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Home Global Operations

The Complexity of Irregular Warfare Education

Paul Burton emphasizes the importance and complexity of Irregular Warfare (IW) education, comparing traditional warfare to a game of checkers and IW to multiple simultaneous chess games.

  • Editor Staff
  • July 20, 2023
U.S. Army Staff Sgt. John Hampson, an instructor at the U.S. Army Mountain Warfare School, instructs French service members with the 5th Overseas Interarms Regiment (5e RIAOM) on casualty evacuation techniques at the French Combat Training Center at Arta Beach, Djibouti
(Photo by Staff Sgt. Amanda Stock Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa)
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Paul Burton emphasizes the importance and complexity of Irregular Warfare (IW) education, comparing traditional warfare to a game of checkers and IW to multiple simultaneous chess games. He critiques the Department of Defense’s current educational approach and emphasizes the necessity of a broad-based education, hands-on experience, and self-study for those in Army Special Operations Forces to truly understand and navigate IW challenges effectively.
  

Key Points: 

  1. Comparison with Traditional Warfare: Irregular Warfare is likened to playing multiple chess games at once, where each move in one game impacts the others, highlighting the complexity of IW as compared to traditional warfare.
  2. Current State of Defense Education: The Department of Defense’s educational infrastructure is found lacking in its approach to IW, with a disproportionate budget allocated to training over education and a focus on Violent Extremist Organizations that has left a gap in comprehensive IW education.
  3. Need for Comprehensive Education: To truly understand IW, one requires a broad-based education encompassing history, economics, sociology, political science, logic, and critical thinking, as well as studying IW case studies in their geopolitical, economic, and sociological contexts.
  4. Importance of Experience: Hands-on experience, garnered through diverse deployments and working with inter-agency and international partners, is crucial for a practical understanding of IW challenges and solutions.
  5. Self-Study: Given the limitations in formal IW education opportunities, self-study becomes essential for those wanting to master IW. This involves deeper exploration than brief podcasts or sound bites and should be tailored to one’s role and level in the military.

 

Source: https://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/irregular-warfare-education-lifelong-process

Editor Staff

Editor Staff

The Editor Staff at SOFX comprises a diverse, global team of dedicated staff writers and skilled freelancers. Together, they form the backbone of our reporting and content creation.

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