The rise of jammers in the first Gulf War

　　During the first Gulf War, many countries recognized the importance and versatility of GPS in modern warfare, and in the years that followed, the potential for GPS jammers grew. U.S. traditional adversaries openly sell high-power military jammers at various defense exhibitions.

　　During the Second Gulf War, Iraqi forces placed Russian-sourced jamming equipment on or near buildings of important strategic targets. These jammers are designed to confuse cruise missile guidance systems such as Boeing JDAM and Raytheon's BGM-109 Tomahawk Land Attack Cruise Missile and Enhanced Paveway.

　　The changing nature of warfare and military technology will continue to affect the "spatial organization of nations and their resources" over time. End-user intent consistent with current interference distances means a better understanding of the risks and vulnerabilities of assets, and how close they are to those end-users.

　　Complicating the situation, since small jamming devices are readily available, powerful jammers can be homemade or smuggled into territory as parts, then reassembled, or even projected from aircraft or via ships.

　　In the longer term, more investment is in the anti-spoofing and anti-jamming capabilities of the JDAM suite, as well as guided weapons developed specifically to locate and target jamming locations. Additionally, the DoD seeks to invest more in counterspace capabilities due to Iraqi interference.

　　The method of placing jammers on critical infrastructure remains a modern defense model. For example, Russia's defense initiative Pole-21 involves installing jammers on critical domestic infrastructure to prevent possible conventional warfare.

　　While the effectiveness of jamming smart weapons is not entirely clear from open-access sources, it certainly has implications for military strategy and political and financial implications for years to come.

　　For military strategists, precision bombing is more likely to be successful in the absence of jammers, so geographic and geopolitical factors are influenced by strategic alliances, defense acquisitions, end-user intent, and jammer owners.