Morality as a Key Component of Counter-Insurgency Operations

There is considerable debate regarding the need for morality in the conduct of war. The horrific events of 11 September 2001 and America's response in Afghanistan and Iraq have helped fuel this debate. Typically, military strategist view morality as a strategic constraint. In other words, morality and the laws of war stand in the way of quick victory. This view has developed over decades, as military leaders have studied classic strategists such as Carl Von Clausewitz, and Antoine-Henri Jomini, and have witnessed the success of their strategies in the great wars of the twentieth century.