"Modern armies are planned and structured to fight massive World War II-type operations involving the large-scale movements of tanks and machinery across continents. In
fact they are rarely called upon to participate in such conflicts. It is far more common for them to find themselves involved in lower-level, ill-defined, politically charged, messy situations known collectively as ""unconventional warfare"", typified by the 1990s conflicts in Somalia, Haiti, Rwanda,
El Salvador and Nicaragua. Thomas Adams argues that, for the most part, the conventional war-fighting forces of the USA
are not the best military forces to deal with such situations, where there is a lack of a clearly-defined enemy and a need for persuasion, negotiation and even community leadership alongside elements who are willing to resort to deadly force. The appropriate components of the US miltary to deal with this, in his view, are the Special Operations Forces (SOF). He discusses the composition of the SOF and their varying roles, discussing their evoluation, strengths and weaknesses, and gives a history of US involvement in non-conventional warfare from the American revolution to the 1990s. He argues that the US Department of Defense still sees military conflict in the form of conventional warfare, with its emphasis on high-technology combat. The very existence of high-technology systems, however, makes conventional warfare less
likely, with the result that the US Army may become vulnerable to ""low-tech"" offensives, and already there has been an increase in ""unconventional"" conflicts since the demise of the Soviet Union. Adams proposes a change in strategic thinking together with investment in training and a usable military doctrine to guide develoment. A shift in expectations is required, with a greater willingness to accept lengthy commitments and incremental progress."
By:
Thomas K. Adams
Imprint: Routledge
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions:
Height: 234mm,
Width: 156mm,
Spine: 27mm
Weight: 890g
ISBN: 9780714647951
ISBN 10: 0714647950
Pages: 396
Publication Date: 01 June 1998
Audience:
College/higher education
,
Professional and scholarly
,
Professional & Vocational
,
A / AS level
,
Further / Higher Education
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
RUSI - October 1998 - Reviewed By Robin Neillands Whether the big SOF battalions of the United States are right for such delicate tasks is just one of the questions put forward in this interesting book, which deserves a wide readership among the political and intelligence communities, as well as in the military world. Amazon Bookshop A revealing, entertaining, hard-headed look at Special Operations This is probably the best book of its type available to the general public. Parameters - Winter 1998 - see file Adams sets out to examine the more important issues of whether todays Army Special Operations Forces are really special or whether they perform unusual or unconventional missions at a much higher level of proficency than others in the Army, Military Review- This thought-provoking book should be required reading for anyone associated with SOF- Small Wars and Insurgencies, Vol. 10, No. 1, Spring 99 ...an important book, an interesting book, a good read and an exasperating book... Deserves a place of honour on the bookshelf of all who would know what special operations are about. More important, it deserves to be read. Low Intensity Conflict and Law Enforcement, Vol 7, No 2, Autumn 98 This is a book that does several things well ... The authors operational experience, scholarly approach, and intellectual honesty combine to provide an excellent beginning point from which to reinitiate the process of rethinking the problem of military force size, structure, and purpose(s).
