Irregular Warfare in Great Power Competition
Develop an essay which addresses the following questions:
- Does irregular warfare in the context of Great Power Competition have fundamentally different characteristics than irregular warfare against small insurgent powers? Why or why not? Defend your answer with material from the course.
Support and defend your position.
Resources: Any material to include, but not limited to, course readings and discussions. Adhere to bibliographic and citation guidelines.
Format:
Cover page
Narrative (not bulletized) body following format below
1-inch margins on all sides
Times New Roman – 12pt for all text
Double-spaced
File name right justified in header:
In-text source citations according to format specified below
Bibliography and citations formatted according to the current eSchool Essay Formatting Guidance.
Academic Integrity: Please review the academic integrity policy contained in your Syllabus.
Grading Criteria: Refer to the assessment rubric for grading criteria.
Submission Instructions:
Avoid plagiarism. Use your own words to paraphrase referenced ideas. Be sure to properly use quotes.
Preparing Your Essay:
* Review the essay requirement and determine what you want to describe. Read and study the lesson references. Select 3 to 5 sources that support your concept.
* Prepare an outline that contains an introduction, body and conclusions.
Ensure that your ideas have a logical order, sequence and transition.
* Develop your essay. Use an academic perspective based on the use
of historical examples, theories, concepts and principles to support and describe your ideas.
* Limit the number of quotes. Express your ideas in your own words.
* Use eSchool Essay Formatting Guidance (attached). Prepare a complete bibliography/reference page.
Irregular Warfare
Student’s Name
Course Name
Date
University
Irregular Warfare
A key phrase that has dominated US military strategy in the recent past is the great power competition, which describes its rivalry with China and Russia. The US military has recently embraced irregular warfare as its strategy to compete with the two great powers and maintain its strategic advantages. Unlike traditional warfare, which utilizes military power to dominate adversaries, irregular warfare is characterized by influencing populations and building legitimacy (Robinson 2020, 2). As per the Department of Defense (2020, 2), while irregular warfare favors indirect approaches, it may utilize the full range of military capabilities to destroy an adversary's influence, power, and will. To a great extent, irregular warfare strategies align with great power competition tactics. Vrolyk (2019, 2) states that great power competition can include messy global entanglements, proxy warfare, insurgency campaigns, and economic rivalry. With the US military shifting focus to the great power competition, it is important to examine whether the irregular warfare employed is fundamentally different from that used against small insurgent powers. The use of irregular warfare strategy against all adversaries, the retention of critical competencies, and the utilization of almost