Counterinsurgency Theory, Sort Of

[Jedburgh]

Instead, we must first work indirectly, through, by and with the local internal supporters and population, using the correct carrots and sticks so that the population will identify and expose members of the local insurgent infrastructure for us. Once they have been identified by the local populace, the infrastructure members can be killed or captured. When we work indirectly through the local populace to identify members of the infrastructure, we are correctly stopping the insurgent flow of water by turning off the spigot. Targeting the members of the local infrastructure must be the main effort in COIN...

The wheel has been thoroughly invented.

Pacification - Mar 69

...the attack on the enemy infrastructure is a most important in the clearing and security phases of pacification. This Vietnamese program provides a combined system of GVN/US intelligence gathering and collating agencies from the national level down through corps, province and district levels...

Phung Hoang Advisors Handbook - 20 Nov 70

...It is emphasized that the advisory effort of all agencies must be directed toward the sustained attack on the VC infrastructure...

Phung Hoang: A Breakout of Current VCI Executive and Significant Cadres - 1 Jan 70

...of course, Phoenix certainly wasn't the first concerted attempt to target the enemy infrastructure in a COIN campaign. But it was a very comprehensive approach that required joint and interagency cooperation as well as integrating host-nation partners at all levels. At the time, much of that equation simply failed to work itself out operationally. Yet, despite the infighting and pervasive local corruption, there was a tremendous amount of success with the program.