The End of the Cold War & the Persian Gulf War

1. The End of the Cold War & the Persian Gulf War 1988-1992

2. Richard B. Cheney: Secretary of Defense, 1989-93 • George H. W. Bush: President, 1989-1993 • Colin L. Powell: Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, 1989-93

3. The end of Soviet Communism • 1989: Communist regimes fall in Eastern European states. • Berlin Wall opened in 1989, removed by 1990. • 1990: Communist Party dissolved in Soviet Union. • 1991: Soviet Union dissolves, replaced by Commonwealth of Independent States

4. Fall of the Wall • Boris Yeltsin, Russian President, 1991-1999

5. Change facilitates (& complicates) arms control • Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE Treaty), signed 1990. • Limited offensive conventional arms held by Eastern and Western states in Europe. • START Treaty, signed 1991. • Reduced total numbers of delivery vehicles and warheads in U.S. and Soviet arsenals.

6. Fall of U.S.S.R. undercuts Communist efforts elsewhere • Nicaragua: peace negotiated between Sandinistas and contras in 1987. • Sandinistas voted out of power in 1990. • El Salvador: Peace negotiated between government and Marxist groups in 1990. • Cuba: pulls troops out of interventions in Africa (Angola, Ethiopia, Namibia)

7. Panama • Manuel Noriega: general and de facto ruler of Panama, 1983-89. • Had ties to U.S. intelligence, Fidel Castro, and Latin American drug interests. • 1989: various incidents provoke confrontation with U.S.

8. Operation JUST CAUSE • U.S. invasion of Panama: Dec. 20-28, 1989. • After fleeing to Vatican embassy, Noriega surrenders, flown to U.S. to face drug charges.

9. More trouble in the Persian Gulf • August 2, 1990: Iraq invades Kuwait. • Kuwait “annexed” Saddam Hussein, Aug. 8. • Aug. 5: Bush declares will wage war to restore Kuwaiti independence if necessary.

10. Larger dangers • Unchallenged Iraqi occupation of Kuwait threatened: • Saudi Arabia • other regional Arab regimes • Israel • Iraq also possessed chemical and biological weapons.

11. Operation DESERT SHIELD • Goal: Protect Saudi Arabia • Begins August 7, 1990. • Thousands of troops transported by air • Millions of tons of equipment and fuel transported by sea.

12. Diplomacy • Bush Administration builds a coalition of 24 nations to confront Iraq: • 23 countries provide naval forces; 22 ground troops; 12 provide air units • Other counties also help pay the bills: • U.S. costs about $60-70 billion – foreign contributions covered $50 billion (not counting services in kind).

13. The problem of Israel • The coalition included many Arab states. • Israeli participation would have complicated the position of allied Arab governments, leading to their withdrawal from the war. • Bush Administration successfully keeps Israel out of the conflict.

14. The Role of the United Nations • Bush Administration uses the UN as a forum to build and maintain the coalition against Iraq. • Gets UN to impose various sanctions upon Iraq between August and November 1990. • UN Security Council authorized use of force against Iraq if it did not withdraw from Kuwait by January 15, 1991.

15. Increasing the commitment • October 1990: Bush wanted a plan to kick Iraq out of Kuwait. • Military planners fail to come up with convincing plans given projected force levels. • November 1990: Bush increases number of U.S. troops to facilitate offensive operations.

16. The Powell Doctrine • U.S. military action: • should be used only as a last resort. • only for a clear national security risk. • force, when used, should be overwhelming and disproportionate to the force used by the enemy. • there must be strong support for the campaign by the general public. • there must be a clear exit strategy.

17. U.S. manpower • 237,800 Reservists & National Guardsmen (& women) were called to active duty during the Gulf War. • 40,000 in August • 187,000 between November 1990 and January 1991 • 10,000 volunteered for active duty

18. H. Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr. • Commander, U.S. Central Command and of coalition forces in the Gulf.

19. The plan to attack Iraq • Month-long air campaign • Preliminary goal of destroying Iraqi air defenses. • Other targets included military and industrial facilities, first in Iraq, then Kuwait • If needed, ground offensive would follow air operations.

20. The ground plan

21. Operation DESERT STORM • January 15, 1991: Ordered by President George H. W. Bush • January 17: air operations began • February 24: ground campaign launched • February 28: ceasefire and coalition victory.

22. High-tech air war • Smart bombs, precision-guided munitions. • Advanced air control & target acquisition systems. • New planes

23. Scud Attacks • Iraq launches missiles at Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain. • Coalition responds with “Great Scud Hunt,” sending planes and special operations units to locate and destroy these weapons.

24. “The 100-hour War” • Coalition ground forces blast through Iraqi defenses. • Highly effective artillery and air support. • Iraqi forces not as numerous or tough as anticipated. • Failure: Republican Guard divisions escape.

25. “The Highway of Death” • Fears of public reaction to large numbers of Iraqi casualties helps push for quick conclusion to hostilities.

26. Assessment • Casualties: • US – 613: 146 killed, 467 wounded. • Coalition – 410: 92 killed, 318 wounded. • Iraqi – 12,000 killed, about 86,000 surrendered. • Kuwaiti independence restored. • Iraqi strategic military capability devastated.

27. Problems for the future • Saddam Hussein remains in power in Iraq.