Czechoslovak soldiers stand in formation during Operation Desert Shield

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

sent a force of 200 to take part in Operation Desert Shield and

Operation Desert Storm Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Ma ...

as part of the

Coalition of the Gulf War Under United Nations Security Council Resolution 678, a coalition of 35 countries, led by the United States, fought Iraq in the Gulf War from 1990–1991. Coalition by number of military personnel Coalition by divisions Army Central Comma ...

. This operation was the sole military operation carried out by Czechoslovakia during the democratic period prior to its breakup in 1993. It was also the first armed conflict Czechoslovak troops took part in since

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. The unit deployed to

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 ...

specialized in chemical defense and decontamination, a major concern in the Gulf War due to Saddam Hussein's use of mustard and nerve agents in the

Iran–Iraq War The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between Iran and Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. It began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for almost eight years, until the acceptance of United Nations Security Counci ...

. Czechoslovak forces were equipped with

UAZ-469 The UAZ-469 is an off-road military light utility vehicle manufactured by UAZ. It was used by Soviet and other Warsaw Pact armed forces, as well as paramilitary units in Eastern Bloc countries. In the Soviet Union, it also saw widespread service ...

all terrain vehicles equipped with chemical detection gear,

Tatra T-815 The Tatra 815 is a truck family, produced by Czech company Tatra. It uses the traditional tatra concept of rigid backbone tube and swinging half-axles giving independent suspension. The vehicles are available in 4x4, 6x6, 8x8, 10x8, 10x10, 12x ...

transporters, and a variety of trucks designed for decontamination. The two platoons were headed by Colonel Ján Való. In the wake of the Gulf War, investigations were carried out by the Czech and Slovak government into claims of

Gulf War Syndrome Gulf War syndrome or Gulf War illness is a chronic and multi-symptomatic disorder affecting military veterans of both sides of the 1990–1991 Persian Gulf War. A wide range of acute and chronic symptoms have been linked to it, including fatigue ...

amongst returned veterans. Czechoslovak forces recorded the release of toxins such as

sarin Sarin (NATO designation GB G-series, "B"">Nerve_agent#G-series.html" ;"title="hort for Nerve agent#G-series">G-series, "B" is an extremely toxic synthetic organophosphorus compound."Reports of Exposure of Coalition Forces Resulting from the Fallout of the Bombings of Iraqi Chemical, Biological, and Nuclear Facilities (Group II)." Chapter 3, Part 1. Web. 5 Nov. 2009. After the start of the war, about 40 Czechoslovak citizens were detained in Iraq. On 4 December 1990 unofficial Czechoslovak delegation called ''Mise dobré vůle'' (in English Mission of good faith) departed to Iraq to negotiate the release of detainees. The mission, designated as unofficial, but led by former defense minister

Miroslav Vacek Miroslav Vacek (29 August 1935 – 31 December 2022) was a Czech and Czechoslovakian politician and lieutenant general in the Czechoslovak People's Army. Vacek was the Chief of the General Staff of the Czechoslovak People's Army from 1987 to 19 ...

, was successful and returned on 11 December 1990 with 38 detainees. According to a mission member

Michael Kocáb Michael Kocáb (born 28 July 1954) is a Czech composer, singer, and political activist. He is the leader of Pražský výběr, a popular music band suppressed by the Czechoslovak communist regime in the 1980s. At the spring 1989 Kocab with Mic ...

, the negotiation was complicated also because of strict statements of some Czechoslovak politicians about Iraq, like the speech of

Václav Havel Václav Havel (; 5 October 193618 December 2011) was a Czech statesman, author, poet, playwright, and former dissident. Havel served as the last president of Czechoslovakia from 1989 until the dissolution of Czechoslovakia in 1992 and then ...

during his 1990 visit in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

Notes

References

{{reflist Gulf War

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...