Influence through airpower security cooperation in Egypt and Pakistan lessons for Iraq

• Main Author: Thies, Douglas G.
• Other Authors: Russell, James A.
• Format: Others
• Published: Monterey, California. Naval Postgraduate School 2012
• Subjects: Arms transfers
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10945/3020

The recent demise of the Iraqi Air Force creates an airpower vacuum in the region that affords the United States an opportunity to garner influence through the development of a robust airpower security cooperation program. The question is what are the characteristics of airpower security cooperation that will best serve U.S. interests with respect to Iraq and the broader region? In seeking to answer this question, this thesis examines the recent history of U.S. airpower security cooperation with Pakistan and Egypt. The central argument is that these cases suggest that the key variables affecting the success of airpower security cooperation as a diplomacy instrument are: 1) the degree to which the security cooperation program addresses the recipient's principal security needs as determined by the state's strategic culture; 2) the degree to which airpower assistance facilitates and maintains an appropriate regional balance of power; and 3) the degree of trust imbued to the recipient regarding the endurance of the U.S. commitment to the security relationship. If the U.S. can account for these "three tenets" when implementing airpower security cooperation with Iraq, it can expect to garner specific measures of influence in matters critical to U.S. security interests. === US Air Force (USAF) author.