- 1. The Non-State Soldier in History Click to edit Master
subtitle style Martin Scott Catino, Ph.D. Instructor American
Military University
2. Some Basic Terminology 1. There was no state: Prior to the
rise of nation states in modern history(Europe, 19th century),
societies were ruled by kings, warlords, tribalchiefs, dictators,
oligarchs, aristocrats, and occasionally democraticallyelected
leaders. 2. Non-State soldiers: Let us not get to caught up in this
term: state.Modern states support terrorists and non-state
soldiers. Moreover, the non-state soldier of today may be the state
soldier of tomorrow (ex: The Talibanhad a state in Afghanistan
during the 1990s). 3. Soldier: This term is used as part of our
definition in that the Tactics,Techniques, and Procedures of the
non-state soldier (NSS) are far moredeveloped, skilled, organized,
and properly executed than other violentactors: criminals,
terrorists, rioters, protestors, etc. However, the NSS mayuse some
or all of the aforesaid tactics and peoples in order to achieve
thedesignated goal. 3. The Non-State SoldierDefinition: This course
is a study ofmilitant foreignethnic/religious groups notoutwardly
affiliated with asovereign state.A broad definition allows us
tostudy the many groups, theircontext, and
theircharacteristicsindividuallyand collectively. Female Tamil
Tigers operating in Sri Lanka 4. Main Objective: Control the
StateThe main objective ofthe non state soldier is tocontrol the
state. Thedestruction, degradation,or defeat of the state
isessential. 5. Historical Periods*1. The pre-modern period:
revolts,civil wars, revolutions, andguerrilla wars (prior to the
20thcentury).2. The Partisan fighter in History(18th to the 20th
century)3. The terrorist as a modernphenomenon (19th and
20thcentury)4. The Age of the Communist Robert the
Bruce,revolutionary (post-WWII era) circa AD13005. The modern
non-state soldier(present) * Note that these time periods are
arbitrary and capture general trends and developments. 6. Common
Characteristics in AllHistorical PeriodsThe following
characteristics of the non-state soldier can befound in all
historical periods.1. Survivability. Avoidance of direct contact
and conflict withsuperior forces.2 Deception, concealment, and
spying. Reliance on the covertrealm for survival, information, and
operations.3. Exploitation of terrain. Using terrain effectively in
sanctuary,operations, and exfiltration.4. Population leverage.
Using the population as a force multiplierand a foil against the
enemy. Using the population as an effectivenetwork of
communication, supply, sanctuary, information, andrecruitment. 7.
Pre-Modern and Ancient Period1. Sun Tsu. Ancient Chinese military
general (722 -481 BC) who wrote The Art of War2. Profound influence
on Mao Zedong and his development of guerrilla warfare3. Emphasized
the art of asymmetrical warfare: psychological operations and
effects, elusiveness, intelligence and spying, deception, avoidance
of direct contact with superior forces, maximizing terrain and
environmental conditions, and survivability. 8. Partisan Period
(18-20th century)1. Standing Armies. Large, well-trained,organized,
and professional armies in the18th to 20th centuries
dominatedconflicts as the main elements andinstruments of policy
and force.2. Partisan fighters. Small units orbands conducted
guerrilla warfarealongside and supporting these mainarmies.
Although similar to the modernguerrilla, the partisan was a minor
player,considered far secondary in importance.3. Success: sometimes
thesecombatants in the little war (guerrilla)had huge effects, such
as defeating Juan Martin DiezNapoleon Bonaparte in Spain. (see
JuanMartin Diez) 9. The Terrorist as a Modern Phenomenon 19th and
20th Centuries1. Popular discontent with industrialization and
rapidly changingsocial and economic conditions created unrest in
Western Europeand the transatlantic world, which radicals exploited
to theirbenefit.2. Growing media, communications, technology, and
travelnetworks furthered the ability of radicals to spread their
ideologyand organizations.3. Karl Marx and his Communist Manifesto
provided theideological impetus and cohesion for radical and
terrorist activity.4. Major shift in targeting based upon the
notions of collectiveguilt, collective punishment, and positive
effects of targetingwomen, children, and civilians. These
groups/targets becamemain efforts of terrorists such as Communists,
radical socialists,anarchists, and Syndicalists. 10. Death of
President William McKinley byan Anarchist (Sept. 6, 1901) 11. Age
of the Communist Revolutionary, 1945-1991 12. Historical Context of
the Rise ofCommunism in the Post WWII Era1. Decline of imperial
powers (British,French, Dutch, Portuguese, etc.) createda power
vacuum that the Communiststepped into globally.2. The Soviet Union
provided enormousresources for guerrilla movementsaround the
globe.3. Weaponization. The availability ofweapons, training,
sanctuary, and supplyaided non state soldiers and often gavethem a
qualitative edge over the state.[For example, the availability of
the AK-47 and Rocket Propelled Grenade(RPG) ] 13. Refinement of the
military tactics of theNon State SoldierArguably, Mao Zedongs
guerrillawarfare tactics were a revolution inmilitary thought,
particularly forthe non state soldier.Maos Thought created a
practicaland deadly plan for non statesoldiers to defeat the
state.TTPs. Intelligence, operations,supply, information
operations(propaganda), and kinetic targeting,all advanced
exponentially and thatagainst the state. 14. The Modern Non State
Soldier: (Present)1. No major preparation stage needed for an
insurgency (unlike theCommunist revolutions)2. No hierarchical
command structure or fixed command structure.Insurgent commanders
can move about without remaining in a fixedlocation.3. Small
unit/cell activity. No need to mobilize large numbers ortransition
to large conventional army (classic war of the flea)4. Hybrid
threat: Use of conventional, asymmetrical, criminal, andterrorist
methods and groups as force multipliers. Exploitation ofnatural and
man made disasters.5. Reliance on criminal, black market, social,
youth, and other networksthat penetrate society vertically and
horizontally.6. Utilization of low-risk tactics such as Improvised
Explosive Devices(IEDs) and Indirect Fire (IDF). 15. Conclusion1.
Each period of history was unique in that the
non-statesoldier/guerrilla operated against established authority
withvarying degrees of ability, leadership, and success, anoutcome
determined by context, skill, and leadership.2. In general, the
non-state soldier has increased incapacity, operability, and
effectiveness due to the access totechnology, refinement of skill,
and decline of the monopolyof power held by the state.3. Common
characteristics are evident in all anti-government elements (non
state soldiers): secrecy,exploitation of terrain and environment,
reliance on thepopulation for sanctuary, intelligence, and supply,
andavoidance of direct contact with superior forces(survivability).
16. Suggest Readings1 Macabbees,
http://www.earlyjewishwritings.com/text/1maccabees.htmlLenin, V.I.
Guerrilla Warfare,
http://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1906/gw/index.htmMao
Zedong, On Guerrilla
Warfare,http://www2.marines.mil/news/publications/Documents/FMFRP%2012-18%20%20Mao%20Tse-tung%20on%20Guerrilla%20Warfare.pdfMarighella,
Carlos, Minimanual of the Urban Guerrilla,
http://www.marxists.org/archive/marighella-carlos/1969/06/minimanual-urban-guerrilla/Sun
Tsu, The Art of War, http://suntzusaid.com/ (accessed 3 Aug2011)
17. Contact InformationMartin Scott Catino, Ph.D. American Military
UniversitySchool of Security and Global StudiesEmail:
[email protected]
