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Coalition of the willing

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The coalition of the willing is the phrase used by U.S. administration officials to refer to those nations whose governments supported the U.S. position in the Iraq disarmament crisis and then the U.S. invasion of Iraq, numbering 48 by the administration count, most of them small countries, by Secretary of State Colin Powell's admission.

On November 20, 2002, just ahead of a NATO summit in Prague, U.S. President George W. Bush had a joint news conference with Czech President Vaclav Havel in which Bush first used the phrase 'coalition of the willing.'

Pre-invasion coalition

The signatories to a letter of support for U.S. policy in Iraq before the invasion began were: Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Macedonia, Palau, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Romania, and Slovenia are members of the Vilnius 10, applying to membership in NATO.

The majority of the population in most of these countries at this point opposed the U.S. policy by wide margins.

Invasion coalition

In the Gulf War of 1991, at least 33 countries sent forces to the campaign against Iraq, and 16 of those provided combat ground forces, including a large number of Arab countries. Countries other than the United States pledged more than $50 billion of the $61 billion cost.

In the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the only fighting forces are from the United States, Britain, Poland and Australia. Ten other countries are known to have offered small numbers of noncombat forces, mostly either medical teams and specialists in decontamination, making a comparable alliance of about 13 countries. The United States is expected to be responsible for essentially the entire cost of the war, at least $75 billion.

The coalition notably does not include NATO members France, Germany, or Canada, or permanent Security Council members Russia or China.

The coalition, according to the White House, as of March 26, 2003, is, in alphabetical order:

Afghanistan, Albania, Angola, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Colombia, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Denmark, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, Georgia, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Mongolia, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Palau, Panama, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Rwanda, Singapore, Slovakia, Solomon Islands, South Korea, Spain, Turkey, Uganda, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, Uzbekistan.

The nature of the coalition members support:

Combat troops from:

  • United States - hundreds of thousands of troops, etc.
  • Britain - 45,000 troops, aircraft, tanks
  • Australia - 2,000 troops, 14 Hornet fighter jets, transport ships, aircraft and other weaponry
  • Poland - 54 combat troops, 74-member chemical decontamination team, supply ship with 53 sailors

Military support (no combat troops):

  • Denmark - submarine, warship and a medical team
  • Kuwait - hosts invasion force
  • South Korea - 700 non-combat troops

Chemical, biological, and nuclear specialists:

  • Bulgaria - 150 specialists (and airspace use, bases, use of Black Sea port)
  • Slovakia - chemical decontamination specialists
  • Czech Republic (and airspace use)
  • Romania (and airspace use)
  • Spain - 900 non-combat troops for medical support vessel for treatment of contamination
  • Netherlands - three Patriot missile batteries and 360 soldiers for defense of Turkey

Use of bases and airspace:

  • Ethiopia
  • Hungary (hosts U.S. base)
  • Italy (not for direct military attacks)
  • Portugal - Lajes Field air base in Azores

Airspace use:

  • Albania
  • Azerbaijan
  • Eritrea
  • Georgia (possibly airfields)
  • Lithuania
  • Macedonia
  • Turkey (after failed negotiations to permit troop deployment)

Post-war reconstruction

  • Japan
  • El Salvador
  • Estonia
  • Philippines

Political support only

  • Afghanistan
  • Colombia
  • Dominican Republic
  • Honduras
  • Iceland (has no military)
  • Latvia (may deploy some troops)
  • Marshall Islands
  • Micronesia (has no military)
  • Mongolia
  • Nicaragua
  • Palau (has no military)
  • Rwanda
  • Singapore
  • Uganda
  • Uzbekistan

Middle East nations, not announced coalition members

  • Bahrain: - use of bases, frigate and troops for Kuwait defense Allowing use of bases for U.S. troop buildup
  • Egypt - use of airbases and Suez Canal
  • Israel - use of storage facilities, military intelligence
  • Jordan - airspace use, hosts some U.S. troops
  • Qatar: U.S. Central Command at Camp As Sayliyah, air base
  • Saudi Arabia - air base only to enforce the "no-fly zone" over southern Iraq
  • United Arab Emirates - airspace and port use, hosts thousands of U.S. troops

Arab League nations that voted "that the invasion stop, that the invading forces will be withdrawn, and that Iraq's sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence will be preserved:" Jordan, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Tunisia, Algeria, Djibouti, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Somalia, Iraq, Oman, Palestine, Qatar, Comoros, Lebanon, Libya, Egypt, Morocco, Mauritania, Yemen.

By one count, countries in support of the invasion include (1991 participants are in italics): Afghanistan, Albania [1], Australia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Colombia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Eritrea, Estonia [2], Ethiopia, Georgia, Great Britain, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait [3], Latvia, Lithuania [4], Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Mongolia, the Netherlands, Nicaragua, Palau, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal (but parliament may censure the PM), Romania, Rwanda, Singapore (maybe aid), Slovakia, South Korea, Spain, Taiwan [5], Turkey, Uganda, Ukraine, the United States, Uzbekistan. Total: 47.

Nations in opposition of the invasion include (1991 participants are in italics): Algeria [6][7], Angola [8][9], Armenia [10], Bahrain [11], Bangladesh [12], Belarus [13], Belgium [14], Brazil [15], Canada [16], Cape Verde [17], China [18], Comoros [19], Costa Rica [20], Croatia [21], Cuba [22], Djibouti [23], Ecuador [24], Egypt [25], France [26], Germany (airspace use) [27], Greece (airspace use) [28], Guinea-Bissau [29], India [30], Iran [31], Iraq, Jordan [32], Lebanon [33], Malaysia [34], Mauritania [35], Morocco [36], Mozambique [37], New Zealand [38], Nicaragua [39], Nigeria [40], North Korea [41], Norway (but will provide humanitarian aid) [42], Oman [43], Pakistan, Palestinian Authority [44], Principe [45], Qatar [46], Russia [47], Sao Tome [48], Saudi Arabia [49], Somalia [50], Sri Lanka [51], Sweden (but will provide humanitarian aid) [52], Switzerland [53], Sudan [54], Syria [55], Tunisia [56], United Arab Emirates [57], the Vatican [58], Venezuela [59], Yemen [60], Zimbabwe [61]. Total: 56.

Declared neutral: Ireland [62], Thailand [63] Total: 2.

Nations that have not announced a stance or whose intentions are yet unclear (1991 participants are in italics): Andorra, Argentina, Austria, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Benin, Bermuda, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia, Botswana, Brunei, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, Chechnya, Chile, Cyprus, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Dominica, East Timor, Equatorial Guinea, Fiji, Finland, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, the Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Kenya, Kiribati, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Madagascar, Malawi, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Mauritius, Mexico (flip flopping) [64][65], Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Montenegro, Myanmar, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Niger, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Republic of the Congo, Saint Kitts, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent, Samoa, San Marino, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Slovenia, South Africa, Suriname, Swaziland, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Vietnam, Western Sahara, Zambia. Total: 95.

'Note: references will be posted by March 29, 2003'

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