THE MISSING LINK CIVIL-MILITARY ASPECTS OF EFFECTIVENESS IN COMPLEX IRREGULAR WARFARE Claes Robert Egnell Word count: 99,889 Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the PhD King’s College London September 2007 1 ABSTRACT Traditional analyses of operational effectiveness and combat power often lack consideration of civil-military aspects. However, in operations with complex and ambitious political aims, such as democratization, economic development and respect for human rights, the co-ordination of military, diplomatic and economic means is essential. These are issues that have increasingly become obvious since the end of the Cold War, and even more so during the operations in Kosovo, Afghanistan and Iraq in the new millennium. The aim of the thesis is to increase the understanding of how different patterns of civil-military relations affect the way operations are conducted. In general terms the impact is twofold: a direct impact by providing the highest levels in the chain of command – the level where strategic aims are set and operational plans made, and an indirect impact by being the arena in which decisions regarding size, culture, equipment and doctrine of the armed forces are made. Without properly functioning civil-military relations, structurally as well as culturally, effectiveness in complex irregular warfare is therefore unlikely. More specifically, the thesis compares the divided, radical civil-military approach, as promoted by Samuel Huntington and his followers, and the integrated, pragmatic approach, as advocated by the Janowitzean, sociological school. In practical terms, this involves a comparative study of US and British patterns of civil-military relations, their strategic cultures, as well as their operations in Iraq. The principal argument of the thesis is that the civil-military interface should ideally be integrated – within the interagency arena as well as within the defence ministry. Such integration has the potential to provide joint civil-military planning and comprehensive approaches to operations. It also creates mutual trust and understanding amongst officers and civil servants from different departments, agencies and units, and thereby, a co-operative interagency culture. For the civil- military interface to function effectively within the chain of command during operations, a co-operative culture of trust is essential. Finally, integrated civil-military structures are likely to provide a more balanced view of the functional imperative of the armed forces. The results are armed forces fit for whatever purpose the political leadership decides for them – such as complex irregular warfare. 2 CONTENTS ABSTRACT............................................................................................................................................... 2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS........................................................................................................................ 5 INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................................................. 7 CHAPTER 1. MILITARY CONDUCT AND EFFECTIVENESS IN A CHANGING STRATEGIC CONTEXT ........................................................................................................ 14 WARFARE IS CHANGING..................................................................................................................... 15 2.2 EFFECTIVENESS AND BEST PRACTICE IN COMPLEX IRREGULAR WARFARE.................................. 23 CONCLUSION...................................................................................................................................... 41 CHAPTER 2. THE CIVIL-MILITARY DIMENSION OF EFFECTIVENESS............................ 42 CIVIL-MILITARY RELATIONS THEORY ............................................................................................... 42 REINFORCING THEORY: MISSION COMMAND, TRUST, AND CULTURE................................................ 55 THE CIVIL-MILITARY DIMENSION OF EFFECTIVENESS: A FRAMEWORK FOR ANALYSIS .................... 72 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ............................................................................................................... 76 CHAPTER 3. PATTERNS OF CIVIL-MILITARY RELATIONS IN THE UNITED STATES 84 US MILITARY HISTORY...................................................................................................................... 84 THE PATTERNS OF CIVIL-MILITARY RELATIONS IN THE US............................................................... 94 CONCLUSIONS .................................................................................................................................. 104 CHAPTER 4 THE AMERICAN WAY OF WAR.......................................................................... 106 THE FUNCTIONAL IMPERATIVE AND US STRATEGIC CULTURE ........................................................ 107 US DOCTRINE BEFORE OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM........................................................................ 114 THE US APPROACH TO COMPLEX IRREGULAR WARFARE ................................................................ 122 CHAPTER 5. CIVIL-MILITARY ASPECTS OF US OPERATIONS IN IRAQ ........................ 125 THE INVASION OF IRAQ .................................................................................................................... 126 THE US APPROACH TO OPERATIONS IN IRAQ................................................................................... 128 CIVIL-MILITARY CO-ORDINATION AND CO-OPERATION: A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH?.............. 134 POST-CONFLICT OPERATIONS IN IRAQ ............................................................................................. 141 OUTCOME OF US CONDUCT OF OPERATIONS IN IRAQ ...................................................................... 152 CHAPTER 6. PATTERNS OF CIVIL-MILITARY RELATIONS IN THE UK......................... 156 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE BRITISH ARMED FORCES .......................................................... 156 CIVIL-MILITARY RELATIONS IN THE UK.......................................................................................... 170 CONCLUSIONS .................................................................................................................................. 179 3 CHAPTER 7. THE BRITISH WAY OF WAR ............................................................................... 182 THE FUNCTIONAL IMPERATIVE AND BRITISH STRATEGIC CULTURE ................................................ 183 DOCTRINE IN THE UK ...................................................................................................................... 192 CONCLUSIONS .................................................................................................................................. 196 CHAPTER 8. CIVIL-MILITARY ASPECTS OF BRITISH OPERATIONS IN IRAQ............. 198 BRITISH MILITARY OPERATIONS IN IRAQ......................................................................................... 199 CIVIL-MILITARY CO-ORDINATION AND CO-OPERATION: A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH?.............. 203 TACTICAL BEHAVIOUR OF BRITISH TROOPS..................................................................................... 211 CONCLUSION.................................................................................................................................... 222 CHAPTER 9. EVALUATING THE HYPOTHESIS: THE CASES COMPARED AND CONTRASTED....................................................................................................................... 224 A RECAPITULATION OF THE THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK AND THE HYPOTHESIS ............................. 224 THE INDIRECT EFFECT OF CIVIL-MILITARY RELATIONS .................................................................. 230 THE DIRECT EFFECT OF CIVIL-MILITARY RELATIONS ..................................................................... 238 CONCLUDING QUESTIONS AND CHALLENGES .................................................................................. 245 CHAPTER 10. CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................ 251 THEORETICAL IMPLICATIONS ........................................................................................................... 254 POLICY IMPLICATIONS ..................................................................................................................... 258 BIBLIOGRAPHY.................................................................................................................................. 264 4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the School of Social Science and Public Policy, King’s College London, which funded my research with a generous research studentship and additional travel grants. The friendly environment of the War Studies Department provided a wonderfully stimulating and enjoyable atmosphere in which to study. I am especially grateful to the department for allowing me to conduct most of my research abroad. Without the generous financial support and encouragement from Helge Ax:son Johnson’s Foundation, the Foundation for the Memory of Lars Hierta, Erik and Johan Ennerfeldt’s Fund, and the Swedish Defence Forces, the necessary research trips would not have been possible. My greatest intellectual debt is to Professor Christopher Dandeker, whose multidisciplinary and uniquely rich approach to military studies has been a constant inspiration since I first