Counterinsurgency warfare: Theory and practice

A revolutionary war is primarily an internal conflict, although external influences seldom fail to bear upon it. Although in many cases, the insurgents have been easily identifiable national groups-Indonesians, Vietnamese, Tunisians, Algerians, Congolese, Angolans today-this does not alter the strategically important fact that they were challenging a local ruling power controlling the existing administration, police, and armed forces. In this respect, colonial revolutionary wars have not differed from the purely indigenous ones, such as those in Cuba and South Vietnam.