Data
Date	January 17 to March 3, 1991.
Place	Kuwait, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Israel.
Belligerents	Iraq vs. international coalition led by the United States.
Outcome	Triumph of the international coalition.

The Gulf War, also known as Operation Desert Storm , was a military conflict that pitted Iraq against an international coalition made up of 34 nations and led by the United States.

The war began on January 17, 1991, and was a response to the invasion of Kuwait by the Iraqi regime in 1990.

After a campaign of air and naval bombardments on the Iraqi positions and a rapid ground intervention, the Iraqi government agreed to withdraw from Kuwait, whose sovereignty was restored on March 3, 1991 .

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Historic context

On August 2, 1990, the Iraqi army invaded Kuwait and in a few days managed to occupy the entire territory of the small emirate located on the shores of the Persian Gulf.

The objective of the Iraqi regime, led by Saddam Hussein, was to appropriate the Kuwaiti oil production to be able to face a foreign debt that exceeded 70,000 million dollars. That debt had been generated during the war between Iraq and Iran , between 1980 and 1988.

On August 6, the United Nations (UN) Security Council agreed to economic sanctions against Iraq and on August 25 authorized the use of force to force it to withdraw its troops. On November 29, the UN set January 15, 1991 as the deadline for the unconditional withdrawal of Iraqi troops.

Meanwhile, the United States, led by its President George Bush, had organized an international coalition of 34 countries to fight Iraq. The coalition sent large numbers of troops, planes, armor and armaments to Saudi Arabia, while the Iraqis fortified their positions in Kuwait.

Britain, France, Spain, Italy, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Australia and New Zealand were the countries that most strongly supported the US initiative. For its part, Iraq was supported by Libya, Yemen, Jordan, Sudan and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

Development of the Gulf War

The war began on January 17, 1991 with an air and naval bombing campaign on Iraqi positions in Kuwait and on military targets in Iraq, including runways, air defense systems, the Ministry of Defense, the headquarters of the Air Force and the Intelligence Directorate.

The Hussein regime launched Soviet-made missiles at coalition bases in Saudi Arabia and several Israeli cities. These latest attacks sought to force Israel’s intervention in the war, to provoke the departure of Egypt and Syria from the coalition. But Hussein did not achieve his goal because Israel preserved its neutrality. 

The multinational bombardment lasted five weeks, after which a ground assault was launched on February 24. The armor of the multinational force advanced rapidly without encountering much resistance.

The coalition ceased its advance on February 28, 100 hours after the ground campaign began, and having achieved the objective of expelling Iraqi troops from Kuwaiti territory.

On March 3, Iraq accepted all the conditions imposed by the UN including the restitution of Kuwait’s sovereignty.

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Causes and consequences of the Gulf War

Causes

Among the main causes of the Gulf War are:

• The border conflicts between Iraq and Kuwait, centered on sovereignty over the islands of Bubiyan and Warbah, which were in the hands of Kuwait.
• The concern of the Hussein regime about the increase in Kuwaiti oil production above what was agreed by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). This increase in production had lowered the international price of crude. This hurt Iraq, whose exports depended almost entirely on oil.
• The Iraqi invasion of Kuwait , which began on August 2, 1990 and ended with the rapid occupation of the entire territory of the Arab emirate.
• Condemnation of the invasion by the Arab League and the United Nations Security Council .
• The decision of the United States government not to tolerate the invasion, under the pretext that the rules of international law had been violated. What really worried the Bush administration was Iraq’s seizure of Kuwaiti oil. American industry relied heavily on the supply of oil from the Persian Gulf.
• The failure of an agreement proposed by Hussein, according to which the north of Kuwait remained in the hands of Iraq. The United States rejected this proposal and demanded the complete withdrawal of Iraqi troops.

Consequences

The main consequences of the Gulf War were as follows:

• The liberation of Kuwait from Iraqi rule.
• The weakening of the Hussein regime . This weakening was taken advantage of by the Shiites and the Kurds, to start rebellions in the south and in the north of Iraq, respectively. However, Hussein managed to suppress the rebellions and remain in power until 2003.
• The death of 30,000 Iraqi military personnel, which contrasted with the less than 500 men lost by the coalition.
• Increasing the presence of the United States in the Persian Gulf, in order to ensure the normal production and distribution of oil.
• The strengthening of the international position of the United States, which, after the end of the Cold War and the bipolar world, affirmed its role as the world hegemonic power .
• The destruction and burning of the Kuwaiti oil wells, which caused the contamination of large areas of the desert and the waters of the Persian Gulf.
• The strengthening of the international role of Saudi Arabia , which became the leader of OPEC and the United States’ greatest ally in the Persian Gulf.
• The increase in resentment towards the United States in the Arab world, from which various terrorist organizations nurtured to recruit new members and consolidate their actions.