R.J. Godlewski's The Independent Counterterrorist. I, Militia. June ...

in war occurs for a variety of reasons and complicates
conditions on the battlefield, the effects are more
far reaching in an era of globalization. Combatants
under the influence of drugs have been known to
commit massive human rights abuses against rival
groups, creating immense human suffering that affects
regional stability. For example, carnival activities in
Yugoslavia sent waves of refugees throughout Europe
and eventually led to a Western military response to
the immense humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in
the heart of Europe. 46
More significantly, as globalization draws more
actors together for purposes that range from development
projects to security and stabilization operations,
from peacekeeping to humanitarian missions, they
are more likely to come into contact with intoxicated
combatants. While some individuals are seduced by the
availability of drugs to join a warring group, those who
are coerced to join through drugging further denigrate
human rights standards and serve to undermine the
establishment of civil society.
It is likely that Western militaries will continue
to deal with the effects of the presence of drugs on
the battlefield. Over time, this will likely pressure
defense establishments to reconsider their current
approaches. One way such reconsideration may occur
is under the new imperatives to come to grips with the
dynamics of asymmetric warfare and the nuances of
conducting counterinsurgency operations. The use of
drugged combatants by nonstate groups lends itself
to asymmetric approaches to counter the superior
technical firepower and skills of Western militaries.
With patterns of contemporary war composed of
mostly civil wars fought by nonprofessional armed
groups with less sophisticated weaponry, few potential
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