In this paper, Prof. Gould examines why we have been unable to do so in South Asia. Pankaj Mishra's three-part series in the NY Review of Books . If you're looking for a flashpoint to ignite WW III, or another locale for US troops on peacekeeping missions, Kashmir would be a great candidate. Let's see, we have a long-running guerilla conflict, a regime with an abysmal human rights record, a righteous moral cause for US politicians, billions of dollars in aid, and 500 US military advisors on the ground. All this and dense jungle terrain.
Economic issues have a long history as justification for the use of military force.
Includes a link to the first chapter of the book.