Wars of national liberation

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War of independence
)
"National liberation", "Liberation struggle", "War of independence", and "War of Liberation" redirect here. For the concept in Marxist thought, see National liberation (Marxism). For the anticommunist campaign in Kerala, see Liberation Struggle (Kerala). For other uses, see List of wars of independence.
Portuguese empire, the book as symbol of instruction and a farming implement as symbol of economic growth
.

Wars of national liberation, also called wars of independence or wars of liberation, are conflicts fought by

rebellions.[1] Guerrilla warfare or asymmetric warfare is often utilized by groups labeled as national liberation movements
, often with support from other states.

The term "wars of national liberation" is most commonly used for those fought during the

anti-imperialist power, supporting the replacement of western-backed governments with local communist or other non pro-western parties.[1][3] However, this did not always guarantee Soviet influence in those countries. In addition to and increasingly in competition to the Soviet Union, the People's Republic of China presented themselves as models of independent nationalist development outside of Western influence, particularly as such posturing and other longterm hostility meant they were regarded as a threat to Western power and regarded themselves as such, using their resources to politically, economically and militarily assist movements such as in Vietnam. In January 1961 Soviet premier Nikita Khrushchev pledged support for "wars of national liberation" throughout the world.[4]

When the nation is defined in ethnic terms, wars fought to liberate it have often entailed ethnic cleansing or genocide in order to rid the claimed territory of other population groups.[5][6][7]

Legal issues

communist states tend to view them as international wars.[8] This difference in classification leads to varying perceptions of which laws of war apply in such situations.[8] However, there is general agreement among all states today in principle that the use of force to frustrate a people's legal right to self-determination is unlawful.[8]

Strategies and tactics

Wars of national liberation are usually fought using guerrilla warfare. The main purpose of these tactics is to increase the cost of the anti-guerrilla forces past the point where such forces are willing to bear. Wars of national liberation generally depend on widespread public support, with ordinary civilians providing crucial support. Finally, wars of national liberation are often embedded in a larger context of great power politics and are often proxy wars
.

These strategies explain why they are quite successful against foreign regimes and quite unsuccessful against indigenous regimes. Foreign regimes usually have a threshold beyond which they would prefer to go home rather than to fight the war. By contrast, an indigenous regime has no place to which they can retreat, and will fight much harder because of the lack of alternatives. Moreover, foreign regimes usually have fewer active supporters in the theater, and those that exist can often be easily identified, making it possible for guerrilla armies to identify their targets. By contrast, indigenous regimes often have much more popular support, and their supporters are often not easily recognized as such, making it much harder to conduct operations against them without also causing harm to neutral parties.

History

Decolonization period

Further information: Decolonization and Colonialism

The

Portuguese colonial wars finally led to the recognition of Angola, Mozambique and Guinea-Bissau as independent states in 1975, following the April Carnation Revolution. The breakup of Yugoslavia led to fewer wars of independence in part of the Yugoslav Wars, including the Ten-Day War and the Croatian War of Independence
.

Ongoing wars defined as national liberation conflicts

The

Palestinian people at the UN under the name "Palestine".[13]

The following current conflicts have sometimes also been characterized as wars or struggles of national liberation (such a designation is often subject to controversy):

Conflicts

Estonian artillery preparing for a battle during the 1918–1920 Estonian War of Independence

Conflicts which have been described as national liberation struggles:

See also

References

  1. ^
    ISBN 0-691-07790-8
    .
  2. McNamara, Robert S. (1965-08-30). "Buildup of U.S. Forces in VietNam, Statement by Secretary of Defense, Robert S. McNamara, Before the Subcommittee on Department of Defense Appropriations of the Senate Committee on Appropriations on August 4, 1965"
    . Department of State Bulletin: 369. Retrieved 2010-07-16.
  3. ISBN 0-7567-7867-0
    .
  4. ^ Little, Wendell E. (1980). "Wars of National Liberation—Insurgency". Air University Review (September–October). Retrieved 2010-07-16.
  5. ISBN 978-1-4422-3038-5
    .
  6. S2CID 232725375
    . "Rendering an area ethnically homogenous by using force or in- timidation to remove from a given area persons of another ethnic or religious group" seems, in fact, an essential element in the program of many state builders and national liberation movements.
  7. S2CID 189900927
    .
  8. ^ a b c d Malanczuk, 1997, p. 336.
  9. ^ Higgins, Noelle (April 2004). "The Application of International Humanitarian Law to Wars of National Liberation" (PDF). Journal of Humanitarian Assistance. Retrieved 2010-07-15.
  10. ISBN 9780465003112
    .
  11. ^ Shultz, 1988, p. 100.
  12. ^ Wilson, 1990, p. 119.
  13. ^ Boczek, 2005, p86.
  14. ISBN 1-84331-164-X
    , 9781843311645
  15. ISBN 978-0-8157-2498-8
  16. ISBN 978-0-521-63619-3

Bibliography

External links
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