Nato to open regional centre in Kuwait

[Kuwaiti Girl]

Nato to open regional centre in Kuwait
Stoltenberg: Gulf security directly linked to Nato allies’ security
http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/kuwait/nato-to-open-regional-centre-in-kuwait-1.1965381

Manama: North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato) Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and the permanent representatives at the North Atlantic Council will visit Kuwait on Monday, the military alliance has said.
Stoltenberg and the Nato ambassadors will attend the ceremony to inaugurate the Nato Istanbul Cooperation Initiative (ICI) Regional Centre in Kuwait City, the first such presence in the region.
The Nato chief is scheduled to have meetings with Kuwaiti Prime Minister Shaikh Jaber Mubarak Al Hamad Al Sabah, the First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Shaikh Sabah Khalid Al Sabah and the President of the Kuwait National Security Bureau Shaikh Thamer Ali Al Sabah, Kuwait News Agency (Kuna) reported on Saturday.
A meeting of the North Atlantic Council with senior representatives of the four ICI partner countries will follow the opening ceremony, with the participation of the Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and representatives of Oman and Saudi Arabia.
The ICI which comprises Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE was launched in Istanbul in 2004 to develop security and defence cooperation between the Arab Gulf states and Nato.
“I thank Kuwait for its generosity and commend its active role in promoting regional security,” Stoltenberg told the Kuwaiti news agency.
“The Nato-ICI Centre represents an important milestone in Nato’s deepening cooperation with Kuwait and the entire region.”
The centre will be a hub for cooperation between the alliance and Gulf partners in a wide range of areas, including strategic analysis, civil emergency planning, military-to-military cooperation and public diplomacy, he added.
The centre will also facilitate the sharing of expertise and improve understanding between Nato and Kuwait, as well as with Bahrain, Qatar and the UAE.
Kuwaiti authorities proposed the establishment of the centre at Nato’s Chicago Summit in 2012 and the alliance accepted it, Stoltenberg added.
“Last year, I toured the construction site, and in a few days, I will be in Kuwait again to celebrate the centre’s opening,” Stoltenberg, who is the former prime minister of Norway, said.
“The security of the Gulf is directly linked to the security of all Nato allies. We share the same aspirations for peace and stability, and we share common security threats, such as terrorism, weapons proliferation and failing states. The shared security challenges make it even more important that we work more closely together. That is exactly why we are reinforcing our political dialogue and practical cooperation.
“Taking Kuwait as an example, we work closely in areas including crisis management, defence policy, and defence against chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear weapons.”
He said the Nato-Kuwait Transit Agreement, signed during his visit in 2016, is another example of the value the partnership provides: it facilitates the movement of Nato equipment and personnel through the region.
“Nato deeply values its partnerships in the Gulf, and my upcoming visit to Kuwait and the new regional centre underlines the priority we place on building our cooperation even further.”
Stoltenberg said he would welcome the membership of Saudi Arabia and Oman in the ICI if they so wished.
“The Gulf Cooperation Council, to which they belong, plays a key role in regional stability. I met the Saudi defence minister last year at Nato headquarters, and he expressed Saudi Arabia’s readiness for further cooperation. So I look forward to an ongoing dialogue on deepening our relations,” he said.
“Nato is committed to fighting terrorism by working with a range of partners throughout North Africa and the Middle East. We have already trained hundreds of Iraqi officers in Jordan fight against Daesh, and from this month we are expanding our efforts into Iraq itself. In Tunisia, we are supporting the training of Tunisian Special Forces, and in Afghanistan, we are helping to ensure that the country never again becomes a safe haven for international terrorism. When our neighbours are more stable, we are more secure,” he was quoted as saying by Kuna.
Nato also continues to offer direct support to the Global Coalition to counter Daesh with its AWACS surveillance aircraft providing surveillance data to support air operations. Nato allies contribute to the Coalition in different ways, he said.
“The Coalition is making steady progress, and Daesh is losing ground. So in 2017, I am confident that Nato will remain the cornerstone of Euro-Atlantic security, and continue to project stability beyond our borders. Again and again, our history has proven that Nato can adapt and deliver. Today, as we face the most serious security challenges in a generation, our adaptation continues.”

 

[Saif al-Arab]

KSA and Oman should join too if beneficial but what exactly will change from status quo given that NATO equals the US more or less and that no other country, expect for the UK and to a lesser extent France, play any direct role in the region?

I think it is better to look towards China personally. We don't have to "pick" sides but welcoming China so to speak into the region by increasing military and security ties would be a good thing.

I could very well see China and for instance Yemen (and by extension the GCC naturally) have a very fruitful and strategic cooperation once peace prevails in Yemen.

In return China cold help rebuilt Yemen which is a gateway to Horn of Africa and the entire African continent which will become one of the fastest growing economies not far from now. Thus linking Horn of Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, Arabia and the Arab world with China and everything in between.

The Chinese are clever. They have already seen the cleverness in focusing on the Arab world and Africa. Huge populations that are increasing, youth everywhere (key for any developing economies and to sustain wealth on the long run, very resource rich countries and strategically located.

If done correctly China could read the door of Europe almost and by extension the West.

I think that the Chinese are already going to built an military base Djibouti which KSA is going to do as well btw. So they will be in the region.

We should focus on the economy first and foremost and let China and the US do what they are going to do anyway. Just hope that rivalries between those two powers, won't erupt in the region and taking the region down with them.

Some thoughts that I had.

 

[Saif al-Arab]

In case anyone cares, this is what the bulk of NATO does in the Gulf region:

Overland actions like supporting allied operations in Iraq and Syria are also an ongoing concern, as are future issues that'll mandate a response. A bit on NATO actions in Iraq:

https://defence.pk/threads/nordic-d...ideos-and-history.347504/page-49#post-9009234

Opening an operations center in Kuwait better allows NATO to coordinate its own actions and actions with regional partners include counter-piracy and counter-terrorism, smuggling interdiction and training ops.

Are most of those NATO forces not composed of Americans, Brits and French? Basically the 3 powers who already have the biggest presence in the region and the biggest interests?

I am not sure if this will change much on the ground.

As for the ICI which seems similar to NATO's Partnership for Peace Program and the Mediterranean Dialogue, what can we expect of such initiatives on the long run? Will they evolve?