This study seeks to provide an initial assessment of the war in Afghanistan and the lessons to be drawn in terms of war fighting, intelligence, and force transformation. The Afghan conflict is anything but a conventional war: it is asymmetric warfare fought by different sides with different goals and perceptions using radically different methods - and fought as a theater battle in a broader global struggle against terrorism. Asymmetric wars tend to be highly adaptive, and this war is both regional and global in scope. It is also a struggle fought in a context where it may come to interact with other conflicts such as the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian struggle and a possible U.S. effort to drive Saddam Hussein from power. So, while it is easier to draw lessons than to validate them, this study begins that process.
Anthony H. Cordesman holds the Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy at Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington DC, USA. He formerly served as national security assistant to Senator John McCain of the Senate Armed Services Committee, as director of intelligence assessment in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, and as civilian assistant to the deputy secretary of defense.
ANTHONY H. CORDESMAN is Senior Fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and a military analyst for ABC News. A frequent commentator on National Public Radio, he is the author of numerous books on security issues and has served in a number of senior positions in the US government.
ANTHONY H. CORDESMAN is Senior Fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and a military analyst for ABC News. A frequent commentator on National Public Radio, he is the author of numerous books on security issues and has served in a number of senior positions in the US government.