Political Science

Mao Tse-tung was not the first individual to describe the tactics of guerrilla warfare.  Rather, it was Sun Tzu, author of The Art of War, published more than two thousand years ago, who described military strategies to defeat an army that is not only larger but also better equipped than ones own (Guerrilla Warfare).  Indeed, guerrilla warfare has been defined as a weapon that a nation inferior in arms and military equipment may employ against a more powerful aggressor nation, according to Tse-tung.  Although it is clear that the Taliban in Afghanistan face an enemy that is larger and better equipped than its own, it cannot be proved that the Taliban are followers of Mao Tse-tung, for which reason it must be argued that the Taliban represent something different. 
   
Dyer (2010) writes that most Taliban have not read Maos book on guerrilla warfare, but then, they knew how to do that technique anyway.  In fact, the mujahideen of Afghanistan won a war against the Soviet Army during the 1980s that, too, was guerrilla warfare on the part of the Afghans.  Dyer further states that the Afghans do not need Maos instruction in guerrilla warfare since that has been the hill-tribes style of warfare since time immemorial.  Even so, the Taliban of Afghanistan appear to be following Maos instructions.  Dyer describes their style of warfare with Maos instructions corresponding with their recently applied military strategies thus
     
Mao Tse-tung didnt invent guerilla warfare, but he did write the book on it.  The 16-
character formula sums it up Never stand and fight, just stay in business and wear the
enemy down.  The ability to run away is the essence of the guerilla, as Mao put it  and
that is why the much-ballyhooed battle for Marjah and Nad Ali, two small towns in
Afghanistans Helmand province, is irrelevant to the outcome of the war.
           
Breathless reports of the battle by embedded journalists have filled the American and
European media for the past two weeks, as if winning it might make a difference.  The truth
is that some of the local Taliban fighters have been left to sell their lives as dearly as
possible, while most have been pulled back or sent home to await recall.  The enemy
advances we retreat. (Dyer)

In his book, Koran, Kalashnikov, and Laptop The Neo-Taliban Insurgency in Afghanistan, Antonio Giustozzi argues that there are three possible military strategies used by the Taliban of Afghanistan (1) the model of guerrilla warfare propounded by Mao (2) Fourth Generation Warfare and (3) the War of the Flea, which was the model chosen by the mujahideen of Afghanistan during the 1980s.  Although the U.S. army officers fighting in Afghanistan believe that the Taliban are using a modified version of Maos formula of guerrilla warfare, Guistozzi believes that their strategy is Fourth Generation Warfare (Clark, 2008).  But, Clark disagrees with the author, stating that Fourth Generation Warfare is not a military strategy by any means.  Rather, it is the Maoist formula that is being applied by the Taliban of Afghanistan (Clark).  According to Clark, guerrilla warfare as taught by Mao is a strategy for insurgency, a theory for a peasant-based guerrilla army to gain and control a country.  He further states that the Taliban of Afghanistan got their initial support from the intelligence services and army of Pakistan.  As Pakistan is a close ally of China, the supporters of the Taliban of Afghanistan must have at least had basic knowledge of Maos ideas on guerrilla warfare (Clark).
   
Clark further writes that the Talibans emphasis on the political strategy of its insurgency mimics Maos emphasis on the political.  After all, Mao followed Clausewitz closely and gave special importance to achieving political objectives over tactical successes.  Then again, it must be argued that the Taliban did not need Maos instructions to prioritize their goals.  As a matter of fact, the Taliban were ruling Afghanistan for some time, which is why it is not surprising that their political objectives are more meaningful to them.
   
Ahmed (2009) describes another similarity between the followers of Mao and the Taliban of Afghanistan they follow codes of ethics.  The National Liberation Front of Vietnam followed Maos instructions to obey a code of ethics in guerrilla warfare (Guerrilla Warfare).  All the same, it is generally reported that the Taliban do not have any code of ethics whatsoever.  Ahmed writes that the Taliban of Afghanistan are urged not to discriminate on the basis of ethnicity.  Yet, there are countless news reports of the Taliban attacking and killing foreigners in particular. 
   
Had the Taliban followed Maos instructions, they would not have disobeyed their code of ethics repeatedly.  Hence, it must be restated that the Taliban are not followers of Mao.  They have a style of their own, taught unto them not only by their experience with Soviet Union in the 1980s but also by their circumstances.  After all, the Taliban are far behind their enemy in terms of numbers and military equipment.  Guerrilla warfare was the only choice available to them.  The fact that some of their tactics are the same as those propounded by Mao does not mean that they are following Maos instructions.