STRATEGIC STUDIES AND SECURITY AFFAIRS IN ASIAN REGION (PSD 5114)

Discuss Clausewitz’s definition and

differentiation between tactics and
strategy
1
Scope

2
• Tactics – The art using troops in battle
• Strategy – The art of using battles to
win the war.
• 1832 - strategy is more refer to art of
general which originally significant for
military planning of campaign.
• Tactics is a process to support the
strategy

3
 Beaufre, Andre; An Introduction to

Cont…
Strategy (1965).

Disciplined mind and a

steadfast character. No
distractions; no sideshows.
(5) Ignore (1) Identify
Always keep the main thing
the main thing.

(2)
(4) Remove Decisive
point
General must organize all
the decision and activities
Subtractions are the toughest in order to outperform
decisions of all, but ducking them (3) competitors. It need to
can be fatal. The most dangerous Concentrate focus and determination
choice of all is not choosing. once the point was 4
identified
Cont…
Strategy plays a doctrine of
use of individual battles for
the purpose of war

Tactics: Once strategy had been derived, the armed forces

were used to a particular battle.

5
Cont…
Strategy is about picking the right battles

• Future (Long term)

• Preparing and Planning
• Journey
• Broad Perspective
• Now • A purpose
• Doing activities • Anticipation
• A trip • Risk
• Narrow perspective • Important
• Task
• Reaction
• Caution
• Urgent

6

J.C Wylie (1967) “Plan of
action design in order to
achieve some end; a
purpose together with a
system to measure for
its accomplishment” -
Military Strategy, A
Theory of Power Control
Plan of Action
Basil H. Liddel Hart (1967)
“The art of distributing
and applying military
means to fulfil the end
policy” - Strategy; The
indirect approach
Role of grand strategy
Murray and Grimsley
(1994) “Strategy is a
process, a constant
adaptation to shifting
conditions and
circumstances in a world
where chance,
uncertainty and
ambiguity dominate” The
making of strategy: Ruler,
state and war
Dimension of Strategy

T.E Lawrance (1991) “Tactic success does not have to yield successful strategic
performance , while even tactical failure paradoxically can have strategic
effect” Seven pillar of wisdom; A triumph

The whole house of strategy 7

Cont…

Strategy and political vision

Concept of strategy, strategy effect and

strategy performance given reality in the
field
Different war different strategy
and philosophy
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 US National Strategy

“Our objective, our strategy, is to convince the North

Vietnamese that their Communist-inspired, directed,
and supported guerilla action to overthrow the
established government in the South cannot be
achieved, and then to negotiate for the future peace
and security of that country”

President Lyndon Baines Johnson

On 28 July 1965, approved U.S. troop buildup

in South Vietnam to 175,000 men.

He granted General Westmoreland,

Commander, United States Military Assistance
Command, Vietnam (COMUSMACV) freedom
of maneuver as he saw fit.
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 General William C. Westmoreland
Strategy
Launch air strikes Force the
American ground against the North Communists to
divisions would targeting expend supplies
seek out & destroy transportation, oil make the logistics in
North Vietnamese storage and the North Vietnam all
& Vietcong nation’s few the more vulnerable
industries to bombing

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 DAU TRANH
(ONE STRUGGLE)

CLOSELY INTEGRATED POLITICAL AND MILITARY STRATEGY

POLITIC MILITARY

DAN VAN BINH VAN DICH VAN PREP, ORG & GUERILLA GENERAL
PROPAGANDA WARFARE, OFFENSIVE –
ACTION ACTION ACTION PHASE TERRORISM CONVENTIONAL
AMONG AMONG AMONG PHASE WAR PHASE
YOUR ENEMY ENEMY’SP
PEOPLE MILITARY EOPLE

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 DAU TRANH DOCTRINE
INTO MILITARY ACTION

Continued efforts to Widening the field of conflict

Broad use of terrorism
build the infrastructure by expanding bases and
and low intensity
via propaganda and troop movement in Laos and
guerrilla warfare
organization Cambodia

Small-unit mobile warfare Limited conventional

using VC Main Forces and
NVA regulars over the
expanded space
A General Uprising by
operations or control
the aggrieved masses as
strategic blocks of
the enemy weakened
territory

Full-scale offensives by
conventional forces with
secondary guerrilla support
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 Operation Rolling Thunder
• Extensive daily bombing
campaign of North Vietnam

• Air strikes were strictly forbidden

within 30 miles of Hanoi, along the
Chinese border at the start of the
campaign.

• Launched from bases in Thailand.

• Plan was to destroy the North

Vietnamese Economy
 B-52 bombers

• Could fly at heights that

could not be seen or heard

• 8 million tons of bombs

dropped between ’65 and
’73.

• 300 tons for every man,

woman and child in
Vietnam
 Napalm
• Mixture of Petrol and chemical
thickener

• Sticky gel to attach to the skin

• Burns for a long time

• Will burn through skin, muscle and

bone producing 5th degree burns

• Most victims died from the ordeal

• Burns at 5000 f or 2777C

 Anti-Personnel Bombs

• Designed to maim
rather than kill.

• Bombs would explode

and spew out
thousands of pellets
and needles on the
land below.
 Agent Orange and Blue

• Spraying chemicals on
NLF hiding places and
crops

• Destroyed trees but also

caused chromosomal
damage on people
 Helicopters as Cavalry

• Would transport platoons

in and out of the jungle
quickly

• Used as air ambulances

as well.

• Provided air cover to

Platoons on the ground
and spotters
 Search and Destroy

• Missions using US and

SV troops transported
via helicopters

• Descend on villages and

kill any VCs found
 Problems With Search and Destroy

• Inadequate intelligence

• Inexperienced troops often

hit by booby traps

• Civilian casualties high

• Tactics made the US very

unpopular with villagers.

• Killings, rape etc

 Movement and area control
The VC/NVA were constantly on the move, seldom staying more
than 2–4 days in one place

Signalling and communications

Communications relied heavily on field telephone and runner

until the latter stages of the war when mostly conventional
forces took the field
• Local forces used booby
traps and mines

• “Punji Traps” – sharp

spikes hidden in pits

• Contaminated to increase
the risk of infection
Tunnel System
 Advantages of the Tunnel System
• Hide from Air and Ground
sweeps

• Provide excellent refuge

and defensive positions

• Ability to disappear

• Difficult for US to estimate

enemy numbers in the
region
 FACTORS
• INTERNAL
• EXTERNAL

MILITARY
CAPABILITY TACTIC WIN THE WAR

FLEXIBILITY OF
STRATEGY
(ACCOMMODATE
STATE POLICY) 28
 STATE POLICY

STATISTIC TACTICS

RUNNING THE
POLITIC
STRATEGIC ACHIEVEMENT
(WIN THE WAR)
GEOGRAPHIC MORAL

MATHEMATIC PHYSICAL

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 Strategy is about long-term goals

 Tactics is about short-term goals

 Strategy and tactics are both how you will achieve your goals
and objectives

 Strategy is our path or bridge for going from where we are

today to our goal

 Tactics are how specifically or tangibly we will do to achieve our

goals 30
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