Former commander of U.S. Central Command Anthony Zinni outlined a new strategy for America's War on Terror Friday during the third annual Wilson School Colloquium on Public and International Affairs.
Zinni objected to the current framing of the struggle as a global war on terror.
"Terrorism is the use of violence against innocents — we have just declared war on a tactic," Zinni said.
The speech identified flaws in U.S. foreign policy and outlined new strategies for combating terrorists. Zinni said he believes America spends too much energy fighting these enemies on a "tactical level" with the military. He proposed terrorists instead be confronted on an "operational level."
"We have to find ways to stop the flow of angry young men, on how a terrorist motivates his people," he said.
Terrorists acquire followers, according to Zinni, by pandering to their dissatisfaction over social problems and political and economic disenfranchisement.
"We have to show these people that there is another way. Many don't want to become radicalized," he said.
Zinni proposed breaking the people of the Middle East into four categories to analyze the likelihood that an individual will support terrorism.
The first category included "rejecters," people Zinni classified as disavowing and condemning acts of terrorism. "Understanders," the second group, are those who condemn terrorist acts but can comprehend why someone would resort to the tactic to redress their grievances. A third group, "supporters," give money or other physical support to terrorists. The last group includes combatants who carry out attacks.
Zinni claimed that most people living in the Middle East are either "rejecters" or "understanders," and thus America should co-opt them away from extremism, rather than militarily pursue them.
Javed Khan '77, an alumnus of the Wilson School who has lived both in Pakistan and in the U.S., agreed with Zinni's assessment.
"Most Pakistanis fall into the category of 'understanders' because they have found that nondemocratic political institutions do not offer a platform to air their anger," Khan said.
Khan explained that President Perez Musharraf's ascension to head of state via a military coup — not through an election — represents "the greatest source of instability for [Pakistan] in the future."
In order to diffuse such discontent, Zinni proposed that the United States create organizations "to build civil society" in the Middle East.
He encouraged America to support NGOs and internal institutions able to train people to improve their countries' economic and political capacities, and suggested an increase in the State Department's budget to help achieve this objective.
When asked what specific foreign policies the U.S. should pursue in the future, Zinni replied: "It doesn't matter: we just need to get engaged."
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