Why we have to be ready to do COIN: We need it if only as a form of deterrence

By Kathleen McInnis

Best Defense guest respondent

If the grand
strategic project of the 21st century is to either (a) shore up the Westphalian
system or (b) develop an acceptable post-Westphalian system, then the ability
to effectively wage asymmetric and counterinsurgency warfare will be, by
necessity, part of the toolkit to do so. I really thought Bob Killebrew captured that part well; because the
actors in the system are blurring the definitions of what it means to be a
legitimate, violence-wielding actor in the global system, we will continue to
need capabilities to work in that blurry, murky space.

Washington seems to
conflate preparedness with intention and for the life of
me, I can't figure out why. Indeed, I think it's really worrying that we
do so. We're limiting our ability to signal military intent short of
going to war, as well as limiting our ability to use military tools to help
advance political discussions, negotiations, etc. Exercises, planning,
capability development are all ways to signal to potential adversaries (state
and non-state alike) the seriousness of U.S. intent. Utilized appropriately,
these tools can even get actors back to the negotiating table. Preparedness
is key, which is why Celeste Ward's work
to put a finer point on the term COIN should be applauded -- preparedness requires
a higher degree of intellectual precision than we currently have with respect
to "COIN." That's what deterrence is largely about. But
we seem to think that if we develop a capability, we will -- or should -- use it.

The notion that if we
have a force capable of conducting COIN, we will get ourselves embroiled in
even more conflicts around the globe is absurd. The point, in my mind, is
to ensure that the U.S. has the toolkit to respond to whatever contingency is
in the no-kidding national interest. If we don't use those capabilities,
bonus. But I suspect you're right -- we will have to.

Kathleen
McInnis is an MPhil/PhD candidate at the Department of War Studies, King's
College London and an Adjunct Fellow at the Center for Strategic and
International Studies. She previously served on the NATO
Policy-Afghanistan desk in the Office of the Secretary of Defense (Policy).