Applying Early Lessons to Build Afghan Security
Applying Early Lessons to Build Afghan Security by Thom Shanker, New York Times.
… Today, though, as the deputy commander of all Special Operations forces in the country, General Bolduc is reapplying lessons of that first victory, creating a program to train Afghan villagers to protect their homes from insurgents.
“What inspired me was my first rotation here into Afghanistan, where I learned how to use the tribes and other ethnic groups to secure local and rural areas with small numbers of people,” General Bolduc said.
“I saw the power of this culture in protecting itself at the local level, which I believe is the secret to security in Afghanistan — at the district level and below,” General Bolduc said. “You can be very effective, but in a way that is traditional, and congruent with how they have protected themselves for hundreds of years.” …
Read on. For more on Afghanistan Tribal Engagement see the Small Wars Journal Tribal Engagement Workshop.