FIVE lessons which the Gulf States learnt from the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait were the highlights of an expert session hosted by the Bahrain Centre for Strategic, International and Energy Studies (Derasat) yesterday.
This was presented by the think-tank’s International and Strategic Studies director Dr Ashraf Mohammed Keshk who was addressing an international online audience on the start of the Gulf War, a conflict that lasted 42 days and witnessed coalition forces from 35 nations unite.
On August 2, 1990, Iraq staged an invasion and annexation of Kuwait arising from oil pricing and production disputes. In response, the US and the United Nations Security Council demanded that Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein withdraw Iraqi troops from Kuwait, but the latter refused.
“There are five key lessons that the Gulf States could learn from the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait and the liberation war,” said Dr Ashraf.
“First, a crisis related to national security requires a deterrence strategy that stops the adversaries in their tracks from advancing upon other nations.
“Next, the priority should be protecting critical infrastructure throughout the Gulf – this could have helped in stopping the advancement of Iraqi forces on several fronts to prevent them from establishing a stronghold over facilities.
“The third lesson we learn from the war is that countries cannot defend and protect their borders by simply acquiring more weapons, they need strong alliances to supplement their solo efforts.
“The fourth is utilising the media for psychological warfare, by building confidence among the forces while eradicating the enemy. It is important to have a spokesperson for the coalition – to explain and send the right message to the enemy and implementing a media plan.
“The final lesson is self-defence and it is a priority – one that provides an option that is capable of instant response.
“This cites that there is always a need for a Gulf naval force to protect maritime activities and regional securities. There should be constant designing and conducting of war game simulations for potential crises and conflicts which helps in being prepared.
“This is built as part of the deterrence and the capability to pre-emptively defuse conflicts. An advantage of these war game simulations is identifying risks and threats.”
Capabilities
Responding to the GDN specifically on lessons that could be adapted by countries like Bahrain, Dr Keshk said that they must increase their capabilities on multiple fronts.
“They should set up preventive measures for each nation in the region for both cyber and conventional warfare,” he said. “Proceeding as ‘business as usual’ brings times of conflict and crisis.”
He added that smaller nations need alliances and treaties to help them join larger and capable security infrastructures. He said that the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait in 1990 and the liberation war of 1991 demonstrated a key example of managing a regional crisis with a global dimension.
“It simultaneously had all three elements of a crisis – a sudden event, requiring critical decisions, in a limited time period,” he added.
By invading Kuwait, Iraq gained control of 20 per cent of the world’s oil reserves and, for the first time, a substantial coastline on the Arabian Gulf.
The response, however, was immense. Relentless attacks by the allied coalition in the air and on the ground, US President George H W Bush declared a ceasefire on February 28; by that time, most Iraqi forces in Kuwait had either surrendered or fled.
raji@gdn.com.bh
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