Month: November 2024

The use of British Storm Shadow missile against targets in Russia may or may not be an escalation in the Ukraine War, but it is certainly a reminder that Gunboat Diplomacy is still alive in the 21st Century.

The Royal Navy and later the USA perfected this method of persuading less-technical states to follow a course of action that was beneficial to the larger nation. The original theory of lobbing a few cannon balls from a flotilla off the coast against a ruler’s palace, morphed into cruise missile strikes against military facilities, such as ammunition bunkers or training facilities. An important part of the theory was to avoid civilian casualties, which might lead to an escalation of the conflict – hence the need for precision and satellite imagery.

President Clinton tried to use it against Al Qa’ida in the 1990s with little effect. NATO used it against Colonel Gadhafi in 2011 with limited success. Afterwards, the UK MoD claimed that none of their Storm Shadows failed to detonate, but we found one in the Sahara, which was still intact. We removed the outer parts and flew them back to England while blowing up the explosive well-away from any population centre (see photo below).

This form of Air, or Maritime Power is attractive to politicians, who wish to avoid “boots on the ground”, but there are not many examples of Gun Boat diplomacy success in this day and age, because the important decisions are made by and among the people living on the ground.

Storm Shadow in Libya

This week sees the anniversary of one of the most contentious Victoria Cross awards in World War II. Geoffrey Keyes was a dashing young cavalry officer, turned Commando, whose father had been Admiral of the Fleet. During a poorly planned raid on a location known to have been used by General Rommel, Keyes was shot dead by his own soldiers. However, the publicity-seeking head of the Commando operation Robert Laycock wrote him up for his “magnificent leadership and outstanding gallantry” as well as setting “an example of supreme self-sacrifice and devotion to duty” and he was subsequently awarded Britain’s highest gallantry medal.

There is no doubt that Laycock’s citation was a fabrication because he did not see the attack for himself. In addition, the detail about the location on Keyes’s gravestone in Benghazi does not correspond with the memoirs of contemporaries, such as Vladimir Peniakoff; so why was this allowed to happen when so many other citations were turned down in the war?

Laycock provided a clue to the answer a few years later, when he wrote: “More than
once [David Stirling] would have won the highest military honour the sovereign
can bestow, were it not for the rule that a senior officer must be present to vouch
for the circumstances of the citation—and senior officers were never well placed to
witness Stirling’s raids behind the lines.”

There is a huge irony that while Laycock was with Keyes on the night of 16 November, Stirling was parachuting into Gazala on an early mission with his Special Air Service. Unfortunately, this operation to attack the new Messerschmitt 109F aircraft fared no better than Keyes’ effort. A low cloud base and high winds conspired to spoil the plan as many soldiers were dragged along the boulder-strewn ground and broke their backs. The dispersal of equipment and explosives over a wide area prevented the group from continuing and the surviving soldiers only just managed to reach their rendezvous with the Long Range Desert Group.

These operations foundered on the jagged rocks of poor preparation, inadequate training and inauspicious weather. However, their failure did not stop Laycock and Stirling, who learned hard lessons and continued to develop ideas for surprise attacks. Although there were more calamities, the strategic shock of these raids forced Rommel to increase the guards on his supply dumps and communication sites, which ultimately benefited Eighth Army.

I visited Keyes’ grave in the Benghazi Commonwealth War Cemetery in 2012 after a number of head-stones had been smashed by local militia in retaliation for events in Afghanistan. However, I was pleased to see that his memorial was untouched.

Recent years have seen the Media become increasingly over-sentimental when they cover traumatic events, but I felt the King’s respectful participation in the historic Remembrance Ceremony today minimised any mawkishness. The magnificent march-past, wonderfully orchestrated by the Royal British Legion, was inclusive, respectful and cathartic. The large number of groups involved and the long length of time for them to pass the Cenotaph demonstrated clearly how important the Armed Forces are to the British public.

Sadly, this deep public support has not been translated into a robust Defence capability in 2024. This morning, the forlorn Chief of Defence pleaded for more money, but the ensuing arguments about 2.5% of GDP missed the point completely. Our Combat Arms need a complete reboot to replace the tanks and infantry fighting vehicles that came into service in the previous Millennium and what good is 2.5% when we cannot put an armoured division into the field and our adversary is spending 40%?

This week’s US Election result has put UK Defence Spending back on the Agenda. Hopefully, the Government will heed the warnings and fulfil their primary responsibility to the country by ensuring the Royal Navy, Army and Royal Air Force have sufficient personnel and that the Defence Review they are currently producing is focused on the Front Line, not the Bottom Line.

Lutyens Cenotaph Since 1920

Remembrance Week has been widened to include a commemoration of many other groups than was originally conceived when the Unknown Soldier was buried in Westminster Abbey on 11 November 1920. It is vital to make the event relevant for those who are grieving for family members, who have been killed whilst serving in the Armed Forces during recent military operations. I also understand why the organisers now embrace those who have been affected by conflict because it is important that no sections of society feel disenfranchised.

However, it is equally the case that we should highlight why we wear the red poppy. To my mind, the best articulation of this is the poem written by a Canadian (a country which has been sadly underappreciated for their contributions to the Free World), John McCrae of Montreal.