The Peninsula Shield Force
(or ''Peninsula Shield'';
ar, دِرْعُ الجَزيرَة, Dirʿ al-Jazīra) is the military arm of the
Gulf Cooperation Council
The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf ( ar, مجلس التعاون لدول العربية الخليج ), also known as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC; ar, مجلس التعاون الخليجي), is a regional, inter ...
(GCC). It is intended to deter, and respond to military aggression against any of the GCC member countries:
Bahrain
Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and a ...
,
Kuwait
Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Ku ...
,
Oman
Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of ...
,
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the Ara ...
,
Qatar
Qatar (, ; ar, قطر, Qaṭar ; local vernacular pronunciation: ), officially the State of Qatar,) is a country in Western Asia. It occupies the Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it sh ...
, and the
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (Middle East, The Middle East). It is ...
.
Creation
In 1984, the
Gulf Cooperation Council
The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf ( ar, مجلس التعاون لدول العربية الخليج ), also known as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC; ar, مجلس التعاون الخليجي), is a regional, inter ...
(GCC) decided to create a joint military force of 10,000 soldiers divided into two
brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division.
...
s, called the Peninsula Shield Force, based in
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the Ara ...
near the Kuwaiti and Iraqi borders.
The PSF is composed of infantry, armor, artillery, and combat support elements from each of the GCC countries. In 1992, the Peninsula Shield Force was headed by a Saudi Arabian, based near
King Khalid Military City at
Hafar al Batin
Hafar al-Batin ( ar, حفر الباطن '), also frequently spelled ''Hafr al-Batin'', is a Saudi Arabian city in the Eastern Province. It is located 430 km north of Riyadh, 94.2 km from the Kuwait border, and about 74.3 from the Iraq ...
, and had one infantry brigade of 5,000 men from all the GCC member states.
As of late 2006, the Peninsula Shield Force had 7,000 personnel and functioned as a joint intervention force to defend the joint border of
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the Ara ...
,
Kuwait
Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Ku ...
, and
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
. In November 2006, the GCC Joint Defense Council considered a Saudi proposal to expand the capabilities of the Shield and to establish a joint command and control system.
In December 2007, Kuwait's National Security Council chief Shaikh Ahmed Fahad Al Ahmed Al Sabah announced that the GCC plans to create a replacement for the Peninsula Shield Force. He stated that "the GCC options would always be unified just as they were when leaders declared the establishment of a common market at the Doha Summit."
Leadership and structure
, the Peninsula Shield Force was commanded by Saudi Major General Mutlaq bin Salem Al-Azima and has about 40,000 troops
and continues to have its permanent base at
King Khalid Military City near
Hafar al Batin
Hafar al-Batin ( ar, حفر الباطن '), also frequently spelled ''Hafr al-Batin'', is a Saudi Arabian city in the Eastern Province. It is located 430 km north of Riyadh, 94.2 km from the Kuwait border, and about 74.3 from the Iraq ...
.
According to Peninsula Shield Force commander Al-Azima, any intervention by the force must include participation from all GCC member states.
Use of the Peninsula Shield Force
1990–91
The Peninsula Shield Force was not sufficiently developed to be deployed in defence of
Kuwait
Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Ku ...
ahead of the invasion and occupation of Kuwait by
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
in August 1990. A force of about 3,000 men from the Peninsula Shield Force, in addition to forces of its member states, took part in the liberation of Kuwait in March 1991.
2003
10,000 troops and two ships of Peninsula Shield Force were deployed to Kuwait in February 2003 ahead of the
Iraq War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish)
, partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...
to protect Kuwait from potential Iraqi attacks. It did not participate in operations against Iraq.
Role in Bahraini uprising
On 14 March 2011, the Bahraini government requested Peninsula Shield Forces enter Bahrain via the
causeway
A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet Tr ...
from Saudi Arabia. Forces were from Saudi Arabia and the UAE entered Bahrain while Kuwait and Oman refrained from sending troops.
The Bahraini uprising was the first GCC deployment in relation to an internal threat.
[, ] In late March, Peninsula Shield Force commander al-Azima stated that the role of the force in Bahrain was to "secure Bahrain's vital and strategically important military infrastructure from any foreign interference" and to protect Bahraini borders while Bahrain security forces are "preoccupied with
ahrainiinternal security".
He denied that the force caused any Bahraini citizen to "suffer so much as a scratch", and said that the force entered Bahrain "to bring goodness, peace, and love".
The 2011 Bahraini intervention, involved about 10% of the Peninsula Shield Force. Every military unit present in Bahrain included soldiers from all six GCC member states.
While some have argued that this was a Saudi attempt to block democratic processes taking hold, Bahraini officials argued that the Peninsula Shield Force was there to protect government facilities, rather than to intrude in the internal affairs of the country itself. In October 2011 the Peninsula Shield announced its intention to sue "a number of satellite TV channels for propagating lies and allegations about the Peninsula Shield forces that entered Bahrain". This followed persistent claims by these channels about the Gulf forces strafing demonstrators with warplanes and destroying mosques.
Frequent
Saudi Arabian street protests in and near
Qatif in mid to late March, originally calling for political prisoners to be released, extended to opposition to the Peninsula Shield Force's presence in Bahrain.
American urging of closer defense ties
Chuck Hagel called for greater defense cooperation in the GCC, including
bloc
Bloc may refer to:
Government and politics
* Political bloc, a coalition of political parties
* Trade bloc, a type of intergovernmental agreement
* Voting bloc, a group of voters voting together
Other uses
* Bloc (code school), an educational ...
sales of American arms to the organization.
On 11 December 2013, the GCC announced the formation of a joint military command.
In 2016, Saudi Arabia held a military drill named "
North Thunder" with a consortium of 20 countries to display its military cooperation with Arab countries. Pakistan, Djibouti, and other nations also contributed to the drill.
See also
*
Military of Bahrain
The Bahrain Defence Force (BDF) is the military force of the Kingdom of Bahrain. The Bahrain Defence Force is under direct command and leadership of a commander-in-chief who holds the rank of field marshal. The Government has a Minister of Def ...
*
Military of Kuwait
The Kuwait Military Forces ( ar, القوات المسلحة الكويتية, Al-Quwwat Al-Musallahah Al-Kuwaitiyah) are the military forces of the State of Kuwait. They consist of the Kuwait Air Force, the Kuwait Army, the Kuwait Navy & the K ...
*
Military of Oman
The Sultan of Oman's Armed Forces (Arabic: القوات المسلحة لسلطان عمان, transliterated: ''al-Quwāt ul-Musallaḥatu lis-Sulṭān 'Umān'') are the Royal Army of Oman, Royal Navy of Oman, Royal Air Force of Oman, Sultan' ...
*
Military of Qatar
The Qatar Armed Forces ( ar, القوات المسلحة القطرية, Al-Quwwat Al-Musallahah Al-Qatariyyah) are the military forces of the State of Qatar. Since 2015, Qatar has implemented mandatory military conscription with an average o ...
*
Military of Saudi Arabia
The Saudi Arabian Armed Forces (SAAF) ( ar, القُوَّات المُسَلَّحَة العَرَبِيَّة السُّعُودِيَّة, Al-Quwwat al-Musallahah al-Malakiyah as-Su’ūdiyah), also known as the Royal Saudi Armed Forces, ar ...
*
Military of the United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates Armed Forces ( ar, القوات المسلحة لدولة الإمارات العربية المتحدة, Al-Quwwāt al-Musallaḥa li-Dawlat al-ʾImārāt al-ʿArabīyyah al-Muttaḥidah) are the armed forces of the Unit ...
References
External links
The Gulf Cooperation Council's Peninsular Shield Force at Defense Technical Information CenterGCC to Discuss ‘Peninsula Shield’ Expansion M. Ghazanfar Ali Khan, ''
Gulf News
''Gulf News'' is a daily English language newspaper published from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It was first launched in 1978, and is currently distributed throughout the UAE and also in other Persian Gulf Countries. Its online edition was launc ...
'', 2 November 2006
{{Saudi security forces
International organizations based in the Middle East
Gulf Cooperation Council
Organizations established in 1984
International military organizations
20th-century military alliances
21st-century military alliances
Bahraini uprising of 2011
Military alliances involving Saudi Arabia