WHEN the United States talks about coalitions, one should realise that it is all about finance. Not about bringing together countries to fight a war together.
Back in 1990, when Iraq invaded Kuwait, George Bush Senior put his foot in it by threatening never to take it lying down. He was forced to go to war, reluctantly. But his secretary of state James Baker made things worthwhile by bringing together a bunch of nations who were prepared to pick up the bills.
The Americans did the lion’s share of the fighting. And the others in the “coalition” paid the bills.
For example, Japan and Germany could definitely not take part in any fighting, given that the constitutions of both countries at the time did not allow them to participate in conflicts. But each gave $US9 billion to the effort. The US ended up with a profit of $US6 billion after collecting $US60 billion and spending $US54 billion.
That alone made the effort to bring the “coalition” together worthwhile.
The US also benefits through the sale of weapons. Practically all the countries which are part of the current “coalition” which has banded together to fight the Islamic State extremists use American weapons.
Presto, all the missiles which get used will have to be replaced. Factor in anything from $US50 million to $US650 million, depending on how sophisticated the missile is. The stocks of companies that are part of the US military industrial complex have soared ever since the conflict erupted and American patriots like Dick Cheney have been watching their bank accounts swell.