Vietnam Versus Afghanistan

[Dog Pound Zulu]

http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/hts.../20131013.aspx

Vietnam Versus Afghanistan
October 13, 2013: Although U.S. SOCOM (Special Operations
Command) deployed (at their peak) over 30,000 troops in
Afghanistan, there is still disagreement over how these forces should
have been used. The dispute centers on how much effort should go
into developing effective local allies versus using the SOCOM
capabilities to just hunt down and kill the bad guys. The largest
component of SOCOM, the U.S. Army Special Forces was founded to
organize, train and advise local allies, as well as carry out commando
operations. In the Special Forces each twelve man A Team (or ODA)
is selected from among the best infantry troops and then trained in the
language and customs of a specific part of the world.
These ODAs are very good at going into an area, establishing local
relationships and organizing more effective local armed groups to
carry out missions of mutual (to the locals and the United States)
missions. This process is often slow, requiring months just to get the
introductions over with and over a year to produce local forces that
can have a serious impact. For that reason the other approach, using
SOCOM personnel to quickly acquire information about the bad
actors and then use American forces to go after them. The ODAs are
excellent at scouting and setting up informant networks among the
locals.
Other components of SOCOM, like SEALs, Rangers marines and
Delta Force (a commando operation recruited from Special Forces
operators) are available for “direct action” (raids) missions. This
approach worked in doing a lot of damage to al Qaeda and the Taliban
in Afghanistan, but at the expense of longer-range efforts to....

[Trapper John]

OK, this article gave a brief history of the origin of SF, it's UW/FID role in SEA, briefly mentioned the tribal organization of A'stan and then concluded with [QUOTE]The problem with Special Forces in Afghanistan was not that they did not do more of this or that but that there were never enough Special Forces troops to meet the demand for their services. That, it turned out, was a problem with no solution because the high standards for Special Forces operators meant that there could never be enough of them, nor the other SOCOM specialists (SEALs, Rangers and the like). [QUOTE]

Maybe I missed the point, but I just didn't see one. We, on this forum, can do a much better job at discussing a very interesting topic in contrasting the role of SF in SEA and A'stan, lessons learned, etc.

I for one would love to read what those of you serving A'stan had to say on this subject. And frankly, I think this topic is relevant to the future of SF in particular and SOCOM in general.

Very provocative post there, Bro. Just a poorly written article, IMO.

[Ape Man]

Originally Posted by Trapper John

Very provocative post there, Bro. Just a poorly written article, IMO.

It is strategy page. Never seen a well written article appear on that site in all the time I have been reading it. I look at it as a resource to give me heads up on issues that are out there that I might not otherwise come across (target list for the UN in the Congo for example). But if I see anything there that seriously draws my interest I always try to find other sources.