David John Kilcullen
FRGS
The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...
(born 1967) is an Australian author, strategist, and counterinsurgency expert who is currently the non-executive chairman of Caerus Associates, a strategy and design consulting firm that he founded.
He is a professor at
Arizona State University
Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public research university in the Phoenix metropolitan area. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, ASU is one of the largest public universities by enrollment in the ...
and at
University of New South Wales, Canberra.
From 2005 to 2006, he was chief strategist in the Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism at the
U.S. State Department.
Kilcullen was a senior counter-insurgency advisor to General
David Petraeus
David Howell Petraeus (; born November 7, 1952) is a retired United States Army general and public official. He served as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency from September 6, 2011, until his resignation on November 9, 2012. Prior to h ...
in 2007 and 2008, where he helped design and monitor the
Iraq War troop surge.
He was then a special advisor for counter-insurgency to Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice ( ; born November 14, 1954) is an American diplomat and political scientist who is the current director of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served as the 66th Uni ...
.
Kilcullen has been a senior fellow of the
Center for a New American Security
The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) is a Washington, D.C. based think tank established in 2007 by co-founders Michèle Flournoy, board member of military contractor Booz Allen Hamilton, and Kurt M. Campbell, coordinator for Indo-Pacifi ...
and an adjunct professor at the
Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies
The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) is a graduate school of Johns Hopkins University based in Washington, D.C., United States, with campuses in Bologna, Italy, and Nanjing, China. It is consistently ranked one of the ...
at
Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...
.
Highly critical of the decision to invade Iraq, he is on record as saying "There undeniably would be no
ISIS
Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingd ...
if we had not invaded Iraq."
Kilcullen has written six books: ''The Accidental Guerrilla'', ''Counterinsurgency'', ''Out of the Mountains'', ''Blood Year'', ''The Dragons and the Snakes: How the Rest Learned to Fight the West'' and ''The Ledger: Accounting for Failure in Afghanistan''.
Education
Kilcullen graduated from
St Pius X College in 1984. He then attended the
Australian Defence Force Academy
The Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA) is a tri-service military Academy that provides military and academic education for junior officers of the Australian Defence Force in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Australian Army and Royal Aus ...
and completed a Bachelor of Arts with honours in military art and science through the
University of New South Wales
The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also known as UNSW Sydney, is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the founding members of Group of Eight, a coalition of Australian research-intensive ...
and graduated as a distinguished graduate and was awarded the Chief of Defence Force Army Prize in 1989. He took his army officer training at the
Royal Military College, Duntroon
lit: Learning promotes strength
, established =
, type = Military college
, chancellor =
, head_label = Commandant
, head = Brigadier Ana Duncan
, principal =
, city = Campbell
, state = ...
. After twelve months of training in Indonesia, Kilcullen graduated from the Australian Defence Force School of Languages in 1993 with an advanced diploma in
applied linguistics
Applied linguistics is an interdisciplinary field which identifies, investigates, and offers solutions to language-related real-life problems. Some of the academic fields related to applied linguistics are education, psychology, communication rese ...
. He is fluent in Indonesian and speaks some Arabic and French.
Kilcullen received a
Ph.D.
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is a ...
in politics from the
University of New South Wales
The University of New South Wales (UNSW), also known as UNSW Sydney, is a public research university based in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is one of the founding members of Group of Eight, a coalition of Australian research-intensive ...
at the
Australian Defence Force Academy
The Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA) is a tri-service military Academy that provides military and academic education for junior officers of the Australian Defence Force in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Australian Army and Royal Aus ...
in 2000. His thesis, entitled "The Political Consequences of Military Operations in Indonesia 1945-99: A Fieldwork Analysis of the Political Power-Diffusion Effects of Guerrilla Conflict," focused on the effects of
guerrilla warfare
Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare in which small groups of combatants, such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or Irregular military, irregulars, use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, Raid (military), raids ...
on
non-state political systems in
traditional societies. He drew on
ethnographic methods to research traditional systems of governance in
East Timor
East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-weste ...
and
West Papua.
His research centered on investigating
power diffusion in Indonesia during the
Darul Islam Era of 1948 to 1962 and the
Indonesian Occupation of East Timor of 1974 to 1999. Kilcullen argues that counter-insurgency operations, whether successful or not, cause the diffusion of political power from central to local leaders and that populations are the major actors in insurgency and counter-insurgency dynamics.
Australian Army
Kilcullen was commissioned as a lieutenant in the
Australian Army
The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...
and served in a number of operational, strategic, command, and staff positions in the
Royal Australian Infantry Corps
The Royal Australian Infantry Corps (RA Inf) is the parent corps for all infantry regiments of the Australian Army. It was established on 14 December 1948, with its Royal Corps status being conferred by His Majesty King George VI. At her corona ...
and
Australian Defence Force
The Australian Defence Force (ADF) is the military organisation responsible for the defence of the Commonwealth of Australia and its national interests. It consists of the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Australian Army, Royal Australian Air Forc ...
. He served in several counter-insurgency and
peacekeeping
Peacekeeping comprises activities intended to create conditions that favour lasting peace. Research generally finds that peacekeeping reduces civilian and battlefield deaths, as well as reduces the risk of renewed warfare.
Within the United N ...
operations in
East Timor
East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-weste ...
,
Bougainville, and the
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
.
Kilcullen attained the rank of
lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...
in the
Australian Army
The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...
and served as a staff officer in the
Australian Defence Force Headquarters
Australian(s) may refer to:
Australia
* Australia, a country
* Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia
** European Australians
** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists
** Aboriginal Aus ...
. In 2004, he became a senior analyst in the Australian
Office of National Assessments
The Office of National Assessments (ONA) was an Australian statutory intelligence agency established by the ''Office of National Assessments Act 1977'' as an independent statutory body directly accountable to the Prime Minister of Australia as ...
, where he served on the writing team for the Australian Government's 2004 Terrorism White Paper, "Transnational Terrorism: The Threat to Australia."
He left active duty in 2005
and is commissioned as a lieutenant colonel in the
Australian Army Reserve
The Australian Army Reserve is a collective name given to the reserve units of the Australian Army. Since the Federation of Australia in 1901, the reserve military force has been known by many names, including the Citizens Forces, the Citizen ...
.
Career in the United States
Kilcullen was seconded to the
United States Department of Defense
The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national secu ...
in 2004, where he wrote the counter-terrorism strategy for the Quadrennial Defense Review that appeared in 2006.
After going to reserve status in the Australian Army, Kilcullen worked for the
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other n ...
in 2005 and 2006, serving as the Chief Strategist in the
Office of the Coordinator for Counterterrorism
An office is a space where an organization's employees perform administrative work in order to support and realize objects and goals of the organization. The word "office" may also denote a position within an organization with specific dut ...
.
He worked in the field in
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
,
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
,
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
, the
Horn of Africa
The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004), ...
and
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...
. He helped design and implement the Regional Strategic Initiative.
Kilcullen helped write the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...
's Field Manual 3-24, ''Counterinsurgency'', published in December 2006.
He also wrote an appendix, entitled "A Guide to Action."
In early 2007, Kilcullen became a member of a small group of civilian and military experts, including Colonel
H. R. McMaster
Herbert Raymond McMaster (born July 24, 1962) is a retired United States Army lieutenant general who served as the 25th United States National Security Advisor from 2017 to 2018. He is also known for his roles in the Gulf War, Operation Endurin ...
, who worked on the personal staff of General
David Petraeus
David Howell Petraeus (; born November 7, 1952) is a retired United States Army general and public official. He served as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency from September 6, 2011, until his resignation on November 9, 2012. Prior to h ...
, the
Commander of the Multi-National Force – Iraq. There, Kilcullen served as the Senior Counterinsurgency Advisor until 2008 and was responsible for planning and executing counterinsurgency strategy and operations. He was the principal architect of the Joint Campaign Plan which guided the
Iraq War 2007 Troop Surge.
He has also served as the Special Advisor for Counterinsurgency to
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice ( ; born November 14, 1954) is an American diplomat and political scientist who is the current director of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served as the 66th Uni ...
in 2007 and 2008.
Kilcullen was a member of the
White House
The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...
2008 Review of Afghanistan and Pakistan Strategy. From 2009 to 2010, he was the counterinsurgency adviser to
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
and the
International Security Assistance Force
' ps, کمک او همکاري '
, allies = Afghanistan
, opponents = Taliban Al-Qaeda
, commander1 =
, commander1_label = Commander
, commander2 =
, commander2_label =
, commander3 =
, comman ...
in Afghanistan. Kilcullen has also been an adviser to the
British Government
ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd
, image = HM Government logo.svg
, image_size = 220px
, image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg
, image_size2 = 180px
, caption = Royal Arms
, date_es ...
, the
Australian Government
The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Government i ...
, and to several
private sector
The private sector is the part of the economy, sometimes referred to as the citizen sector, which is owned by private groups, usually as a means of establishment for profit or non profit, rather than being owned by the government.
Employment
The ...
institutions and companies.
He was a senior fellow and a member of the advisory board of the
Center for a New American Security
The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) is a Washington, D.C. based think tank established in 2007 by co-founders Michèle Flournoy, board member of military contractor Booz Allen Hamilton, and Kurt M. Campbell, coordinator for Indo-Pacifi ...
.
He was a partner at the Crumpton Group, but left "over a matter of principle." He has also been an Adjunct Professor of Security Studies at the
Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies
The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) is a graduate school of Johns Hopkins University based in Washington, D.C., United States, with campuses in Bologna, Italy, and Nanjing, China. It is consistently ranked one of the ...
.
Kilcullen founded Caerus Associates, LLC in 2010. Caerus is a
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
-based strategic and design consultancy firm that specializes in working in complex and frontier environments.
Kilcullen is an Advisory Board Member of
Spirit of America, a
501(c)(3) organization
A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of t ...
that supports the safety and success of Americans serving abroad and the local people and partners they seek to help.
Contributions to counter-insurgency
''Complex Warfighting''
In 2004, Kilcullen wrote ''Complex Warfighting'', which became the basis of the Australian Army's Future Land Operating Concept, approved the next year.
It identifies an operating environment heavily influenced by
globalization
Globalization, or globalisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is the process of interaction and integration among people, companies, and governments worldwide. The term ''globalization'' first appeared in the early 20t ...
and the United States' conventional military dominance. The concept claims that future conflicts will feature asymmetric threats requiring land forces to be flexible, able to deploy quickly, and operate in urban terrain. The paper calls for "modular, highly educated and skilled forces with a capacity for network-enabled operations, optimised for
close combat
Close combat means a violent physical confrontation between two or more opponents at short range.''MCRP 3-02B: Close Combat'', Washington, D.C.: Department Of The Navy, Headquarters United States Marine Corps, 12 February 1999Matthews, Phil, CQB ...
in
combined arms
Combined arms is an approach to warfare
War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme vio ...
teams. These teams will be small, semi-autonomous, and highly networked, incorporating traditional elements of the combined arms team as well as non-traditional elements such as
civil affairs, intelligence, and psychological warfare capabilities. They will have a capacity for protracted independent operations within a joint interagency framework." While not strictly limited to counter-insurgency, it stated that counter-insurgency and other non-traditional actions were going to compose a greater part of warfare in the 21st Century.
"Countering Global Insurgency"
"Countering Global Insurgency" proposed a new strategic approach to the
War on Terrorism
The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campaign are militant I ...
. It was first published in
Small Wars Journal
The ''Small Wars Journal'' (''SWJ'') is an online magazine focusing on intrastate conflict. Aside from its online magazine, ''SWJ'' hosts an accompanying blog and the Small Wars Council discussion board. Other site features include an online refer ...
in 2004 and then a shorter version appeared in the
Journal of Strategic Studies
The ''Journal of Strategic Studies'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal covering military and diplomatic strategic studies. It was established in 1978 by Frank Cass & Co. with John Gooch (University of Leeds) as founding editor-in-chief. The c ...
in 2005. The paper argues that
al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...
is best understood as a "global Islamic insurgency" that seeks to promote its
takfiri
''Takfiri'' ( ar, تَكْفِيرِيّ, ' lit. "excommunicational") is an Arabic and Islamic term denoting a Muslim who excommunicates one of his/her coreligionists, i.e. who accuses another Muslim of being an apostate. Since according to t ...
version of
Islam
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
and increase its role in the world order. Thus, counter-insurgency strategies and tactics need updating to deal with a globalized movement like al-Qaeda, especially increasing participation and cooperation of many states' intelligence and police agencies.
"Counterinsurgency ''Redux''"
Kilcullen's 2006 paper "Counterinsurgency ''Redux''" questions the relevance of classical
counterinsurgency
Counterinsurgency (COIN) is "the totality of actions aimed at defeating irregular forces". The Oxford English Dictionary defines counterinsurgency as any "military or political action taken against the activities of guerrillas or revolutionar ...
theory to modern conflict. It argues from field evidence gathered in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the Horn of Africa that:
"Twenty-Eight Articles"
Kilcullen's paper "Twenty-Eight Articles" is a practical guide for junior
officers
An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...
and
non-commissioned officer
A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is a military officer who has not pursued a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. (Non-officers, which includes most or all enli ...
s engaged in counter-insurgency operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. The paper's publication history is an illustration of new methods of knowledge propagation in the military-professional community. It first appeared as an e-mail that was widely circulated informally among
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
and
Marine
Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean.
Marine or marines may refer to:
Ocean
* Maritime (disambiguation)
* Marine art
* Marine biology
* Marine debris
* Marine habitats
* Marine life
* Marine pollution
Military
* ...
officers in April 2006, and was subsequently published in ''
Military Review
The U.S. Army Combined Arms Center (USACAC) is located at Fort Leavenworth and provides leadership and supervision for leader development and professional military and civilian education; institutional and collective training; functional training; ...
'' in May 2006. Later versions of it were published in ''IoSphere'' and the ''
Marine Corps Gazette ''Marine Corps Gazette'' is a professional journal for U.S. Marines founded in 1916 at Marine Corps Base Quantico for members of the United States Marine Corps. Begun by then Col John A. Lejeune as the vehicle to launch the Marine Corps Associatio ...
'', and it has been translated into Arabic, Russian, Pashtu and Spanish. It was later formalized as Appendix A to FM 3-24, the US military's counterinsurgency doctrine, and is in use by the US, Australian,
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
,
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
,
Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
,
Iraqi and
Afghan
Afghan may refer to:
*Something of or related to Afghanistan, a country in Southern-Central Asia
*Afghans, people or citizens of Afghanistan, typically of any ethnicity
** Afghan (ethnonym), the historic term applied strictly to people of the Pas ...
armies as a training document.
Conflict ethnography
Kilcullen has argued in most of his works for a deeper cultural understanding of the conflict environment, an approach he has called conflict ethnography: "a deep, situation-specific understanding of the human, social and cultural dimensions of a conflict, understood not by analogy with some other conflict, but in its own terms."
In the same essay, "Religion and Insurgency," published in May 2007 on the
Small Wars Journal
The ''Small Wars Journal'' (''SWJ'') is an online magazine focusing on intrastate conflict. Aside from its online magazine, ''SWJ'' hosts an accompanying blog and the Small Wars Council discussion board. Other site features include an online refer ...
, he expanded this view:
''Counterinsurgency''
In 2010, Kilcullen brought together his writings in his book ''Counterinsurgency'' and developed his understanding of counterinsurgency to address radical Islam's globalized threat. He argues that successful counterinsurgency is about out-governing the enemy and winning the adaptation battle to provide integrated measures to defeat insurgent tactics through political, administrative, military, economic, psychological, and informational means.
Positions on American policy
Iraq War
In an interview with
Spencer Ackerman
Spencer Ackerman is an American journalist and writer. Focusing primarily on national security, he began his career at ''The New Republic'' in 2002 before writing for ''Wired'', ''The Guardian'' and ''The Daily Beast''.
He won a 2012 National ...
of the ''Washington Independent'' in 2008, Kilcullen called the decision to invade Iraq "fucking stupid" and suggested that if policy-makers apply his manual's lessons, similar wars can be avoided in the future. "The biggest stupid idea," Kilcullen said, "was to invade Iraq in the first place." Kilcullen didn't deny saying it, but rather that "I can categorically state that the word 'fucking' was said off the record".
Kilcullen explained his comment the next day:
In his book ''Blood Year'', published in 2016, Kilcullen makes very clear his view that "there undeniably would be no Isis if we had not invaded Iraq." In a March 2016 interview on the UK's Channel 4 News, he went on to say:
Criticizing American policy
On 6 March 2009, Kilcullen published a piece on
Small Wars Journal
The ''Small Wars Journal'' (''SWJ'') is an online magazine focusing on intrastate conflict. Aside from its online magazine, ''SWJ'' hosts an accompanying blog and the Small Wars Council discussion board. Other site features include an online refer ...
titled "Accidental Guerrilla: Read Before Burning." The piece responded to
Andrew Bacevich
Andrew J. Bacevich Jr. (, ; born July 5, 1947) is an American historian specializing in international relations, security studies, American foreign policy, and American diplomatic and military history. He is a Professor Emeritus of International ...
's review
of Kilcullen's book, ''The Accidental Guerilla: Fighting Small Wars in the Midst of a Big One'', and also addressed his criticisms of American administrations. Kilcullen wrote:
Drone use
Kilcullen argues that targeted killings with
drone strikes in Afghanistan
Since January 2001, multiple drone strikes have been conducted by the United States government in Afghanistan. These strikes began during the administration of the United States President George W. Bush. During the presidency of Donald Trump, it ...
and
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
is a mistake. in 2009 he said: "These strikes are totally counter-productive. It is a strategic error to personalize the conflict in this way, it’ll strengthen the enemy and weaken our friends. How can one expect the civilian population to support us if we kill their families and destroy their homes."
Publications and testimony
*
*
*
* Longer draft version of journal article.
*
*
Different version*
*
*
*
*
Video*
Video
*
*
*
*
Books
*
*
*
*
*
See also
*
Counter-insurgency
Counterinsurgency (COIN) is "the totality of actions aimed at defeating irregular forces". The Oxford English Dictionary defines counterinsurgency as any "military or political action taken against the activities of guerrillas or revolutionar ...
*
Counter-terrorism
Counterterrorism (also spelled counter-terrorism), also known as anti-terrorism, incorporates the practices, military tactics, techniques, and strategies that governments, law enforcement, business, and intelligence agencies use to combat or el ...
*
Human Terrain System
The Human Terrain System (HTS) was a United States Army, Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) support program employing personnel from the social science disciplines – such as anthropology, sociology, political science, regional studies, and ...
*
Iraq War troop surge of 2007
The Iraq War troop surge of 2007, commonly known as the troop surge, or simply the surge, refers to the George W. Bush administration, George W. Bush administration's 2007 increase in the number of U.S. military combat troops in Iraq in order to ...
References
External links
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Citation*
* 23 (4): 23.
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Kilcullen, David
Guerrilla warfare theorists
Counterinsurgency theorists
Counterterrorism theorists
1967 births
Living people
Australian soldiers
Australian Army officers
Graduates of the Australian Defence Force Academy
University of New South Wales alumni
Royal Military College, Duntroon graduates
Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society
People educated at St Pius X College, Sydney