9781422285985

The Annexation of Kuwait

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weaker foes. During the 1960s and 1970s, nearly 60,000 American soldiers had been killed during the Vietnam War, and U.S. society had been bitterly divided over the unpopular conflict. The Soviet Union had been involved in a similar quagmire in Afghanistan from 1979 to 1989. The occupa- tion of Afghanistan had weakened the U.S.S.R. By the summer of 1990 the Soviet Union was in the midst of major changes in its government and society. Saddam rea- soned that despite their threats, the Americans and Soviets were bluffing. And if the superpowers did not take action, no other country would challenge Iraq’s claim to Kuwait.

Saddam felt that the situation favored Iraq in other ways. Some Arab countries did not initially condemn the invasion of Kuwait, and the Iraqi dictator believed this meant the Arabs supported his actions. Also, if a war did come it would be fought over desert terrain that Iraqi forces knew better than anyone. Harsh and unfamiliar terrain could be used to great advantage against invaders—a painful lesson the Americans and Soviets had learned in Vietnam and Afghanistan. The Iraqi dictator therefore responded to demands that he withdraw by issuing threats of his own. He promised to turn Kuwait City into a “graveyard,” if any country attempted to challenge Iraq’s takeover. He moved his troops closer to the border with Saudi Arabia, where they began constructing strong defenses. And on August 6 he declared that Iraq had officially annexed Kuwait. Saddam Hussein was taking a risk by defying the world. But if his assessment of the situation was accurate, and there was no military As president of Iraq, Saddam Hussein started wars against Iran (1980) and Kuwait (1990). He also used his mili- tary to repress Iraq’s civilian popula- tion, killing hundreds of thousands of people. His efforts to acquire nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons led to repeated condemnation by the United Nations.