Some Definitions

[The Reaper]

Okay, these terms keep popping up in discussions, frequently being used improperly.

All but one of these are the Joint Pub 1-02 definitions. This does not mean that they are necessarily all-inclusive or even correct in every case, but they are what the military means when they use the terms.

This is a good thread, and may deserve a sticky, since you must understand what the terms mean to have a meaningful discussion about them.

Also note how many interrelate. I have been at this for quite a while and still have to look things up regularly.

HTH.

TR


antiterrorism — Defensive measures used to reduce the vulnerability of individuals and property to terrorist acts, to include limited response and containment by local military forces. Also called AT. See also antiterrorism awareness; counterterrorism; proactive measures; terrorism. (JP 3-07.2)

asset (intelligence) — Any resource — person, group, relationship, instrument, installation, or supply — at the disposition of an intelligence organization for use in an operational or support role. Often used with a qualifying term such as agent asset or propaganda asset.

Auxiliary --- The Auxiliary provides logistical support to the resistance movement . Auxiliary units may contain communications ,material support, transportation, and other units whose mission is to provide logistics support to the resistance. The Auxiliary may at times conduct limited combat operations in order to support actions undertaken by the guerrilla force.

combatting terrorism — Actions, including antiterrorism (defensive measures taken to reduce vulnerability to terrorist acts) and counterterrorism (offensive measures taken to prevent, deter, and respond to terrorism), taken to oppose terrorism throughout the entire threat spectrum. Also called CBT. See also antiterrorism; counterterrorism.

counterguerrilla warfare — (*) Operations and activities conducted by armed forces, paramilitary forces, or nonmilitary agencies against guerrillas.

counterinsurgency — Those military, paramilitary, political, economic, psychological, and civic actions taken by a government to defeat insurgency. Also called COIN.

countersabotage — That aspect of counterintelligence designed to detect, destroy, neutralize, or prevent sabotage activities through identification, penetration, manipulation, deception, and repression of individuals, groups, or organizations conducting or suspected of conducting sabotage activities.

countersubversion — That aspect of counterintelligence designed to detect, destroy, neutralize, or prevent subversive activities through the identification, exploitation, penetration, manipulation, deception, and repression of individuals, groups, or organizations conducting or suspected of conducting subversive activities.

counterterrorism — Operations that include the offensive measures taken to prevent, deter, preempt, and respond to terrorism. Also called CT. See also antiterrorism; combatting terrorism; terrorism. (JP 3-05)

guerrilla — A combat participant in guerrilla warfare. See also unconventional warfare.

guerrilla force — A group of irregular, predominantly indigenous personnel organized along military lines to conduct military and paramilitary operations in enemy-held, hostile, or denied territory. (JP 3-05)

insurgency — (*) An organized movement aimed at the overthrow of a constituted government through use of subversion and armed conflict.

insurgent — Member of a political party who rebels against established leadership. See also antiterrorism; counterinsurgency; insurgency. (JP 3-07.2)

overt peacetime psychological operations programs — Those programs developed by combatant commands, in coordination with the chiefs of US diplomatic missions, that plan, support, and provide for the conduct of psychological operations, during military operations other than war, in support of US regional objectives, policies, interests, and theater military missions. Also called OP3. See also consolidation psychological operations; psychological operations. (JP 3-53)

perception management — Actions to convey and/or deny selected information and indicators to foreign audiences to influence their emotions, motives, and objective reasoning as well as to intelligence systems and leaders at all levels to influence official estimates, ultimately resulting in foreign behaviors and official actions favorable to the originator’s objectives. In various ways, perception management combines truth projection, operations security, cover and deception, and psychological operations. See also psychological operations.

psychological operations — Planned operations to convey selected information and indicators to foreign audiences to influence their emotions, motives, objective reasoning, and ultimately the behavior of foreign governments, organizations, groups, and individuals. The purpose of psychological operations is to induce or reinforce foreign attitudes and behavior favorable to the originator’s objectives. Also called PSYOP. See also consolidation psychological operations; overt peacetime psychological operations programs; perception management.

resistance movement — An organized effort by some portion of the civil population of a country to resist the legally established government or an occupying power and to disrupt civil order and stability.

sabotage — An act or acts with intent to injure, interfere with, or obstruct the national defense of a country by willfully injuring or destroying, or attempting to injure or destroy, any national defense or war materiel, premises, or utilities, to include human and natural resources.

subversion — Action designed to undermine the military, economic, psychological, or political strength or morale of a regime. See also unconventional warfare.

terrorism — The calculated use of unlawful violence or threat of unlawful violence to inculcate fear; intended to coerce or to intimidate governments or societies in the pursuit of goals that are generally political, religious, or ideological. See also antiterrorism; combatting terrorism; counterterrorism; force protection condition; terrorist; terrorist groups. (JP 3-07.2)

terrorist — An individual who uses violence, terror, and intimidation to achieve a result. See also terrorism. (JP 3-07.2)

terrorist groups — Any element, regardless of size or espoused cause, that commits acts of violence or threatens violence in pursuit of its political, religious, or ideological objectives. See also terrorism. (JP 3-07.2)

unconventional warfare — A broad spectrum of military and paramilitary operations, normally of long duration, predominantly conducted through, with, or by indigenous or surrogate forces who are organized, trained, equipped, supported, and directed in varying degrees by an external source. It includes, but is not limited to, guerrilla warfare, subversion, sabotage, intelligence activities, and unconventional assisted recovery. Also called UW. (JP 3-05)

[Roguish Lawyer]

Thanks, TR. Very helpful. What's "HTH"? Hope that helps?

[Airbornelawyer]

From a June 2003 Army TSP on "Paramilitary and Nonmilitary Organizations and Tactics":

Insurgent forces are groups that conduct irregular or unconventional warfare within the borders of their country in order to undermine or overthrow a constituted government or civil authority. The distinction between terrorists and insurgents is often blurred because of the tactics employed by each. Some terrorists groups have become insurgent organizations, while insurgent organizations have used terror tactics. An insurgent organization may use more than one form of tactics and, based on its strategy, its actions could cut across the entire spectrum of warfare - employing terror, guerrilla, and conventional military tactics to achieve its goals. Typically, most insurgent groups use the first two.

[NousDefionsDoc]

Originally posted by The Reaper
Insurgency is a sub-set of UW.

An insurgency may be a part of UW, but not the other way around.

What if the insurgents use conventional troops and tactics?

[The Reaper]

Originally posted by NousDefionsDoc
What if the insurgents use conventional troops and tactics?

Are you referring to internal or external conventional troops?

Maoist Third Phase of an insurgency, or something else?

TR

[NousDefionsDoc]

Internal. If they were external, wouldn't that change it to a foreign invasion?

What I am thinking is basically parity. I can't think of a very good example right now, maybe Yemen? Maybe Hizbollah/HAMAS and the PA?

Of course if they have parity, its basically civil war, but the incumbents would probably consider it to be an insurgency.

[NousDefionsDoc]

Other possible examples - the Spanish Civil War

The French in The Vendee in 1793

I suppose any civil war would do.

[The Reaper]

Originally posted by NousDefionsDoc
Internal. If they were external, wouldn't that change it to a foreign invasion?

What I am thinking is basically parity. I can't think of a very good example right now, maybe Yemen? Maybe Hizbollah/HAMAS and the PA?

Of course if they have parity, its basically civil war, but the incumbents would probably consider it to be an insurgency.

So by your definition, you would consider our own War Between the States an Insurgency and the Confederate Armies conventional arms of the insurgent?

Were the American Colonies conducting an Insurgency?

It occurs to me that if you start your campaign with standing regular or conventional troops on both sides, it is not insurgency, but a conventional war.

IMHO, insurgencies are defined by the nature of the forces, their goals, and the tactics they employ.

TR

[NousDefionsDoc]

An organized movement aimed at the overthrow of a constituted government through use of subversion and armed conflict.

I don't consider the War Against Yankee Arson and Rape to be an insurgency, but did the Yankees at the time?

Did King George consider the American Revolution to be an insurgency?

Is it still conventional war if it is not between two separate states, but rather internal?

I would say that whether or not it is an insurgency would depend on which side of the conflict you are on. But given the definition of yours above, do not the WAYA&R and the American revolution meet the criteria?

I don't think "insurgency" is necessarily a negative term. Insurgencies can be good or bad, depending on the goals and the nature of the constituted government they are trying to over throw.

But I'm not sure that I agree that an unconventional warfare cannot be part of an insurgency, that insurgency has to be a subset of UW. Granted, that is the most likely scenario.

If you would, what is the nature of the forces, goals and tactics that would define them as insurgents?

[NousDefionsDoc]

subversion — Action designed to undermine the military, economic, psychological, or political strength or morale of a regime. See also unconventional warfare.

I am thinking the use of subversion is somehow key in the definition of insurgency. I am hard-pressed to say how however. When is subversion, following the definition above, not used in conflict?

[lrd]

Bump.