The promotion of the Langkawi International Maritime & Aerospace Exhibition (Lima 2007) in London recently by the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia coincides with the escalating conflict in southern Lebanon. The Lebanese government appealed to the international community to help end Israeli aggression. In responding to the situation in Lebanon, the government of Malaysia is fully prepared to send peacekeeping troops if there is such a request from the United Nations Security Council in addition to bringing the matter for discussion at the ASEAN Ministerial Meeting here in Kuala Lumpur.
The stance by the Malaysian government to send peacekeepers to Lebanon is a noble act. This proposal is founded in the Malaysian government’s approach in ending past conflicts in the Congo, Bosnia Herzegovina, Peru, and others. In the case of conflicts in the oil producing countries, the Gulf States, I believe that Malaysia should reserve its policy of sending peacekeeping troops for these countries and focus more on building regional responsibility within that region.
Malaysian efforts in defense and constructive engagements in peacebuilding in ASEAN is well known among its members. Maybe this expertise could be exported to the Middle East rather then sending peacekeeping troops under the charter of the apparently weak United Nations. Malaysia should be given an active role as campaigner of regional peace in the Middle East. The spirit and responsibility of bringing conflicting parties together as reflected in the Quran should be understood together with the notion of looking into alternatives to secure lasting peace and not to engage in non-predictable military responses and encounters. It seems that the practice of sending peacekeeping troops has long been practiced in the Middle East. So far, it guarantees no concrete solution for long-term stability. Therefore, it is high time to look into ways to secure long lasting regional security using domestic military resources.
Looking at statistics from the World Almanac Book on active troops for every one thousand people from countries comprising the Middle East, one may conclude that member countries in that region should be engaged and mobilized to be more responsible towards securing their own territory. According to this source, the number of active troops for every thousand people in the gulf states, namely the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Syria, Bahrain, Qatar, Oman, Libya, Iran and Saudi Arabia, are ranked below 60 of the world’s active troops throughout the world. In terms of the number of active troops, Iran leads the grouping comprising 12,468 million, Egypt 1,109 and Syria 427. Israel in comparison, comprises 1,413 million of active troops, or roughly 28 active troops per 1000 citizens. Malaysia should look into how to mobilize and engage the Gulf States rather than just relying on war. The military resources in terms of manpower in the region are extreme but need serious strategy and direction if regional stability and peace are desired.
Perhaps it is difficult for the gulf states to come to terms amongst themselves due to pressure from the dominant interested states with regard the region, Malaysia, however appears more than able to lead the gulf countries towards a better future for peace in that region. If Malaysia is entrusted by the Security Council to lead the mission, perhaps the first step is to look into the military resources of that region, and to mobilize them to secure manageable peace in areas of conflict. Perhaps, this mobilization will not be limited to ending the war in Lebanon, but may and should be done with the view of long term purpose through effective military cooperation in truncating a potential threat to peace before the threat manifests while at the same time adopts a mechanism and strategy to secure long term plans to prevent war.
Some may think, how will military resources be able to end war especially since the military is an instrument of war? Soldiers are undeniably instruments of war but these instruments may be employed to deter warmongers with their illegitimate attempt to destabilize peace in a region. It means that any illegitimate attack deemed so by an entrusted coordinating body will be reciprocated by attacking its source.
Perhaps, the Gulf States need to view regional security and peace as an asset for development, thus long term panning and strategic alliances among members will be required. At this point, the Secretary General of the OIC could indulge in a more active role by calling all the necessary parties within the Gulf Sates to action and to commit to being responsible for ensuring peace and stability in their own backyard and not just mere lip service.
Outsiders cannot remedy a prolonged war in the Middle East. It requires the active participation of those living there (insiders) who know the culture and traditions of that region better than foreigners. What is needed now is minimal intervention by the outsiders, particularly by non-controversial Muslim countries like Malaysia, to guide and direct necessary steps towards regional security and peace. If the Five Defense Power Agreement (FDPA), adopted by some member countries in the South East Asian region, manages to suppress threats to peace, then perhaps the Gulf States would need to look into forming a strategic alliance among in order to benefit from the rich domestic resources of wealth and power.