Lessons from Iraq and Bosnia on the theory and practice of no-fly zones

Journal of Strategic Studies

Volumn 27, Issue 3, 2004, Pages 454-478

  Benard, Alexander ^a  

^a NONE

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

GEOPOLITICS; PEACE PROCESS; REGIONAL SECURITY; SECURITY THREAT;

ASIA; BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA; EASTERN HEMISPHERE; EURASIA; EUROPE; IRAQ; MIDDLE EAST; SOUTHERN EUROPE; WORLD;

EID: 8744312838     PISSN: 01402390     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/1362369042000282985     Document Type: Article

References (71)

1. W. Clark, Waging Modern War (NY: Public Affairs 2001) p. 10.
2. Z. Khalilzad and J. Shapiro, Strategic Appraisal: United States Air and Space Power in the 21st Century (Los Angeles, CA: RAND 2002) p. 1.
3. P. Gibbons, 'U.S. No-Fly Zones in Iraq: To What End?', Policy Watch 632, Washington Institute for Near East Policy (1 July 2002 ).
4. Discussions of airpower's role in the Korean War can be found in B. Mossman's 'The Effectiveness of Air Interdiction During the Korean War', US Army Center for Military History: Historical Manuscripts Collection 2.3.7 AD.H (March 1996) (Washington, DC: Department of the Army 1966); and
5. J. Stewart's Airpower: The Decisive Force in Korea (Manchester, NH: Ayer Co. Publishing 1980).
6. J. Walker, The Future of Airpower (London: Royal United Services Institute 1986) p.89.
7. B.F. Cooling, Close Air Support (Washington, DC: Office of Air Force History 1990) p.536.
8. A good account of Britain's use of air policing can be found in M. Longoria's 'A Historical View of Air Policing Doctrine: Lessons from the British Experience between the Wars, 1919-1939' (School of Advanced Airpower Studies 1992).
9. B. Glosson, 'Impact of Precision Weapons on Air Combat Operations', Airpower Journal (Summer 1993) p.476.
10. D. Priest, 'CIA Had Fix on Hussein', Washington Post (20 March 2003).
11. D. Byman, Air Power as a Coercive Instrument (Los Angeles, CA: RAND 1999) p.134.
12. T. Schelling, Arms and Influence (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press 1966) p.3.
13. P. Nitze, Post-Cold War Conflict Deterrence (Washington, DC: National Academy Press 1997) p39.
14. See D. Jett's Why Peacekeeping Fails for a discussion of UN failures to prevent large-scale hostilities in Rwanda and Bosnia. (NY: Palgrave Macmillan 2000).
15. Z. Khalilzad, interview, Embassy of the United States of America, Afghanistan (6 June 2004).
16. J. Corum, Airpower in Small Wars: Fighting Insurgents and Terrorists (Lawrance, KS: University of Kansas Press 2003) p.429.
17. Nitze (note 12) p.58.
18. M. Knights, 'The Long View of No-Fly and No-Augmentation Zones', Policy Watch 730, Washington Institute for Near East Policy (24 March 2003).
19. P. Gibbons, Interview, Washington Institute for Near East Policy (12 June 2002).
20. A. Prados, 'Iraq: Former and Recent Military Confrontations with the United States', Congressional Research Service (6 Sept. 2002).
21. D. Ellis, 'Readiness and the No-Fly Zone: Can We Have Both?', CSC (1997).
22. Khalilzad (note 2) p.441.
23. Editorial, 'Balkan Deployments Stretch AWACS Units', Flight International (6 April 1994).
24. Nitze (note 12) p.60.
25. R. Pape, Bombing to Win (NY: Cornell University Press 1996) p.58.
26. K. Katzman, 'Iraq-U.S. Confrontation', Congressional Research Service (27 Feb. 2001).
27. There is widespread agreement that in 1967 UN Secretary General U. Thant's decision to rapidly respond to Nasser's request and withdraw UN forces from the Sinai, which had been serving as a buffer between Egypt and Israel, significantly contributed to the 'June War'. Some even argue that had he at the very least stalled for a while, events might have been slowed or possibly even reversed. For a more detailed discussion, see M. Tessler's A History of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press 1994) pp.387-92.
28. United States European Command, 'Fact Sheet, Iraq No-Fly Zones', at .
29. J. Shalikashvili, 'Hearing on Iraq', House of Representatives Committee on Armed Services (4 Sept. 1991).
30. P. Gibbons, 'No-fly Zones in Iraq: To What End?', Policywatch 632, Washington Institute for Near East Policy (2002).
31. I b i d.
32. T. Franks, 'Hearing on Iraq', House of Representatives Committee on Armed Services (29 March 2001).
33. A second and very similar example to the 1996 case is the 1994 deterrence of an Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, which is described very well in D. Byman's Confronting Iraq: U.S. Policy and the Use of Force Since the Gulf War (Los Angeles, CA: RAND 2000).
34. B. Riedel, 'U.S. Policy Towards Iraq: Balance, Dismember, or Contain?', House of Representative Committee on Armed Services (26 Sept. 1996).
35. Byman (note 32) p.59.
36. M. McPeak, 'No-Fly Zones', Interview, PBS NewsHour (31 Dec. 1998).
37. J. Baker, 'Hearings on the Current Situation in Iraq', Senate Armed Services Committee (12 Sept. 1996).
38. 'Interview with Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Musa', Al-Sharq al Awsat (24 Sept. 1996).
39. Baker (note 36).
40. K. Rhem, 'Iraqi Plane Shoots Down American Predator Unmanned Aircraft', American Forces Press Service (23 Dec. 2002).
41. Some authors have asserted that no-fly zones have had more far-reaching effects than merely preventing territorial advances or aggressions. For an example of this, see B. Pirnie's Assessing Requirements for Peacekeeping, Humanitarian Assistance, and Disaster Relief (Los Angeles, CA: RAND 1998) pp.20-22, in which it is argued that the no-fly zones helped bring about compliance with weapons inspections in Iraq.
42. Byman (note 32) pp.64-71.
43. Ibid. p.70.
44. Interview on PBS NewsHour, 31 Dec. 1998.
45. K. Pollack, The Threatening Storm (NY: Random House 2002) p. 71.
46. Ibid. pp.95-101.
47. NATO Forces Southern Europe, 'Fact Sheet, Operation Deny Flight', at . For more information on the precise authorization given by the UN, see Security Council Resolutions 816, 836, and 958 at .
48. R. Corsini, 'The Balkan War: What Role for Airpower?' Airpower Journal (Winter 1995).
49. NATO (note 46).
50. 'NATO Strikes Hit Serb Sites', Aviation Week and Space Technology (9 Oct. 1995).
51. R. Holbrooke, To End a War (NY: Modern Library 1999) p.51.
52. Ibid. p.101.
53. Events at Gorazde in the spring of 1994 serve as another good example and are described extensively in M. Bucknam's Responsibility of Command: How UN and NATO Commanders Influenced Airpower over Bosnia (Montgomery, AL: Air University Press 2003) pp.133-143.
54. Holbrooke (note 50) p.63.
55. I b i d.
56. J. Blom, 'Srebrenica - a "safe" area,' Netherlands Institute for War Documentation (April 2002).
57. I b i d.
58. Bucknam (note 52) p.248.
59. United Nations, 'Statement by Ambassador Richard Holbrooke', at (11 July 2000).
60. I b i d.
61. J. Boulden, Peace Enforcement: The United Nations Experience in Congo, Somalia, and Bosnia (NY: Praeger Publishers 2001) p.133.
62. Holbrooke (note 50) p.65.
63. Editorial, 'USS Theodore Roosevelt Battle Group Completes Deployment', Navy Wire Service (2 Oct. 1995).
64. J. Tagliabue, 'Conflict in the Balkans: In Italy', New York Times (31 Aug. 1995).
65. Blom (note 55).
66. J. Honig, Srebrenica: Record of a War Crime (London: Penguin Books 1997) pp.4-10.
67. Bucknam (note 52) p.250.
68. 'Iraqi Military Is Again a Formidable Force,' Associated Press (8. Sept. 1996).
69. Clark (note 1) p.58.
70. I b i d.
71. I b i d.