Saleh al-Mutairi, director of the Al-Madar Centre for Political Studies, says the Gulf states’ decision to set up a forward headquarters for their unified military command in Kuwait reflects lessons learned from the US-Israel war on Iran that began in February.
– “The Gulf states have realised that collective and joint security does not depend only on agreements and political positions, even if those are unified,” al-Mutairi told Al Jazeera. “It also needs military force, and a security and military command that responds rapidly to incidents and emergencies, especially when it comes to early warning.”
– He said the experience of the war “has shown them that they need early warning”. Although the nature and types of forces that will take part have not yet been specified, the command is clearly intended to confront this threat, he said.
– Al-Mutairi said Kuwait’s location makes it a strategic choice, close to Iran, bordering Iraq and lying at the far northern end of the Gulf. “This location would allow these forces, if deployed, or this command, to act as an early warning station for all the Gulf states, especially for detecting attacks, whether by drones or missiles,” he said.
– Al-Mutairi said the new headquarters would coordinate with the Gulf states’ existing unified command in Riyadh, established in 2013. He described the move as “a form of preemptive hedging as part of a strategic shift towards the concept of collective security”.
https://aje.news/v3dpu9?update=5142276