Efficacy of the Instruments of National Power in Winning Insurgent Warfare

Determining the causes of insurgency is important to military studies and social sciences because of the pervasiveness of insurgency and its impact on regional stability and governmental legitimacy. The moderating influences of the Cold War are gone, and insurgent warfare and terrorism are taking on greater importance for the military professional. Insurgent activities range from propaganda and political mobilization to guerrilla warfare and domestic and transnational terrorism. Their goals are even more diverse and complex. By trying to understand how insurgencies become impervious to counterinsurgency efforts, it becomes easier to understand how to prevent their devastating effects on regional stability and international affairs. In order to be successful, any insurgency or counterinsurgency strategy must apply all of the instruments of national power: diplomatic, informational, military and economic. To fail to do so virtually guarantees perpetuation of the struggle and likely greater bloodshed and instability. This thesis provides an in-depth analysis of the Peruvian insurgency Sendero Luminoso and the governmental counterinsurgency efforts between 1980 and 1994 to demonstrate this. Studying what makes insurgencies endure in spite of strong counterinsurgency efforts is vital to preparing the military professional to know his enemy and fight on the modern battlefield.