Inkspot Strategy
Encyclopedia
The inkblot strategy is a military strategy
for subduing a large hostile region with a relatively small military force. The occupying force starts by establishing a number of small safe areas dispersed over the region. It then pushes out from each area, extending its control and making the areas larger until eventually they join up, leaving only pockets of resistance.
The name of the strategy refers to the way ink spots spread on a piece of blotting paper
or tissue, starting as tiny scattered points but spreading to cover most or all of the paper.
Historically, the inkblot strategy is associated with the Malayan Emergency
and the Vietnam War
.
More recently, the term has been used in reference to the NATO campaign in Afghanistan
and the American-led campaign against the Iraq insurgency.
Military strategy
Military strategy is a set of ideas implemented by military organizations to pursue desired strategic goals. Derived from the Greek strategos, strategy when it appeared in use during the 18th century, was seen in its narrow sense as the "art of the general", 'the art of arrangement' of troops...
for subduing a large hostile region with a relatively small military force. The occupying force starts by establishing a number of small safe areas dispersed over the region. It then pushes out from each area, extending its control and making the areas larger until eventually they join up, leaving only pockets of resistance.
The name of the strategy refers to the way ink spots spread on a piece of blotting paper
Blotting paper
Blotting paper is a highly absorbent type of paper or other material. It is used to absorb an excess of liquid substances from the surface of writing paper or objects. It is also commonly used as a beauty tool to absorb excess oil from the skin.-Manufacture:Blotting paper is made from different...
or tissue, starting as tiny scattered points but spreading to cover most or all of the paper.
Historically, the inkblot strategy is associated with the Malayan Emergency
Malayan Emergency
The Malayan Emergency was a guerrilla war fought between Commonwealth armed forces and the Malayan National Liberation Army , the military arm of the Malayan Communist Party, from 1948 to 1960....
and the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
.
More recently, the term has been used in reference to the NATO campaign in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
and the American-led campaign against the Iraq insurgency.