I would agree that finding moderate, pro-American members of the indigenous population is perhaps the most difficult aspect of America’s current COIN strategy.

While some would be quick to point out that America has had success in creating governments and security forces that were pro-American in the region, nearly all of these operations have had severe long term consequences that have gone against US interest in the region.

Perhaps the real lesson to be learned from our experiences in COIN is that we simply aren’t good at it. Perhaps we should invest more in preventing the need for US boots on the ground to fight insurgencies. Would an increase in funding for FID and other assistance to our vulnerable allies be a better use of resources?