Introducción

AutorHuw Bennett, Rory Cormac, Michael S. Goodman, and Claudia Hillebrand
Páginas17-27

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Asymmetric or irregular conflicts, often involving non-state actors, have come to domínate the foreign policy and defence agendas of Western states. Increasingly engaged in low intensity conflicts, counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism campaigns, governments have begun to cali for more, and better, information from their intelligence services. Intelligence collection, analysis and exploitation play an important part in determining how states conduct their foreign and security policies. But when facing irregular, non-state opponents, particular challenges and difficulties arise. This collection of articles aims to improve the way we think about intelligence in the con-text of fighting 'threats from below'.

Irregular threats are by no means a new phenomenon and can be traced back to ancient times, yet since 11 September 2001, intelligence studies, and security studies more broadly, have taken a great interest in understanding terrorist groups, and how to defeat them; however, few studies have consid-ered the general problems encountered in understanding and countering a wide range of irregular adversarles. Crucially, the existing literature generally comprises either general studies of intelligence or books on a specific irregular threat with intelligence considered as a subsidiary issue. This special issue attempts to clarify our thinking about such asymmetric threats by taking a comparative approach and combining historical case studies with contempo-rary conflicts. It also examines the impact of intelligence in countering such threats, thereby placing the role of the intelligence services in wider political and military contexts. As such, articles include discussion of various threats,

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from the early Cold War era to today, and across an extensive geographical range, from Palestine to Iraq, and Malaya to Northern Ireland. Asymmetric, or irregular, threats addressed in this volume include guerrilla warfare, insur-gencies, terrorism, subversión, uprisings, coalition operations and so forth. Detailed discussions of definitional complexities lie beyond the scope of this volume (Salmoni, 2007: 18-24), but for the purposes of this special issue, 'irregular threats' (which encompass the above list) are taken as those primarily posed by a non-state actor aiming to undermine or subvert the political authority of a more powerful state through methods not necessarily associ-ated with traditional forms of conventional warfare.

Taking an international approach, the volume brings together scholars from across the Atlantic. Their contributions, often based on new archival material or interviews, assess the use and merits of intelligence in different asymmetric settings, but also critically reflect on the limits of intelligence efforts in this context. The contributions are the result of an international conference at King's College London, held in March 2011 by the Department of War Studies' Intelligence and International Security Research Group.

Themes

Tackling non-state adversarles demands creative ways of gathering intelligence and challenges some of the more traditional intelligence processes. It is therefore important to explore intelligence practices used to identify and counter irregular adversarles in a variety of contexts. Key questions addressed in this special edition include: Where do states get their intelligence from? What kind of information prepares them best to counter or prevent irregular warfare? Which particular challenges have intelligence agencies to face in this context? What lessons can current policymakers learn from pre-vious experiences? In addressing these questions, articles within this volume raise the following three key themes: the importance of intelligence in countering irregular threats; the unique and specific challenges posed by irregular adversarles to intelligence collection, collation, and analysis; and in-telligence's place within the broader political and military contexts in countering such threats.

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The Importance of Intelligence

Countering an irregular adversary involves identifying and isolating the threat, before eliminating it in a manner which does not aliénate popular support or undermine the state's moral or political legitimacy. An effective intelligence structure has long been considered central to each of these phases (Kitson, 1971; Thompson, 1966; Galula, 2006). As with conven-tional warfare, intelligence is crucial in warning of impending threats and in accurately ascertaining the extent and nature of a threat. Similarly, accurate intelligence is vital in identifying not only the adversary, but also the adver-sary's underground support networks. Yet, as discussed below, irregular threats posed by non-state actors can be amorphous and hard to pin down, thereby increasing the demands placed upon intelligence agencies. Moreo-ver, with insurgents, terrorists, and subversives using the local population for cover and emerging only to strike, intelligence in irregular warfare be-comes crucial. Security forces must acquire the ñames and intentions of certain individuáis, ascertain the hierarchy of dangerous non-state actors, consider the extent of local support, and identify the channels of communi-cation and supply between the leadership and their supporters. In building up a detailed background picture, intelligence actors also need to recognise potential waverers and exploitable weak spots within the irregular adversary, its underground support network, and the broader population. As a result, human intelligence (HUMINT) assumes a greater centrality in countering irregular threats than in conventional warfare.

Once the government and security...

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