１９９１年の湾岸戦争、即ちOperation Desert Stormで、米国中央軍 (USCENTCOM : US Central Command) 司令官として多国籍軍を指揮したノーマン・シュワルツコフ退役陸軍大将が、昨年１２月２８日に肺炎の合併症により亡くなった。享年７８歳。
シュワルツコフ将軍は、ベトナムの経験から特殊部隊の存在とその運用に非常に懐疑的だったが、湾岸戦争を経て瞠目すべき成果を挙げたイギリス特殊部隊による、スカッドミサイルの特定と破壊、通信網破壊や戦略的要地における破壊工作などにより、多国籍軍の被害を最小限に押さえつつ、最終的にイスラエルの参戦を阻止した事を高く評価し、停戦から１０日後にイギリス第２２特殊空挺連隊（SAS) に対し、下記の感状をおくり、その貢献を賞賛している。将軍が言葉を尽くした感状を下記に示し冥福を祈る。
Office of the Commander-in-Chief Operation Desert Storm
United States Central Command
APO New York09852-0006
Sir Patrick Hine
Air Chief Marshal,Joint Headquarters,Royal Air Force Wycombe,Buckinghamshire HP14 4U.
Sir Peter de la Billiere KCB,CBE,DSO,MC
Lieutenant General,British Forces Commander Middle East,Riyadh,Saudi Arabia.
Subject:Letter of Commendation for the 22nd Special Air Service (SAS) Regiment
1.I wish to officially commend the 22nd Special Air Service (SAS) Regiment for their totally outstanding performance of military operations during Operation Desert Storm.
2.Shortly after the initiation of the strategic air campaign,it became apparent that the Coalition Forces would be unable to eliminate Iraq's firing of scud missiles on Israel.
The continued firing of Scud on Israel carried with it enormous unfavorable political ramifications and could, in fact, have resulted in the dismantling of the carefully crafted coalition. Such a dismantling would have adversely affected in ways difficult to measure the ultimate outcome of the military campaign. It became apparent that the only way the Coalition could succeed in reducing these Scud launches was by physically placing military forces on the ground in the vicinity of the western launch sites. At that time, the majority of available Coalition forces were committed to the forthcoming military campaign in the eastern portion of the theatre of operations.
Further, none of these forces possessed the requisite skills and abilities required to conduct such a dangerous operation. The only force deemed qualified for this critical mission was the 22nd Special Air Service (SAS) Regiment.
3.From the first day they were assigned their missions until the last day of the conflict, the performance of the 22nd Special Air Service (SAS) Regiment was courageous and highly professional. The area in which they were committed proved to contain far more numerous intelligence estimate, the terrain was much more difficult than expected, and the weather conditions were unseasonably brutal. Despite these hazards, in a very short period of time the 22nd Special Air Service (SAS) Regiment was successful in totally denying the central corridor of western Iraq to Iraqi Scud units. The result was that the principal areas used by the Iraqis to fire Scuds on Tel Aviv were no longer available to them. They were required to move their Scud missile firing forces to the northwest portion of Iraq, and from that position the firing of Scuds was essentially militarily ineffective.
4.When it became necessary to introduce United States Special Operations Forces into the area to attempt to close down the northwest Scud areas, the 22nd Special Air Service (SAS) Regiment provided invaluable assistance to the US forces. They took every possible measure to ensure the US forces were thoroughly briefed and were able to profit from the valuable lessons that had been learned by earlier SAS deployments into western Iraq. I am completely convinced that had the US forces not received these thorough indoctrinations by SAS personnel, US forces would have suffered a much higher rate of casualties than was ultimately the case. Further, the SAS and US joint forces immediately merged into a combined fighting force where the synergetic effect of these fine units ultimately caused the enemy to be convinced that they were facing forces in western Iraq that were more than tenfold the size of those thev were actually facing. As a result, large numbers of enemy forces that might otherwise have been deployed in the eastern theatre were tied down in western Iraq.
5.The performance of the 22nd Special AIr Service (SAS) Regiment during Operation Desert Storm was in the highest traditions of the professional military service and in keeping with the proud history and tradition that has been established by that regiment.
Please ensure that this commendation receives appropriate attention and is passed on the unit and its members.
Signed:
H.Norman Schwarzkopf
General, US Army
Commander-in-Chief