Unconventional warfare
Unconventional warfare (UW) is broadly defined as "military and quasi-military operations other than conventional warfare"[1] and may use covert forces or actions such as subversion, sabotage, espionage, biowarfare, sanctions, propaganda or guerrilla warfare. This is typically done to avoid escalation into conventional warfare as well as international conventions.[2]
For the US military doctrine, see Unconventional warfare (United States).History[edit]
The advent of the Atomic Age changed forever philosophies of conventional warfare, and the necessity to conceal authorship of actions by hostile states. The age of asymmetric, or unconventional warfare & terrorism had begun.[5]
One of the first references is in "Manpower and Atomic War," [6] which Edward Fitzpatrick referred to as "the next kind of war- technological war, machine war, or atomic war."
Using soft power methods, to target civilians instead of military units, however had begun earlier, particularly as a strategy for use against Republics.[7] These were developed as a tool of national socialism,[8] or neo-liberalism,[9] and evolved into other doctrines.
There is an overlap in the world of Corporate Security & Defense Contracting where these models have extended to the field of Risk assessment.[10] One of the first instances of Unconventional Warfare techniques against civilians was documented by the La Follette Committee.