Implications of a strategic analysis: the operational strategy of Loyalist paramilitaries

Abstract

Drawing upon empirical evidence and applying a strategic theory approach to understanding Loyalist paramilitary activity, this article provides an analysis of the two main Loyalist organizations, the Ulster Defence Association (UDA) and the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF). It explores their tactics and operational strategy in historical context and offers an assessment of why both organizations have remained relatively quiet despite the increased dissident Republican campaign in Northern Ireland.

Keywords:

• Loyalist paramilitaries
• strategic terrorism
• strategic theory
• Ulster Defence Association
• Ulster Volunteer Force

Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank the organizers and participants of the 2009 CICA-STR Political Violence and Collective Aggression: Considering the Past, Imagining the Future Conference, Belfast for comments and facilitation of an earlier draft of this paper. The author also thanks Andrew Stephenson for comments on manuscript and the anonymous reviewers. Research participants were either granted anonymity or agreed that their views could be attributed.