Hybrid Threats

While discussing hybrid threats, we typically look outwardly at other nations and entities and how they are a hybrid threat to us and our interests as Americans. Can we as Americans be a hybrid threat? The definition in TC 7-100 states it is the diverse and dynamic combination of regular forces, irregular forces, and/or criminal elements unified to achieve mutually benefitting effects. Throughout history time and time again have we not been that hybrid threat to our enemies? In the early days of most escalated conflicts we have either in secret or overtly aligned ourselves with irregular forces and/or other nation’s forces for the benefit of our agenda globally. As defined it includes criminal elements, through history we have even aligned ourselves with those types. In the 1980’s we backed the contras in Nicaragua in their fight against the Sandinistas both militarily and financially. There is quite a lot of evidence indicating that we involved ourselves with cocaine trafficking in south and Central America to continue funding the contras after congress voted against it. In the early years of Operation Enduring Freedom we financially backed the Northern Alliance, and even fought side by side with them. From the American volunteer squadron the Flying Tigers in China in World War 2, our training of the …show more content…
Early on in their revolution we supported the rebels mainly with non-lethal supplies such as food and medicine, we later moved on to supporting them with training and money. While we weren’t actively engaging Assad’s forces, we were clearly a hybrid threat. We are now operating in the region solely in the fight against the Islamic State. While our support for the rebels both financially and through military training is directed at the fight against the ISIL, we are still backing those in the fight against the Assad