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Terrorism and U.S. counterterrorism in Southeast Asia / Terrorism and United States counterterrorism in Southeast Asia

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited / The September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks against the United States exposed the vulnerability of democracy to such actions. An adequate response requires U.S. counterterrorist policy to interact with broader U.S. foreign policy, a difficult and complex balancing act that often handicaps or limits potential gains in the "war against terrorism." In Southeast Asia separatists and extremist groups use terrorism as it is much more likely to lead to the undermining of fragile governments. Any one country, regardless of that nation's power or influence within the region, cannot counter terrorism in Southeast Asia. To be effective, counterterrorism demands understanding the terrorist's psychology, motivations and goals. The challenge presented by the region's geography requires the shared use of counterterrorist assets including intelligence, military force and international cooperation in policing and upholding international law and covenant. Identifying the nature of the terrorist threat must be the key element to U.S. policy. The diverse nature of terrorism and its various causes within the region must first be understood before being effectively countered. U.S. efforts must be guided by a balanced approach that looks not only at removing the terrorist, but removing the terrorist's raison d'etre. / Major, United States Marine Corps

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:nps.edu/oai:calhoun.nps.edu:10945/2905
Date09 1900
CreatorsTerlizzi, Anthony P.
ContributorsMiller, H. Lyman, Christoffersen, Gaye
PublisherMonterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School
Source SetsNaval Postgraduate School
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeThesis
Formatxv, 101 p. : col. ill. ;, application/pdf
RightsThis publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. As such, it is in the public domain, and under the provisions of Title 17, United States Code, Section 105, may not be copyrighted.

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