History of the Gulf War: Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm

The Shift in American Foreign Policy Toward Iraq

• Rapid Strategic Reorientation: In the span of just $6$ days, the Bush administration pivoted from attempting to diplomatically dissuade Saddam Hussein from invading Kuwait to denouncing the conquest and brokering a military alliance with Saudi Arabia.

• Initial Mission Objective: The first war waged by the United States against Iraq was launched with a declared defensive mission: protecting Saudi Arabia from a potential Iraqi invasion.

• Operation Desert Shield: This phase involved the unprecedented deployment of hundreds of thousands of U.S. Soldiers and Marines to Southwest Asia (the Middle East), specifically on the soil of Saudi Arabia. These troops were positioned for defense and deterrence rather than immediate combat.

• Timeline to Conflict: While the response to the invasion was swift, it would be nearly $6$ months before the United States officially went to war to expel Iraqi forces and restore Kuwait's independence.

Diplomatic Coalition and International Legal Response

• Global Alliance Building: While President Bush famously declared that Saddam's aggression "will not stand," U.S. diplomats sought support from Great Britain, Egypt, and other friendly nations.

• U.S.-Soviet Cooperation: A significant indicator of the post-Cold War era (following $1989$) was the participation of the Soviet Union under Mikhail Gorbachev. Despite the USSR's history of rivalry with the U.S., Gorbachev acceded to American proposals at the United Nations Security Council to condemn and sanction Iraq.

• UN Security Council Structure: The Soviet Union, as one of the five permanent members with veto power, chose not to block the resolutions. The five permanent members are:

  • The United States

  • Great Britain

  • France

  • China

  • The Soviet Union

• Strategic Groundwork in Riyadh: A military delegation was sent to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to establish an operational base. On $08/08/1990$, Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney and General Norman Schwarzkopf (head of CENTCOM) convinced King Fahad bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to accept U.S. troops on Saudi soil to serve as a deterrent and provide a base for potential offensive action.

• Operational Dates:

  • Operation Desert Shield: Began $08/07/1990$ and ended $01/17/1991$.

  • Operation Desert Storm: Superseded Desert Shield on $01/17/1991$.

Military Evolution and the Birth of CENTCOM

• Deployment Scale: The initial commitment involved $200,000$ troops, representing the largest overseas military deployment for U.S. forces since the Second World War. This number eventually grew to nearly $600,000$ personnel.

• Breaking the Taboo: Placing non-Muslim foreign troops in Saudi Arabia was highly controversial, as it violated a decades-old taboo against foreign military presence near the Islamic holy sites of Mecca and Medina.

• From RDF to CENTCOM:

  • Rapid Deployment Force (RDF): Created by Carter in $1979$.

  • Rapid Deployment Joint Task Force (RDJTF): Formed in $1980$. Its first mission was Operation Eagle Claw, the failed hostage rescue in Iran.

  • Evolution: Under the Reagan administration in $1983$, the RDJTF was converted into a full combatant command known as Central Command (CENTCOM).

• CENTCOM Geography and "SWACOM": The command's area of responsibility included:

  • Northeast Africa: Egypt, Sudan, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia.

  • Southwest Asia/Middle East: Afghanistan, Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Pakistan, People's Republic of Yemen, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, The United Arab Emirates, and the Yemen Arab Republic.

  • A proposal once suggested naming the command "Southwest Asia Command" (SWACOM), though it was not adopted.

The Weinberger and Powell Doctrines

• The Stalemate: By November $1990$, General Colin Powell (Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff) estimated that economic sanctions might take $5$ years to impact Saddam Hussein's behavior. President Bush found this diplomatic impasse unacceptable.

• Strategic Skepticism: General Powell and General Schwarzkopf, both Vietnam veterans, were wary of becoming "bogged down" in a distant quagmire.

• Caspar Weinberger's Criteria: As an aide to Secretary of Defense Casper Weinberger during the Reagan administration, Powell adopted a cautious philosophy for the use of force:

  1. Commitment only if vital national interests of the U.S. or allies are involved.

  2. Troops committed only with clearly defined political and military objectives.

  3. Troops must have the capacity to accomplish these objectives.

  4. Reasonable assurance of support from U.S. public opinion and Congress.

• The Powell Doctrine: This became the textbook application of the Weinberger criteria: using overwhelming military force to achieve specific, limited goals with massive domestic and international support.

Legal Authorization and Domestic Support

• UN Security Council Resolution 678: Passed on November $29$, $1990$. It ordered Iraq to comply with Resolution $660$ and vacate Kuwait by $01/15/1991$. If not, it authorized member states to use "all necessary means" to restore peace.

  • Votes: Support from U.S., UK, France, and USSR. China abstained. Support from $8$ out of $10$ non-permanent members.

• Domestic Polling: A simple majority (roughly $58\%$, based on November and December polls) supported the use of force.

• Congressional Authorization:

  • Senate: $10$ Democrats crossed the aisle to vote in favor.

  • House: $86$ Democrats and $164$ Republicans voted in favor.

Operation Desert Storm: Execution and Victory

• Air Campaign: Began on $01/17/1991$.

  • Included more than $300$ cruise missiles.

  • Close to $300,000$ piloted sorties.

  • The Iraqi Air Force was disabled within a week, and Iraqi strength was cut in half through losses and desertions.

• Ground Offensive: Began on February $24$, $1991$.

  • Involved $200,000$ U.S. and allied service members using overwhelming force against battered Iraqi brigades.

  • The ground war lasted only $100$ hours (less than $5$ days).

• Liberation and Cessation: Kuwait was liberated on February $26$, $1991$. President Bush declared an end to combat operations at midnight Eastern Standard Time at the end of the month.

Casualties, Consequences, and the "Vietnam Syndrome"

• Casualty Statistics:

  • U.S. Combat Deaths: $147$ service members.

  • Iraqi Military Fatalities: Estimated between $20,000$ and $50,000$.

  • Iraqi Civilian Fatalities: Estimated at $3,664$.

• The Vietnam Syndrome: President Bush proclaimed the end of the national hesitation to use military power, stating, "By God, we've kicked the Vietnam syndrome once and for all."

• Decision Against Baghdad: The U.S. did not move to topple Saddam Hussein's government. This was a strategic decision based on several factors:

  1. Lack of Mandate: The UN resolutions authorized the liberation of Kuwait, not the conquest of Iraq.

  2. Coalition Stability: Moving to Baghdad would likely have caused the Arab coalition and the French to pull out, leaving only the U.S. and UK.

  3. Metaphor of the "Dinosaur in a Tar Pit": Leaders feared that occupying Iraq would lead to an endless, costly administration of the country with the U.S. paying $100\%$ of the costs.

Questions & Discussion

• Observation on Iraqi Hostility: While the Iraqi defenders were defeated, they remained hostile to U.S. presence.

• Kuwaiti Reception: A Marine commander described a "high point" in Kuwait City where thousands of locals lined the roads with Kuwaiti and American flags, shouting, "God bless you America… We love you."

• The "Vietnam Syndrome" Context: A participant noted that George Bush kept his promise to avoid a quagmire by maintaining international legitimacy through eight UN resolutions.

• Consequences of Further Advancement: Discussion reiterated that taking Baghdad would have made the U.S. the sole "occupying power" with no clear exit strategy, stuck like a "dinosaur in a tar pit."