In 1950 Emir
Abdullah Al-Salim Al-Sabah ordered the capabilities of the Armed Forces to be developed to deal with external threats. Accordingly, Abdullah
Mubarak Al-Sabah was appointed Commander General of the Kuwait Public Security Force, the newly designated Kuwait Army and the initial forming of the Armed services. In 1951 the
Bren Gun entered into service with the Kuwait Public Security Department, followed in 1952 by the
Daimler Armoured Car, both primarily with the Army (future land force). In 1953 the border and security force was named the Kuwait Army and split from the
Directorate of Public Security Force, and the latter merged with the
Directorate of Police to form the preliminaries of the
Ministry of Interior. Members of the previous forces became members either of the army or merged with police forces and the Directorate of Public Security Force within the Interior Ministry. The Kuwait Army was headed by
Mubarak Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah who had recently returned from military training in the United Kingdom and reported to Abdullah Mubarak Al-Sabah. In 1953 Abdullah Mubarak Al-Sabah established the first Kuwait Flying Club. The flying club was part of the Civil Aviation Directorate and graduated the first batch of Kuwaiti pilots in 1954; these later attended advanced training in the
United Kingdom. In 1954, Mubarak Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah was appointed Deputy head commander of the Kuwait Army, reporting to Abdullah Mubarak Al-Sabah. During that same year, Saleh Al-Mohammed Al-Sabah returned from the United Kingdom and was assigned as commanding officer at headquarters. Also in 1954 eight
Auster aircraft entered into service with the Kuwait Flying Club for purposes of preliminary training. In 1956, the Kuwait Army officially moved to headquarters and was equipped with
artillery for the first time. Also during the same year, a new training center was established for the Kuwait Army.
Demolition of Kuwait City 3rd Defensive Wall, and formation of the Kuwait Armed Forces The
Kuwait Army split from the Directorate of Public Security Force in 1953; subsequently, the latter merged with Directorate of Police to form Directorate of Public Security and Police in 1959; following the demolition of the third defensive wall of Kuwait in 1957 through a ministerial decree for the expansion of Kuwait City; which later formed the
Kuwait Ministry of Interior including the Kuwait Police. The Army was the first branch of what became the Armed Forces formed mainly of land force components. In the same year, the Army signed on the procurement of the
Centurion tank, and two
de Havilland DH.104 Dove monoplanes entered into service in the newly formed Air Force. In 1958 Kuwaiti officers were sent to the Military Academies in Egypt and Iraq to train, and the Kuwait Army underwent its first alert following the coup of
Abdul Karim Qasim. In 1959 the Kuwait Army set up its first mechanized combat brigade, the Kuwait 6th Mechanized Brigade, known later as the
Kuwait 6th Liberation Mechanized Brigade, following the liberation of Kuwait during the
Gulf War.
Operation Vantage 1961 taking part in
Operation Vantage in support of Kuwait in July 1961. After 62 years as a British protectorate, Kuwait declared independence in 1961. Iraq immediately claimed that Kuwait was actually an Iraqi province, and threatened to invade to implement the claim. Britain flew troops into the newly independent country to forestall Iraq, an operation called
Operation Vantage. In 1961, Field Marshal Abdullah Mubarak Al-Sabah, the Commander General of the Army was followed by the leadership of
Brigadier General Mubarak Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and his deputy
Colonel Saleh Mohammed Al-Sabah who stepped in to take part in Operation Vantage along with the already active
Kuwait 25th Commando Brigade as the Army was put on their second alert phase. Also during the same year, the Kuwait Flying Club was separated from the Civilian Aviation Directorate and the Kuwait Air Force was officially enacted. Also in 1961, the
Universal Carrier was retired from the Kuwait Army. Over the following years and through combat experiences; Kuwait built a small effective military force including a land force, navy, air force, national guard, existing police force and fire service directorate. On July 1, the
War of Attrition against the State of Israel commenced while the Yarmouk brigade was engaged on the Egyptian Front. In 1968, Kuwaiti military authorities established the Kuwait Military Academy. In 1969, the Kuwait Armed Forces placed the
English Electric Lightning supersonic jet fighter aircraft and the
Bell 206 and
Bell 204/205 (mainly the 205) helicopters into service with the Kuwaiti Air Force. In 1970, the Kuwait Armed Forces suffered seventeen fatalities in fighting against Israeli forces in Egypt. One man was killed in April and sixteen more were killed in June. During the same year, the Kuwait Air Force placed
BAC Strikemaster light attack jets into service and the following year took delivery of
Lockheed C-130 Hercules transport aircraft. In 1972, the Kuwait Army introduced the
Vickers MBT main battle tank series, and the Kuwait Armed Forces trained Egyptian
pilots and technicians through the Kuwait Air Force on the English Electric Lightning.
Double-fronted wars: 1973 Samita border skirmish and October War in the
Golan Heights In 1973, the Kuwait Armed Forces entered into their third alert phase with the beginning of the
1973 Samita border skirmish which led to a significant change in the operational capabilities of the Armed Forces. Also in 1973, the leadership of the Armed Forces found itself battle readying on two fronts. While components of the Armed Forces were readying to fight following the skirmish on the Kuwaiti border, Kuwait sent a token force to participate on the West Bank of the Jordan River The Multinational Force in Lebanon also included Italian paratroopers from the
Folgore Brigade,
infantry units from the
Bersaglieri regiments and
Italian Marines of the
San Marco Battalion. In the parallel diplomatic couloir of the United Nations peace initiative force and mainly at the level of leading
Arab international diplomacy and
humanitarianism; the State of Kuwait support participated in bringing the Lebanese Civil War to a halt (1975–1990). A
mission for this purpose was led by Sheikh
Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, then
Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Kuwait, There were some instances of especially heroic resistance, particularly by combat aircraft pilots. Kuwaiti Forces, principally the Kuwait 35th Shaheed (Martyr) Armored Brigade of the Kuwait Army, engaged in the
Battle of the Bridges near
Al Jahra under Colonel Salem Masoud Al-Sorour, and the Kuwait Emiri Guards were engaged in the
Battle of Dasman Palace with the Emir's half-brother Sheikh
Fahad Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. There was an
exodus of Palestinian from Kuwait during and after the Gulf War. During the Iraqi occupation more than 200,000 Palestinians fled Kuwait due to harassment, intimidation by Iraqi security forces, After the Gulf War, the Kuwaiti authorities forcibly pressured nearly 200,000 Palestinians to leave Kuwait in 1991. After the liberation, Kuwait became a close military partner of the United States, Britain and France. Kuwait entered into a ten-year defense cooperation agreement with the United States in September 1991, and later with the United Kingdom and France. The defense cooperation with the United States, the United Kingdom and France is done at the training level in the foreign country and the joint military exercise level on Kuwaiti soil. The agreement with the United States also includes port access, military equipment storage, and joint training and exercises. The agreement did not officially provide for the stationing of United States service personnel in Kuwait, as the 1,500 US personnel remaining after the Gulf War were scheduled to leave within a few months. In 1992, the Kuwait Armed Forces initiated joint structuring of its various Armed Forces. In the same year, F/A-18 Hornet aircraft were delivered and entered official service with the Kuwaiti Air Force.
October 1994 crisis with Iraq In 1994, the Kuwait Armed Forces entered their fifth alert phase with the beginning of the
Iraq disarmament crisis in October, and the Kuwait Air Force signed on the delivery of
Starburst missile systems. In 1995, the Desert
Warrior tracked armoured vehicle and the
BM-30 Smerch System entered into service with the Kuwait Army. In 1996, the
M1A2 Abrams main battle tank and the
BMP-3 infantry fighting vehicle entered Kuwaiti service. During the same year, the
Mubarak al-Abdullah Joint Command and Staff College (), named in memory of
Lieutenant General Mubarak Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (1934–1987), opened.
Operation Desert Strike (1996) Following
Operation Desert Strike in 1996, Kuwait agreed to a United States Battalion Task Force to be permanently stationed in Kuwait. These US Army Intrinsic Action (later called
Operation Desert Spring on 1 October 1999) rotations and US Marine Corps EAGER MACE rotations conducted combined training with the Kuwait Land Forces and other coalition partners. In addition,
US Special Operations Forces conducted
Iris Gold rotations to train and assist other Kuwaiti military units. In 1997, the Kuwait Armed Forces entered into service the
MIM-104 Patriot surface-to-air missile (SAM) system with the Kuwait Air Force.
Operation Desert Fox (1998) In 1998, the Kuwait Armed Forces made an organizational change in command between the Chief of General Staff and his various assistants through the chains of command. During the same year, the Kuwait Armed Forces enter into their sixth alert phase with the
December 1998 bombing of Iraq (code-named Operation Desert Fox) between the United States, the United Kingdom and Iraq.
50th Anniversary of the Kuwait Army (1999) In 1999, during the reign of Sheikh
Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, the
General Staff Headquarters of the
Kuwait Army commemorated the 50th Anniversary
Golden jubilee of the Kuwait Armed Forces under the leadership of the
Commander-in-chief, the
Emir of Kuwait, and the directives of the
Chief of the General Staff. Newly ordered armored Naval warships were received and directly commissioned by the Kuwait Navy and Coast Guard.
Global war on terror (2001–present) After the
war on terror began with military campaigns following the
11 September 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States, Kuwait was declared one of fifteen
major non-NATO allies of the United States by US President
George W. Bush. During the
Iraq War, the Military of Kuwait played an important role in supporting the logistical operations of the
United States Armed Forces engaged in military operations in Iraq.
50th Anniversary of the Kuwait Air Force (2003) In May 2003, the
Kuwait Air Force commemorated their 50th Anniversary Golden jubilee under the leadership of the Commander-in-chief, the Emir of Kuwait.
50th Anniversary of the Kuwait Emiri Guard (2011) In June 2011, the Kuwait Emiri Guard commemorated their 50th Anniversary
Golden jubilee under the leadership of the
Commander-in-chief, and the
Emir of Kuwait.
50th Anniversary of the Kuwait Naval Force (2011) In November 2011, the
Kuwait Naval Force commemorated their 50th Anniversary Golden jubilee under the leadership of the Commander-in-chief, the Emir of Kuwait.
2015 intervention in Yemen The Military of Kuwait went on alert as a result of the 2015
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen by a coalition of forces of Arab countries including Kuwait, which contributed aircraft of the Kuwaiti Air Force. The military,
National Guard, Kuwait Police, and Fire Service Directorate activated defense plans to strengthen internal security measures. Defense measures also included intensifying security around oil installations in Kuwait and abroad., later the US Embassy was struck and Kuwait later intercepted multiple missiles near Salwa and Rumaithiya == Ranks of the Military of Kuwait ==