil/ pdffiles/ PUB223. pdf[19] http:/ / www. spectrum. ieee. org/ mar06/ 3091[20] http:/ / www. cdi. org/ terrorism/ asymmetric. cfm[21] http:/ / 74. 125. 95. 132/ search?q=cache%3Ahttp%3A%2F%2Fwww. carlisle. army.

mil%2Fusawc%2FParameters%2F00winter%2Fgoulding. htm& ie=utf-8& oe=utf-8& aq=t& rls=org. mozilla:en-GB:official&client=firefox-a

[22] http:/ / www. carlisle. army. mil/ usawc/ Parameters/ 07autumn/ hemmer. htm[23] http:/ / www. carlisle. army. mil/ usawc/ Parameters/ 03summer/ meigs. pdf[24] http:/ / www. guardian. co. uk/ waronterror/ story/ 0,1361,562298,00. html[25] http:/ / www. nationalreview. com/ novak/ novak021003. asp[26] http:/ / forum. ra. utk. edu/ 1999summer/ asymmetric. htm[27] http:/ / www. janes. com/ defence/ news/ jdw/ jdw060818_1_n. shtml[28] http:/ / www. ausa. org/ PDFdocs/ LWPapers/ LWP_58. pdf[29] http:/ / washingtonpost. com/ wp-dyn/ content/ article/ 2008/ 04/ 21/ AR2008042100950. html?[30] http:/ / scitation. aip. org/ getabs/ servlet/ GetabsServlet?prog=normal& id=PRLTAO000103000014148701000001& idtype=cvips&

gifs=yes

Jungle warfare 17

Jungle warfareJungle warfare is a term used to cover the special techniques needed for military units to survive and fight in jungleterrain.It has been the topic of extensive study by military strategists, and was an important part of the planning for bothsides in many conflicts, including World War II and the Vietnam War.The jungle environment has a variety of effects on military operations. Dense vegetation can limit lines of sight andarcs of fire, but can also provide ample opportunity for camouflage and plenty of material with which to buildfortifications.Jungle terrain, often without good roads, can be inaccessible to vehicles and so makes supply and transport difficult,which in turn places a premium on air mobility. The problems of transport make engineering resources important asthey are needed to improve roads, build bridges and airfields, and improve water supplies.Jungle environments can also be inherently unhealthy, with various tropical diseases that have to be prevented ortreated by medical services. Likewise the terrain can make it difficult to deploy armoured forces, or any other kind offorces on any large scale. Successful jungle fighting emphasises effective small unit tactics and leadership.

History

Nicaragua Guerrilla

World War TwoThe real pioneers who methodically developed it as a specialized branch of warfare - the unconventional,low-intensity, guerrilla-style type of warfare as it is understood today - were probably the British. Examples of suchearly jungle-warfare forces were the Chindits, f Force and Force 136, who were small bodies of soldiers, equippedwith no more than small arms and explosives, but rigorously trained in guerrilla warfare-style tactics (particularly inclose-quarter combat).Formed in the later stage of the Pacific War in support of conventional forces, these were the true jungle-warfareexperts whose unconventional combat skills and tactics were specially developed for use in the jungle environment.The very beginning of it all probably traces back to immediately after the fall of Malaya and Singapore in 1942.A few British officers, such as the legendary Freddie Spencer Chapman, eluded capture and escaped into the centralMalaysian jungle where they helped organize and train bands of lightly armed local ethnic Chinese communists intoa capable guerrilla force against the Japanese occupiers. What began as desperate initiatives by several determinedBritish officers probably inspired the subsequent formation of the above-mentioned early jungle-warfare forces.

Cold War

British experience in the Malayan Emergency

After the war, early skills in jungle warfare were further honed in the Malayan Emergency, when in 1948 W.W.IIguerrilla fighters of the Malayan Communist Party (MCP) turned against their In addition to jungle discipline, fieldcraft, and survival skills, special tactics such as combat tracking (first using native trackers), close-quarter fighting(tactics were developed by troopers protected only with fencing masks stalking and shooting each other in the jungletraining ground with air rifles), small team operations (which led to the typical four-man special operations teams)and tree jumping (parachuting into the jungle and through the rain forest canopy) were developed to actively take thewar to the Communist guerrillas instead of reacting to incidents initiated by them.

Jungle warfare 18

Of greater importance was the integration of the tactical jungle warfare with the strategic "winning hearts and minds"psychological, economic and political warfare as a complete counter-insurgency package. The Malayan Emergencywas declared over in 1960 as the surviving Communist guerrillas were driven to the jungle near the Thai border,where they remained until they gave up their armed struggle in 1989.

Singapore Army Combat Trackers, a little knownelite four-team jungle warfare unit, in Brunei

during the early 1980s.

American experience in Vietnam

The British experience in counter insurgency was passed onto theAmericans during their involvement in the Vietnam War, [1] where thebattlegrounds were, again, the jungle. Much of British strategicthinking on counter-insurgency tactics in a jungle environment waspassed on through BRIAM (British Advisory Mission) to SouthVietnam headed by Sir Robert Thompson, a former Chindit and thePermanent Secretary of Defense for Malaya during the Emergency). [2]

The Americans further refined jungle warfare by the creation of suchdedicated counter-insurgency special operations troops as the SpecialForces (Green Berets), Rangers, Long Range Reconnaissance Patrols(LRRP) and Combat Tracker Teams (CTT).

During the decade of active US combat involvement in the Vietnam War (1962-1972), jungle warfare becameclosely associated with counter insurgency and special operations troops.However, although the American forces managed to have mastered jungle warfare at a tactical level in Vietnam, theywere unable to install a successful strategic program in winning a jungle-based insurgency war.[3] [4] [5] Hence, theAmerican military lost the political war in Vietnam even though U.S. forces, especially special operations troops,won almost every major military battle against the Viet Cong guerrillas and the North Vietnamese Army.

U.S. Marines training in the jungle

With the end of the Vietnam War, jungle warfare fell into disfavoramong the major armies in the world, namely, those of the US/NATOand USSR/Warsaw Pact, which focused their attention to conventionalwarfare with a nuclear flavor, to be fought on the jungle-less Europeanbattlefields.US special operations troops that were created for the purpose offighting in the jungle environment, such as LRRP and CTT, weredisbanded, while other jungle-warfare-proficient troops, such as theSpecial Forces and Rangers, went through a temporary period ofdecline, until they found their role in counter-terrorism operations inthe 1980s.

Jungle warfare 19

Development after the Cold WarThe collapse of USSR in the early 1990s marked the beginning of the end of a number of proxy wars fought betweenthe superpowers in the jungles of Africa, South America and Southeast Asia. In the euphoria at the end of the ColdWar, many Western nations were quick to claim the peace dividend and reinvested resources to other priorities.Jungle warfare was reduced in scope and priority in the regular training curriculum of most conventional Westernarmies. [6] During this time, the nature of major military operations in the Middle East and Central Asia saw the needto put an emphasis upon desert warfare and urban warfare training - in both the conventional andunconventional warfare models.

Jungle unitsAt present the following armies have specialised jungle units or Jungle Troops: Argentina Cazadores del Monte Brazilian Army has four Jungle Infantry Brigade: 1st, 16th, 17th and 23rd Jungle Infantry Brigades and others

units, divided in two division, and Jungle Warfare Training Center (CIGS). British Army has various Gurkha brigades. Colombia Brigada de Fuerzas Especiales France has the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment of the French Foreign Legion, based in Camp Forget, Kourou,

Guyane and various jungle postings. Malaysian Royal Ranger Regiment The Netherlands the Korps Commandotroepen and the Netherlands Marine Corps are jungle trained Philippine Army Scout Rangers and Philippine Army Special Forces USA Special Forces ("Green Berets"), Rangers, Long Range Reconnaissance Patrols (LRRP) and Combat

Tracker Teams (CTT). Suriname "korps speciale troepen"

ReferencesBooks and Articles

Barber, Noel. The War of the Running Dogs: How Malaya Defeated the Communist Guerrillas, 1948-60. London:Orion Publishing Group/Cassell Military Paperbacks, 2005.Baudrier, Michael, 'Love & Terror in Malaya,' (ISBN 1-4120-5171-1) Trafford Publishing, 2005.Chapman, Spencer. The Jungle is Neutral. Guilford, CT: Lyons Press, 2003. (First published by Chatto & Windus in1949.)Forty, George, Japanese Army handbook 1939-1945. Stroud, Gloucestershire: Sutton Publishing, 1999.Marchall, Brig. Gen. S. L. A. and Lt. Col. David H. Hackworth. "Vietnamprimer: Lessons Learned." Headquarters,Department of the Army, U.S. Army, 1966 (?). (Published on the Internet at: http:/ / www. geocities. com/equipmentshop/ vietnamprimer. htm [7].)Taber, Robert. War of the Flea: Classic Study of Guerrilla Warfare. London, Granada Publishing Ltd., 1965.

Jungle warfare 20

Further reading Jungle, Japanese and the Australian Army: learning the lessons of New Guinea [8]

Combat Tracker Teams: Dodging an Elusive Enemy [9]

Jungle Survival tips [10]

U.S. WWII Newsmap featuring Jungle Warfare [11], hosted by the UNT Libraries Digital Collections [12]

Counter Insurgency Jungle Warfare School (CIJWS)India [13]

References[1] Bob Horton (The Vietnam Center, Texas Tech University), "The Use of the British Resettlement Model in Malaya and Vietnam" paper

presented at the Texas Tech University 4th Triennial Vietnam Symposium, held at the Lubbock Civic Center, 11-13 Apr. 2002. (http:/ / www.tamilnation. org/ armed_conflict/ thompson. htm)

[2] Edward Reynolds Wright, Jr, Review of No Exit From Vietnam by Sir Robert Thomson (New York: David McKay Co., Inc., 1970), in TheAmerican Political Science Review, Vol. 65, No. 4 (Dec., 1971) pp. 1232-1234. (http:/ / www. jstor. org/ stable/ 1953570?seq=1)

[3] Master Sergeant James Donovan, USMC (ret.), "Marine Alternative to Search and Destroy," article, in Historynet.org and Leatherneck.com,2004. (http:/ / www. historynet. com/ marine-alternative-to-search-and-destroy. htm)

[4] Major Frank D. Pelli, USMC, "Insurgency, Counterinsurgency, and the Marines in Vietnam," article, in GlobalSecurity.org, 1999. (http:/ /www. globalsecurity. org/ military/ library/ report/ 1990/ PFD. htm)

[5] General Sir Mike Jackson, British Army, "The Principles of British Counterinsurgency," audio file, in Hearts and Minds: British CounterInsurgency from Malaya to Iraq, Kingston University FASS Conference, held at RUSI, Whitehall, London, 21 Sep. 2007. (http:/ / fass.kingston. ac. uk/ conferences/ hearts_and_minds/ index. shtml)

[6] David Abel, "Closing Prized Jungle Warfare Base," in The Christian Science Monitor, 3 June 1999. (http:/ / davidabel6. blogspot. com/ 2005/07/ closing-prized-jungle-warfare-base. html)

[7] http:/ / www. geocities. com/ equipmentshop/ vietnamprimer. htm[8] http:/ / ajrp. awm. gov. au/ ajrp/ remember. nsf/ pages/ NT00002F06[9] http:/ / www. historynet. com/ vn/ vlcombattrackerteams/[10] http:/ / www. storm-crow. co. uk/ articles/ jungle_survival. html[11] http:/ / digital. library. unt. edu/ permalink/ meta-dc-1009:2[12] http:/ / digital. library. unt. edu/[13] http:/ / www. sepiamutiny. com/ sepia/ archives/ 002207. html

Arctic warfare 21

Arctic warfare

Soviet Offensive in the Battle of Moscow,December 1941

Arctic warfare or winter warfare is a term used to describe armedconflict that takes place in an exceptionally cold weather, usually insnowy and icy terrain, sometimes on ice-covered bodies of water. Onemust note the distinction between alpine and Arctic warfare - Arcticwar does not always take place in mountainous terrain, and mountainwarfare does not always take place in the cold.

History

Most winter battles have taken place in northern and eastern Europe.In 1242, the Teutonic Order lost the Battle of the Ice on Lake Peipus toNovgorod. In 1520, the decisive Battle of Bogesund between Sweden and Denmark occurred on the ice of lakesunden.

Sweden and Denmark fought several wars during the 16th and 17th centuries. As a great deal of Denmark consists ofislands, it was usually safe from invasion, but in January 1658, most of the Danish waters froze. Charles X Gustav ofSweden led his army across the ice of the Belts to besiege Copenhagen. The war ended with the treaty of Roskilde,the most favourable Swedish peace treaty ever.During the Great Northern War, Swedish king Charles XII set off to invade Moscow, but was eventually defeated atthe battle of Poltava after being weakened by cold weather and scorched earth tactics. Sweden suffered morecasualties during the same war as Carl Gustaf Armfeldt with 6000 men tried to invade Trondheim, and 3000 of themdied in a blizzard on a snowy mountain named jfjllet.During the Finnish War, the Russian army unexpectedly crossed the frozen Gulf of Bothnia from Finland to theland Islands and, by 19 March 1809, reached the Swedish shore within 70km from the Swedish capital,Stockholm. This daring manoeuvre decided the outcome of the war.Another famous example is the use of ski troops by the Finnish Army during the Winter War and the subsequentContinuation War, where the numerically dominant Soviet forces had a hard time fighting mobile ski soldiers.In Operation Barbarossa in 1941, both Russian and German Soldiers had to endure terrible conditions during theRussian winter. Petsamo-Kirkenes Operation conducted by the Red Army against the Wehrmacht in 1944 innorthern Finland and Norway. In the Lapland War, Finland turned against Nazi Germany under the Soviet Union'spressure, their former cobelligerents. While use of ski infantry was prolific in the Red Army, Germany formed onlyone division for movement on skis.Operation Rsselsprung and Operation Wunderland were Arctic naval battles in World War II.

Arctic warfare 22

EquipmentArctic warfare is very dependent on equipment. For survival, troops need warm clothing and footwear, extranutritious food, white camouflage, tents with sleeping bags, heaters and fuel.Weapons can be fitted with an arctic trigger which permits firing while wearing heavy mittens.Individual mobility can be increased by skis, ice cleats, and snowshoes.Motorized vehicles are often unfit to stand freezing temperatures. Special procedures can be used to ensure theyperform in the cold, such as running them continuously or starting them at regular intervals. Studded tires or tirechains are useful equipment for maintaining traction of wheeled vehicles. It is also possible to design specialvehicles for operation specifically in arctic conditions, such as the BvS 10, M29 Weasel or Aerosan.

See also Ski warfare Siachen Arctic survival/winter survival Mountain warfare

ReferencesJames F. Gebhardt - The Petsamo-Kirkenes Operation [1]

References[1] http:/ / www-cgsc. army. mil/ carl/ resources/ csi/ gebhardt/ gebhardt. asp

Mountain warfareMountain warfare refers to warfare in the mountains or similarly rough terrain. This type of warfare is also calledAlpine warfare, named after the Alps mountains. Mountain warfare is one of the most dangerous types of combat asit involves surviving not only combat with the enemy but also the extreme weather and dangerous terrain.In combat, high ground gives a great advantage in both defense and offense. Attacking a prepared enemy position inmountain terrain requires a greater ratio of attacking soldiers to defending soldiers than would be needed on levelground.[1] Mountains at any time of year are dangerous lightning, strong gusts of wind, falling rocks, extreme cold,and crevasses are all additional threats to combatants. Movement, reinforcements, and medical evacuation up anddown steep slopes and areas where even pack animals cannot reach involves an enormous exertion of energy.

History

Early historyThe term mountain warfare is said to have come about in the Middle Ages after the monarchies of Europe found itdifficult to fight the Swiss armies in the Alps. This was because the Swiss were able to fight in smaller units and tookvantage points against a huge unmaneuverable army. Similar styles of attack and defence were later employed by guerrillas, partisans and irregulars who hid in the mountains after an attack, making it challenging for an army ofregulars to fight back.

Mountain warfare 23

World War IMountain warfare came to the fore once again, during World War I, when some of the nations involved in the warhad mountain divisions that had hitherto not been tested. The Austro-Hungarian defence repelled the Italians as theytook advantage of the mostly mountainous terrain, where more people succumbed to frostbite and avalanches than tobullets. During the summer of 1918, the Battle of San Matteo took place on the Italian front, this battle was fought atthe highest elevation of any in the war. In December 1914, another offensive was launched by the Turkish supremecommander Enver Pasha with 95,000-190,000 troops against the Russians in the Caucasus. Insisting on a frontalattack against Russian positions in the mountains in the heart of winter, the end result was devastating and Enver lost86% of his forces.

World War II Battles of Narvik Operation Renntier Operation Gauntlet

Kashmir conflict

The Siachen Glacier area is the smallest orange area.

The most dangerous and volatile of all mountainconflicts involves the ongoing one between India andPakistan over the Kashmir region. Since the partition in1947, both countries have been constantly locked inskirmishes and wars mainly in this Himalayan regionwith the highest mountains in the world. The firsthostilities between the two nations in theIndo-Pakistani War of 1947 showed that both wereill-equipped to fight in biting cold, let alone on thehighest altitudes in the world.

During the Sino-Indian War of 1962, hostilities brokeout between the Republic of India and People'sRepublic of China at some of the highest altitudes overthe Himalayan mountains.

Later wars between India and Pakistan were mainly fought on the valleys rather than in the mountains, althoughseveral major mountain battles took place in all these conflicts. This changed in the Kargil War when Indian forceswere faced with the huge task of flushing out intruders and disguised Pakistani soldiers who had captured highmountain posts. This proxy warfare became the only modern war that was fought exclusively on mountains. SincePakistani forces held the high ground and battles took place in peaks as high as 7,000 metres, it proved an immenselycostly task for the Indian Army, supported by massed artillery and the Indian Air Force, to vacate the Pakistanitroops. As a result of its experiences in Mountain Warfare in Kargil, the Indian Army now conducts courses onspecialized Artillery use in the Mountains, where ballistic projectiles have different characteristics.

On a related note, the Siachen Glacier was named the highest battleground in the world with both the countriesholding their respective positions at nearly 7000 m above sea level. Over 3000 Pakistani troops have died in thisinhospitable terrain, with weather extremes and the natural hazards accounting for higher casualties than combat.Butthe Indian number of casualties were less due to a step ahead in technological advancement & mountain warfareexperience.

Mountain warfare 24

Falklands War

Landscape of South Georgia

Although most of the Falklands War took place in the FalklandIslands themselves, on hilltops in semi-Arctic conditions, duringthe earlier stages of the war, there was some action in the bleakmountainous island of South Georgia. South Georgia is aPeri-Antarctic Island, and since the War took place during thesouthern winter, Alpine conditions prevailed almost down to sealevel. It was unusual, in that it combined aspects of deep waterlong range expeditions, Arctic Warfare and mountain warfare.

Operation Paraquet was ordered by British Admiral Fieldhouse on 12 April 1982. It was to involve Mountain Troopsfrom D Squadron SAS in Ascension, 150 Royal Marines on the tanker Tidespring, 2SBS on Plymouth and 6SBS inthe submarine Conqueror. Conqueror was first on the scene and carried out a survey of key areas of the SouthGeorgia coast. The operation was originally supposed to involve both SAS and SBS forces being infiltratedonto South Georgia by helicopters from the Tidespring and Antrim, but the plan had to be changed when the twoWessex helicopters transporting the SAS troops to an ambitious location on the west coast crashed in atrociousweather conditions on Fortuna Glacier; the troops and aircrew were rescued by Antrim's Wessex helicopter, the lastremaining to the expedition[2] .

Mountain warfare trainingThe expense of training Mountain troops precludes them from being on the order of battle of most armies exceptthose who reasonably expect to fight in such terrain. Mountain Warfare training is one of the most difficult andarduous there is and in many countries is the exclusive purview of special forces, elite units or commandos who areas part of their remit supposed to be able to fight in difficult terrain, (for example the Royal Marines in UK) thoughregular units may occasionally undertake training of this nature.This is however not the case with other armies.

Austria and GermanyGebirgsjger is the German word for mountain infantry (Gebirge meaning "mountain range", and Jger meaning"hunter" or "ranger"). The word Jger is the traditional German term for light infantry.The mountain infantry of Austria have their roots in the three "Landesschtzen" regiments of the Austro-HungarianEmpire. The mountain infantry of Germany carry on certain traditions of the Alpenkorps (Alpine corps) of WorldWar I. Both countries' mountain infantry share the Edelweiss insignia. It was established in 1907 as a symbol of theAustro-Hungarian Landesschtzen regiments by Emperor Franz Joseph I. These troops wore their Edelweiss on thecollar of their uniforms. When the Alpenkorps came to aid the Landesschtzen in defending the Austro-Hungary'ssouthern frontier against the Italian attack in May 1915, the grateful Landesschtzen honoured the men of theAlpenkorps by awarding them their own insignia: the Edelweiss.Today the traditions of the Austrian mountain infantry (Gebirgsjger) are maintained by the 6th Jgerbrigade inInnsbruck, subdivided in three battalions (Jgerbataillon 23, Jgerbataillon 24 and Jgerbataillon 26)Honouring tradition, upon the creation of the Bundeswehr in 1955, the mountain infantry returned as a distinctivearm of the German army. Until 2001, they were organized as the 1. Gebirgsdivision, but this division was disbandedin a general reform. The successor unit is Gebirgsjgerbrigade 23 which has its headquarters in Bad Reichenhall(Bavaria). Battalions of these mountain infantry are deployed in southern Bavaria.The soldiers of the mountain infantry wear a grey cap (Bergmtze) with an Edelweiss on its left side. This distinguishes them from all other German army soldiers who wear berets. The formal uniform, which is based on traditional skiing outfits, is also different from the standard German military uniform, and consists of ski jacket,

Mountain warfare 25

stretch trousers and ski boots.The Kaiserjgermarsch (March of the Kaiserjger) from 1914 is the traditional military march of the German andAustrian mountain infantry.

FranceUntil 1859, Italy wasn't yet a unified state but a sum of kingdoms and independent republics (Kingdom of Naples,Republic of Venice, Papal States, etc.). The situation changed with the unification of Italy. France saw thisgeopolitical change as a possible threat from the other side of the Alps border, partially as the Italians were the firstto have mountain warfare specialized troops.The French solution was to create its own mountain corps in order to oppose a possible Italian invasion through theAlps. By December 24, 1888, a law created a troupes de montagne ("mountain troops") corps. 12 of the 31 existingChasseurs Pied ("Hunters on Foot") battalions were selected to be converted. These first units were namedBataillons Alpins de Chasseurs Pied ("Hunters on Foot Alpine Battalions"), later shortened to Bataillons deChasseurs Alpins ("Alpine Hunters Battalions").Since 1999 they have been (with other units) part of the 27th Mountain Infantry Brigade (Brigade d'Infanterie deMontagne), and are currently organised into three battalions: 7th Battalion, Bourg-Saint-Maurice 13th Battalion, Chambry 27th Battalion, Cran-Gevrier (Annecy)All three battalions are based in cities in the French Alps, thus the name of the units.The Chasseurs are easily recognised by their wide beret (when not in battle uniform), named tarte (= pie). TheBritish Army adopted the the beret in the 1920s after having seen similar berets worn by the 70th Chasseurs Alpins(now disbanded).

IndiaThe Indian Army is among the most experienced in mountain warfare, having fought numerous conflicts in theHimalayas in Arunachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir. Major conflicts include the 1962 Sino-Indian War andthe Kargil War in 1999. Siachen Glacier is the world's highest battlefield, with about 3000 Indian troops on anaround the year deployment. For over two decades, India & Pakistan have fought numerous battles in one of themost inhospitable mountain territories in the world, at altitudes over 6000 meters (20,000 feet) and the mercurydipping to -50 Celsius.Due to the instability in the region and need for permanent deployments in the mountainous regions, the IndianArmy has some of the most extensive and well developed Mountain Warfare capabilities in the world. India'smountain warfare units were vastly expanded after the 1962 war, with the creation of 6 Mountain Divisions.[3] TheIndian Army presently has 10 Army Divisions dedicated to mountain warfare (8 Mountain Divisions and 2 MountainStrike divisions) and another infantry division earmarked for high altitude operations. Each division has a personnelstrength of 10,000-13,000 troops and consists of 3 brigades with 3,000 to 4,500 men each, including supportelements such as signals, provost, and intelligence units.[4]

In 2008, the Indian Army proposed plans to raise two additional mountain divisions, with goals to be operational infive years. The two divisions will also have air assets, including Utility helicopters, Helicopter gunships and Attackhelicopters.[4]

Training:The Indian Military Academy (IMA), Dehradun conducts preliminary mountaineering and mountain warfare trainingfor all Officer Cadets. Discontinued in the late 1980s, the Bhadraj Camp was revived in 1999 after the Kargil War.The culmination is a course of a 40km run and climbing a 5500 feet cliff with a fully loaded pack at night.[5]

Mountain warfare 26

For more specialized training, the Army operates the Parvat Ghatak School (Hindi: , Mountain Strike orMountain Warrior) at Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh. This high-altitude commando school is the highest of its kind at15,000 feet. With the mercury dipping to minus 20 degrees providing a freezing tougher terrain to impart training inconditions similar to Siachen.[6]

Another school, the High Altitude Warfare School (HAWS) is located near Gulmarg, Jammu and Kashmir. Set up in1948 as the 19 Infantry Division Ski School, HAWS has over the years become the Indian Army's nodal center for"specialised training and dissemination of doctrines" in high-altitude, mountain and snow warfare. HAWS Mountainwarfare courses are conducted in the Sonamarg area, and snow-craft & winter warfare training in the Gulmarg area.HAWS played an important role during the Kargil War by conducting crash courses for troops prior to theirdeployment.[7]

Given the extensive experience of the Indian Army in mountain warfare, troops from other nations regularly trainand conduct joint exercises at these schools. Because of its experience in fighting wars in mountain regions for over50 years, as well as its history of recruitment of natives from the Himalayan regions of India and Nepal (such asGurkha, Kumaon), Indian Mountain Warfare Units are considered among the best in the world. Numerous armyunits across the world are now implementing training modules modeled after Indian Mountain Warfare trainingsystems.[7] These include forces from UK,[8] US,[9] Russia, etc. In 2004, US special forces teams were sent to Indiato learn from Indian Army experiences of the Kargil War prior to their deployment for operations in Afghanistan.Russian troops also trained at the High Altitude Warfare School in Gulmarg for operations in Chechnya.[10] [11] Theyalso visited Siachen and other Army posts.[12]

Italy

Italian Alpini

The Alpini, meaning "the Alpines", are theelite mountain warfare soldiers of the ItalianArmy. They are currently organised in twomain operational brigades, which aresubordinated to the Alpini Corps Command.The singular is an Alpino (an "Alpine").

On June 7, 1883, the Alpini were awardedthe "fiamme verdi" (green flames) collarpatch. Also adopted was their distinctiveheaddress; the "Cappello Alpino" with itsblack feather, which led to them beingnicknamed "Le Penne Nere" or "blackfeathers".Originally formed in 1872, their mission was to protect Italy's northern mountainous borders. In 1888 the Alpiniwere sent to their first mission abroad, in Africa, during the First ItaloEthiopian War. They distinguishedthemselves during World War I when they fought against Austro-Hungarian soldiers in what has since been calledthe "War in snow and ice". During World War II, the Alpini fought together with Axis forces mostly on the EasternFront being tasked to hold the front in the Don river plains.

In the 1990s, after the end of the Cold War, three of the five Alpini brigades and many support units were disbandeddue to the reorganization process of the Italian Army. Currently, despite having some of the best trained and bestequipped mountain troops in the world, the military role of Alpines is seen in terms of peacekeeping missions andminor disputes interventions.The 4th Alpini Regiment is a SOF (Special Operations Forces) unit of elite mountain infantry specialized in theairborne assault role. It originates from the Alpini Paracadutisti platoons of Alpini Brigade founded in the '50s, then

Mountain warfare 27

merged, on the 1st of april 1964, in the Alpine Paratroopers Company.The "CENTRO ADDESTRAMENTO ALPINO" Aosta (MOUNTAIN TRAINING CENTRE) is the Army schoolresponsible for the Alpini corp officers training and graduation.

RomaniaThe Vntori de Munte ("Mountain Hunters/Rangers", Romanian pronunciation:[vntor de munte]) are the elitemountain troops of the Romanian Land Forces. They were first established as an independent Army Corps in 1916during World War I, and became operational in 1917 under Corpul de Munte designation.Thought as of being elite troops, the Romanian Vntori de Munte saw action in World War II on the Eastern Frontin some of the harshest battles - including the battles of Sevastopol and Stalingrad - where their performance lived upto their reputation: virtually all their commanders from brigade level and up received the Knight's Cross of the IronCross. There are currently two brigades operational, one subordinated to the 1st Territorial Army Corps (the 2ndMountain Troops Brigade), and another one subordinated to the 4th Territorial Army Corps (61st Mountain TroopsBrigade). Often, mountain troops units are participating in peacekeeping missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.

PakistanIn the Pakistan Army, mountain training is considered part of overall training and all soldiers and units are expectedto be proficient at it. Almost all units of all arms serve tours in Kashmir and Northern Areas, often in active duties onthe LOC or Siachin. The Pakistan Armys High-Altitude School, at Rattu in Northern Kashmir,[13] is an ideallocation on the confluence of the Hindukush, Himalayas, and Karakorum ranges. The school conducts trainingthroughout the year and includes mountain climbin