But the most important was that we refused to use an effective counterinsurgency strategy.
The decision reflected recent American counterinsurgency strategy in the war.
"It's easier to blame foreign fighters instead of developing new counterinsurgency strategies."
The Soviet Union's counterinsurgency strategy destroyed much of the agricultural infrastructure.
A classic counterinsurgency strategy might have minimized the number of American casualties.
To secure the Sunni Triangle, the army would do better to focus on classic counterinsurgency strategies.
The rebels have charged that foreign aid programs are part of a counterinsurgency strategy.
But that experience taught us how critical it was to co-opt the locals into our counterinsurgency strategy.
The counterinsurgency strategy can be described as efforts to end the insurgency by a campaign developed in balance along three "pillars": security, political, and economical.
A successful counterinsurgency strategy requires a return to military basics, especially well-trained officers.