General Rupert Smith spent 40 years in the British Army, commanding the UK Armoured Division in the Gulf War, general in charge in Northern Ireland, commander of the UN forces in Bosnia and Deputy Commander of NATO. He lives in London.
One of the most important books on modern warfare in the last decade. We would be better off if the United States had a few more generals like him. -- The Washington Post Book World An impressive and absorbing work of military analysis. . . . Smith is the Clausewitz of low-intensity conflict and peacekeeping operations. . . . He brilliantly lays bare the newfound limits of Western military power. -- The New York Times Book Review It is hard to overstate the devastating nature of this book as an indictment of almost everything the West has done in recent years, and is doing today. -- The Sunday Telegraph A closely argued, searching textbook on strategy and the efficient use of military power in the post-Cold War era. -- The New York Times