U.S. Support for Regional Complex Contingency Operations: Lessons from ECOMOG

In the aftermath of the Cold War, intervention in internal conflicts has taken on new characteristics: it is often driven by a humanitarian imperative; it is usually a combination of civilian and military efforts; and, it is usually a multilateral, rather than a unilateral, endeavor. This last characteristic, driven by international politics, represents a complex set of requirements: coalitions must be both politically and militarily viable, able to take decisions and act on them effectively. In this paper, the intervention in Liberia (1990-1997) by the Economic Community of West Africa's Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) is examined for insights into the potential for effective regional, coalitional, peace operations. The factors that determined the coalition's political and military viability are examined, and broader implications are drawn for future regional coalitions. Perhaps predictably, this case study suggests political viability can exist only when the coalition members have strong mutual interests and that military viability is relative only to the requirements of the operation at hand.