Colombia is on the verge of collapse because of the instability generated by leftist guerrilla groups, drug traffickers, and right-wing paramilitaries against the Colombian government and its ability to provide security for the people of the state....
This monograph analyzes the possibility of the United States Military taking a direct role in the implementation of Plan Colombia. The analysis begins with an exploration of the background issues: the drug war as it relates to Colombia, the...
Though the US is physically located in the Western Hemisphere, for most of its history, policy toward the South American countries that share this region has taken a distant second to Euro-centric issues. One of the few areas of concern that has...
Colombia remains one of the most troubled countries in South America. The continued export of drugs coupled with a significant insurgent threat and increased violence against civilians, signals a crisis capable of disrupting the entire region....
As the year 2000 begins, the disintegration of Colombia in a situation of violence, political unrest, and economic upheaval is a very real threat to the national interests of the United States. It is critical that Washington’s concern for failed...
The purpose of this monograph is to investigate the relationship and linkages between insurgencies and the illicit narcotics trade in general; to examine the specific root causes and influences on the drug trade and insurgencies in Colombia and...
This monograph tells the narrative of the FARC in Colombia from the perspective of the counterinsurgent and presents a summary of the evolution of the FARC. The Colombian government has achieved recent success against the FARC after more than forty...
Due to the parallels between Colombia and Afghanistan facing narcotic funded insurgencies, Colombia offers insights into Afghanistan's future. The monograph compares case studies of campaigns in Colombia and Afghanistan. These case studies locate...
This paper explains that in order for a fractured society to forge a lasting, stable peace, it requires not only a holistic approach to amnesty, reintegration, and reconciliation (AR2) but also a balance of three critical dimensions within its...
The terrorist groups in Colombia have applied Mao’s theory of protracted people’s war, seeking to use all available means of struggle to achieve their revolutionary goals by counteracting government policy. One way that Fuerzas Armadas...
After the 11 September attack, the United States and the international community helped to create an Afghan government that can serve its people. 10 years later there are significant shortfalls in the performance of the Afghan government. As the...
This thesis examines how effectively the United States implements its instruments of national power into the counterdrug efforts currently being conducted in Colombia. Discussion begins with a review of the threat that the illegal narcotics trade...
This study investigates the effect of the U.S. sponsored Counter-Drug effort of the 1980s and 1990s on the bilateral relationship between the neighboring South American Republics of Ecuador and Colombia. The historical U.S.-Ecuadorian-Colombian...
The United States military has conducted counterinsurgency campaigns against violent Islamic extremists for the last eight years and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. However, communication-minded, technology-savvy, insurgencies...
Colombia's future hangs in the balance with dire implications for Latin America and U.S. national interests. After almost forty-five years of existential conflict, Colombia has the opportunity to be a peaceful and stable country, which is essential...
Conflict in the twenty-first century involves a complex interaction of variables. Equally complex are modern stability operations that occur concurrently or immediately following war or combat operations. This study examines planning methodology...
Since Mexican President Felipe Calderón declared war on the drug cartels in December 2006, more than 35,000 Mexicans have died due to narco-violence. This monograph examines whether the various Mexican drug trafficking organizations are insurgents...
Airpower is an asymmetric means for the application of government counterinsurgent force against enemies of the state. The high cost of investment in aircraft and the high technology training of maintainers and aircrew make a viable air force a...
The opium trade is a major funding source for the insurgency in Afghanistan. The Afghan counter-narcotics law enforcement agencies continue to target drug traffickers with counterdrug missions in order to break the funding source of the insurgents....