Operation Provide Comfort. Operational Analysis for Operations other than War.
Abstract
In early February 1991 Operation Desert Storm had reached its dramatic conclusion. The United States military had displayed its incredible power and effectiveness as the world's sole remaining super power and stood ready to lead the world into the future of President Bush's "New World Order". On 5 April before the dust of the homecoming parades had settled, U. S. and world attention again was sharply focused on a new and different developing human tragedy in post war iraq. Instead of familiar footage of successful military operations, the public was now faced with the images of a half million terrorized and starving Kurdish refugees clinging to the sides of mountains in the remote northern regions of the Iraq-Turkish border. This operation serves as a classic case in the validation of the six "Principles for Operations Other than War", although it was conducted two years prior to publishing of the fundamentals in current doctrine. The peacemaking success of "Operation Provide Comfort" established the standard in political and public perception for the projection and use of coalition military power for the purpose of saving lives. The current world situation suggests that coalition and peacemaking operations will continue to be the most prevalent challenge facing the future employment of military forces. The experiences of Operation Provide Comfort have validated the need for continued study and development of joint doctrine for coalition and peacemaking operations. (KAR) P3
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 16, 1995
- Accession Number
- ADA297852
Entities
People
- John W. Cowan
Organizations
- Naval War College