Small Wars Journal

COIN History Class

Thu, 12/06/2007 - 6:41pm
COIN Intelligence Requirements 1963

With a hat tip to an alert SWJ reader who sent this in via e-mail, we downloaded Intelligence Required for Counterinsurgency from the Central Intelligence Agency's Freedom of Information Act Electronic Reading Room.

A bit of history and an insight on how some things concerning COIN remain unchanged (excepting the focus on Communist insurgencies) is offered up in this United States Intelligence Board, Office of the Chairman, Memorandum for the Military Representative of the President dated 13 August 1963. The linked SWJ document contains the jpg images of the 11 original pages and includes the cover letter, memorandum from JCS, summary, essential elements of information for counterinsurgency actions enclosure, and countries to be considered appendix.

Other recently added items at the CIA FOI site that may be of interest (see What's New at FOIA?):

Review of Insurgency Problems - 1966

U.S. Intelligence and Vietnam - 1984

Record of Paramilitary Action Against the Castro Government of Cuba - 1961

... or search the FOI database using insurgency or counterinsurgency as a keyword for much more.