Waging Modern War: Bosnia, Kosovo, and the Future of Combat

by Wesley K. Clark

In Waging Modern War, General Wesley K. Clark recounts his experience leading NATO's forces to a hard-fought and ultimately successful victory in Kosovo in 1999. As the American military machine has swung into action in the months following the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, it has become clear that the lessons of Kosovo are directly applicable to the war against terrorism and the nations that sponsor it. The problems posed, and overcome, in the war in Kosovo-how to fight an air war against unconventional forces in rough terrain and how to coordinate U.S. objectives with those of other nations-are the problems that America increasingly faces in the today's world. As the Los Angeles Times noted in late September of 2001, this book's "lessons are highly relevant now…. We need to think about exactly what steps will lessen, rather than increase, the terrorist threat. And we also need innovative commanders willing to improvise to meet a new kind of threat, more determined political leadership, a more flexible outlook in the Pentagon…. Gen. Clark has performed another service by highlighting these problems at a crucial moment in American history."

Waging Modern War is history, memoir, guidebook, and forecast, essential reading for those who want to know how modern war is fought, and won.

Genres: History, Military Fiction, War, Nonfiction, Biography, Memoir, Military History

512 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 2001

About the author

Wesley Kanne Clark, Sr., KBE is a retired general of the United States Army. Graduating as valedictorian of his class at West Point, he was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to the University of Oxford where he obtained a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, and later graduated from the Command and General Staff College with a master's degree in military science. He spent 34 years in the Army and the Department of Defense, receiving many military decorations, several honorary knighthoods, and a Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Clark commanded Operation Allied Force in the Kosovo War during his term as the Supreme Allied Commander Europe of NATO from 1997 to 2000.

Clark joined the 2004 race for the Democratic Party presidential nomination as a candidate on September 17, 2003, but withdrew from the primary race on February 11, 2004, after winning the Oklahoma state primary, endorsing and campaigning for the eventual Democratic nominee, John Kerry. Clark currently leads a political action committee—"WesPAC"—which was formed after the 2004 primaries, and used it to support numerous Democratic Party candidates in the 2006 midterm elections. Clark was considered a potential candidate for the Democratic nomination in 2008, but, on September 15, 2007, endorsed Senator Hillary Clinton. After Clinton dropped out of the Presidential race, Clark endorsed the then-presumptive Democratic nominee, Barack Obama. Clark currently serves as the co-chairman of Growth Energy, an ethanol lobbying group.

Reviews

[Walter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Waging Modern War is General Wesley Clark's magnum opus, a semi-autobiographical work set mainly during the Kosovo War of 1998. Clark spends some of the early part of the book discussing his upbringing in the Army, his early career as a West Pointer and a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford, his brief service in Vietnam and his recovery from the wounds that he suffered there. And then he briefly outlined the various levels of command that he held prior to being appointed as Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, the post that he held during the Kosovo crisis.

Clark's work is interesting in a number of ways. Foremost among these is the first person narrative that Clark gives to readers as the man who planned and executed the war in Kosovo. While first person narratives are interesting, they have their drawbacks, and Clark ably narrates these in "Waging Modern War". He is very interested in justifying his decisions and had no interest at all in seeing the other side of any issue that arose. Clark spoke effusively about how he would be the first SACEUR since GEN Eisenhower to have led troops in war. He aggressively pursued a war in Kosovo that, by all indications, his own chain of command did not want. He did it, not because it was the right thing to do, but because it would glorify him as the commander.

And this leads us to the second way in which this book is interesting. It provides a vivid illustration of the narcissistic personality type. In its pages, "Waging Modern War" shows us how an extreme egoist thinks and acts. We read nothing of the men that Clark served with, his mentors and subordinates or even his family. Nothing deserves Clark's attention in these pages except for his career, and specifically the achievements that he can claim. Compare this with GEN Colin Powell's biography, which is a tremendous collage of the people who have influenced him and the lessons that he learned from his own mistakes as well as those of others. One wonders if Clark is capable of making decisions based on any considerations other than his own aggrandisement. And it is scary to think that this man held 4-star rank in the US military.

Finally, the third way in which this book is interesting is in its contention that the Kosovo war is the archetype for conflicts in the future. In 2013 we can look back at over 10 years of war in Iraq and Afghanistan and see that these wars were nothing like the war in Kosovo. Those wars were fought by troops on the ground, not by Generals in their headquarters picking targets. Modern war seems to follow one of two types, either the massive engagement of troops that we have seen in WWII, Korea or the Gulf War, or the counterinsurgency operations that we have seen in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan. Kosovo is nothing like either of these types. It is, however, an interesting case study of how politics and the ambitions of military commanders can boil over into a conflict that nobody wants and nobody has thought through.

Despite its shortcomings, "Waging Modern War" is an interesting look at command and should be read by military officers, if for no other reason that it would show them what a great leadership style does not look like. Students of the geopolitics of the 1990s and the Clinton administration should also read this book. Others would do well to steer clear of it.

[S. Anna · Rating 1 out of 5]

Hm, a badly written story of war profiteering and illegally invading sovereign countries

[Cam Torrens · Rating 4 out of 5]

In 2003, I entered a small meeting room for a fellowship interview with the author. He opened with a series of questions from that day's newspaper (which I hadn't read.) As I stumbled forward toward the defense of my essay, "Slowing the Pace of NATO Expansion," Gen Clark pretty much took over the talking for the day. My interview was over.

But all was not lost. Because Clark's counter to my thesis was spot on. For the next thirty minutes, I learned why an idealist opportunity should trump economic and military challenges, and what a brief window existed to make it happen. Gen Clark was right. I was wrong.

In Waging Modern War, Gen Clark is right in many ways--it's just the title that misleads. Clark accurately describes how we can learn the lessons of the Balkans and apply them to future conflict. But as later wars proved, these lessons do not apply to all modern-day confrontations.

I agree with the reviewers who describe the book as sterile and lacking when it comes to "engaging with the troops." But that doesn't mean Gen Clark is wrong at the strategic level.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

I started this book in fall 2017 after receiving a signed copy in 2001, and have stopped and restarted several times throughout. It’s fascinating and well-detailed, but the writing style is often tedious or haphazard. Useful for understanding the complexity of the diplomatic and military instruments of power, and the rising importance of public affairs and information warfare - certainly before the ‘forever wars’ post-9/11. It’s also an interesting take on NATO’s first near-confrontation with Russia post-Cold War, useful in today’s current ‘great power competition’ environment with Russia.

This is a personal account, so the author’s biases must be taken into account when explaining his poor relationships with GEN(R) Hugh Shelton and former SECDEF Bill Cohen (among other US figures).

[Rogelio Carrasco · Rating 2 out of 5]

Enh. He's a bad writer. Still, it is interesting to see where he thought war was going in the late 90s. He was correct on as much as he was incorrect.

[Durim Shkodra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent acounts of operation "Allied Force" that freed Kosovo from serbian colonial rule.

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book in 2002 and found it to be very educational. I came away with a very good working knowledge of NATO and the intricate machinations that the SACEUR must engage in to get any results while working with NATO. The explanation of the conflict in Kosovo and the details regarding the 3 groups of native combatants were excellent. I never really understood the entire BOSNIA/KOSOVO/BALKANS conflict; but after reading the book I have a much better grasp of the fundamentals.

The book does make a compelling argument against NATO and the United Nations (although that was not the intention of the author). It seems to me that Clark views himself as a "WORLD" citizen first and an "American" citizen second...kind of a scary thought coming from a high ranking American Military Officer!

In spite of the bad writing this is still a decent read. I believe that it provides a glimpse of Wes Clark from his own self promoting, ego-centric perspective. It also should serve as a warning for why the United States must NEVER surrender its power or sovereignty to ANY group.

[Harry · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not greta writing but very illuminating about the difficulties faced by a coalition of democracies in achieving a consensus of opinion from many diverse political streams both extra and intra-national in order to press a course of action

It also shows how political considerations can outweigh humanitarian needs

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not about how to invade these countries efficiently, more about the challenges he faced with the situation and dealing with the administration. Bill Cohen is funny...

[Chris Bast · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is rated five stars for no other reason than I have this copy autographed by the author while he was running for President in 2004

[Alana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll finish it later...

[Steven]

Kind of a bland read. On of the ways I always judge a book is by how much I retain. I didn't retain much.

[Ben · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting and informative.

[Jon Klug · Rating 1 out of 5]

Don't bother.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you wonder why we need NATO... take a look here.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Currently reading. Looks insightful.

[Mirëdon Fusha · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I first read it I was like "WOW" - second time I was "OK" - third time I was "Hmmm ok"!