United States Interest in SW Asia

1. United States Interest in SW Asia SS7H2: The student will analyze the continuity and change in SW Asia (Middle East) leading to the 21st century

2. Political and Economic Interests • Vast supplies of oil are found in this area critical to the United States’ energy supplies • The United States support of the creation of the state of Israel in 1948

3. Persian Gulf War • August 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait in order to control Kuwait’s oil supplies • Saddam Hussein (leader of Iraq) claimed Kuwait was taking more oil than they were allowed from shared oil fields • Hussein also claimed that Kuwait should have been part of Iraq when the Ottoman Empire was broken up after WW I

4. Persian Gulf War • United Nations sent military forces to liberate Kuwait from Iraq’s invasion • U. S. sent troops to protect our oil supply • 39 countries joined in the effort and within 3 months (February 1991) Iraqi accepted a truce and withdrew • Also known as Operation Desert Storm

5. Afghanistan • 2001 after 9/11 U. S. began a military operation aimed at capturing the people responsible • Osama bin-Laden from Saudi Arabia was the leader of Al-Qaeda the terrorists who were responsible • The U. S. believed that the radical Muslim government of Afghanistan (Taliban) allowed Al-Qaeda to hide in the mountains

6. Afghanistan • U. S. launched attacks in Afghanistan in October 2001 in hopes of capturing bin-Laden • Afghanistan’s government collapsed • U. S. is still in Afghanistan attempting to help the Afghan people reorganize their government

7. Operation Iraqi Freedom • 2003 U. S. invaded Iraq because Saddam Hussein was developing nuclear weapons and helping al-Quaeda • Hussein’s government fell quickly because many Iraqi’s felt he was a cruel leader • U. S. troops have remained trying to stop the fighting between different ethnic and religious groups who are trying to take over as the new government is being established