by Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton

About the author: Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, who spent twenty years in the British Special Air Service and Irish Guards, teaches courses on travel safety for students and businesspeople traveling abroad.

Colin Powell once responded to a question about whether the United States would be deploying ground troops to the Balkans by saying, ‘We do deserts, not mountains.’ While it may be a little unfair to quote the General now, out of context and a world away from those sybaritic days before [the terrorist attacks of] 11 September [2001], the statement nevertheless encapsulates the problem facing his President’s [George W. Bush] coalition against terrorism.

Initially, from my experience as a Special Forces officer, I thought the US had got it right. The absence...