Modernizing U.S. Counterinsurgency Practice: Rethinking Risk and Developing a National Strategy

While the updating of U.S. Army counterinsurgency (COIN) doctrine is long overdue, its imminent arrival is cause for celebration. The reality, however, is that the military doctrine won’t fully address two challenges that remain critical for its ultimate success. One—altering approaches to risk–confronts an inhospitable politico-military culture and institutional history. The other key issue— the need for all components of the U.S. Government (USG) to develop shared assumptions and expectations in COIN—is above the pay grade of military doctrine. If the United States expects to be engaged in COIN in the future—and some would argue that the Long War is essentially countering a global insurgency—it had best address these issues rather than assume that forthcoming military doctrine resolves them.