Psychological Warfare in Modern Times

In discussing modern warfare, the terminology, 4th generation warfare is often used.

The term was first used in 1989 by William S. Lind to describe warfare's return to a decentralized form, in terms of generational modern warfare, the fourth generation signifies the nation states' loss of their near-monopoly on combat forces, returning to modes of conflict common in pre-modern times. The 4th generation warfare uses classical tactics, deemed unacceptable by traditional modern thinking, to weaken the advantaged opponent's will to win. Highly sophisticated psychological warfare, especially through media manipulation and lawfare, is one of the main elements of conflict defining 4th generation warfare. Various techniques are used and aimed to influence a target audience's value systems, belief systems, emotion, motives, reasoning or behavior in order to induce an advantageous position in a asymmetrical war. One of the countries that is employing 4th generation warfare is North Korea. Through 4GW, North Korea is trying to create a favorable condition to communize the entire peninsula. They are spreading revolutionary indoctrination throughout South Korea populace, to instill anti-American and anti-government sentiment in the South and to instigate struggle against the South Korean government through indoctrination of South Korean workers, students, intellectuals, and the military. They are provoking struggles for anti-American independence and anti-dictatorship democratization among South Korean, thus linking anti-American and anti-government struggle with the communization of the entire peninsula. Moreover, they are trying to launch, consistently and aggressively, disguised peace offensives against South Korea, thus attempting to create a favorable atmosphere to communize the South by urging the USFK to withdraw from the peninsula, precipitating the disintegration of the South, and putting forward false peace offensives to dress up the regime's image.

The South Korean government must strive not to give in to North Korea's attempts to communize the peninsula. Recently, the ROK ministry of defense stated that pro-North Korean forces as the enemy of state. The ministry provided a 18-page long presentation about the pro-North Korean groups, in order to counteract North Korea's fourth generation warfare efforts.