No 7. The guerrilla wins if he does not lose, and the conventional army loses if it does not win.
'We Fought a military war; Opponents our Fought a political one. We sought physical attrition, Opponents Aimed for our psychological exhaustion. In the process, we lost sight of one of the cardinal maxims of guerilla war. The guerilla wins if he does not lose, the conventional army loses if it does not win. The North Vietnamese used their forces the way a bullfighter uses its cape - to keep us lunging into areas of marginal political importance. ' (Kissinger, 1969, 214)
When I first read the statement above, actually a bit confusing for personnel and soldiers who does not understand the tactics and strategy of guerrilla and conventional warfare. How can guerilla wins if he does not lose, the conventional army loses if it does not win. After I analysis that statement, it is indeed true, as guerrilla warfare is really a protracted war where there is no time limit in the implementation, expected outcomes , namely the guerrilla attacks launched by the enemy will decrease morale to fight and eventually they will resign or lose . Whereas in a conventional war period became a major factor in achieving the end result , and characterized by destruction of the opponent's strength or lack of ability to fight again in accordance with the specified time limit . To understand this statement , then I will try to give some idea or explanation according to which I have knowledge .
To facilitate the understanding of this essay , then I made a few parts in accordance with the relevant material . First , the meaning of victory in war . Second , the strategy and tactics of guerrilla and conventional warfare . Third , background selection and co...
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...s in the cohesiveness and mutual trust between the military and the people ' ( AH Nasution , 1953 , ... ) .
He sees that it is the weaker party , which only has a personnel strength of approximately 50,000 personnel to fight against America and its allies with modern equipment and weaponry . In addition to strength in terms of personnel , the leader of Vietnam 's Ho Chi Minh communist movement also realize that military equipment and soldiers fighting capability is very limited . But in terms of mastery of the battlefield as well as the support of the community in the Vietnam war , it is a positive factor and excellence in the fight against the Americans .
references
- Henry A. Kissinger , " The Vietnam Negotiations ," Foreign Affairs , 1969
- AH Nasution , " Fundamentals of Guerrilla Warfare " , 1965
- Robert Leonhard , " The Art of manuever " , 1991
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