Understanding The Strategic Asymmetry Warfare in The Cameroon Anglophone/Ambazonia Conflict: 2017-2023

There has been a recrudescence of asymmetry warfare in the world since the end of the cold war. Though an old concept, the post-cold war era has revived the practice and make it preponderant in contemporary warfare especially in intrastate conflicts. The uniqueness of this typology of warfare is rooted in strategic interference which sometimes ensure that weak actors are able to challenge strong actors. This is built on strategic operations sustained by the actors in the conflict inscribed in the various asymmetry strategies. For almost a decade, the Cameroon Anglophone conflict has unveiled vestiges of asymmetry warfare in which a weak actor (separatists, Ambazonia fighters) is challenging a strong actor (the state army of Cameroon). This article seeks an understanding of the different strategies the two actors have employed to prosecute the war. The paper mobilises the strategic asymmetry warfare theory of Arreguin-Toft and employs a qualitative study approach. This involves content analyses, fieldwork research and interview sessions as well as secondary data through books and other published materials. Several trips were made to the conflict epicentre of North West and South West regions providing a framework for direct observation of field operations. Through this mechanism, several interviews were conducted with most interviewers preferring to remain anonymous because of the sensitivity of the conflict. Findings reveal that the two main actors in the Cameroon Anglophone conflict have mobilised direct and indirect strategies and in the later part of the warfare, they have all mobilised indirect strategies which has maintain a conflict stalemate.