Iraq and the Role of the Big Powers

Modern Communism continues its series of background articles on the role played by the imperialist powers, primarily Britain and the U.S., in Iraq during the past century.

Part 4 1990-1992

The lengthy war with Iran left the Iraqi economy devastated, owing billions of dollars on loans it had borrowed to finance the war. Saddam Hussein appealed to his Arab neighbours to write off Iraq's war debts. Meanwhile by 1990 the Gulf States were dumping oil on world markets, causing oil prices to fall. Kuwait was suspected of using American equipment to slant drill into Iraq's Rumaila oilfield.

In May 1990, at the behest of the U.S., Kuwait and Saudi Arabia demanded immediate repayment of loans they had made to Iraq. The Iraqi regime's response was to accuse Kuwait of conspiring to destroy the Iraqi economy and to mass its troops along the Iraq-Kuwait border. Tensions increased and on August 2, 1990 Iraq invaded Kuwait, announcing that it had annexed the country. The previous day the U.S. administration had approved the sale of over half a million dollars worth of advanced data transmission devices to Iraq.

American policy immediately changed course. All of a sudden the regime that the U.S. had been content to do business with, despite its well-known abuses, now became a major threat and its leader was demonized. According to Phyllis Bennis of the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, "Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait gave the U.S. a pretext to reassert its international status. The U.S. would use bribes, threats and punishments to assure United Nations endorsement, and would lead the world against the 'new Hitler'".

The U.S. called the U.N. Security Council into session. The U.N. condemned the invasion of Kuwait and, within four days of the Iraqi attack, imposed mandatory and comprehensive economic sanctions on Iraq. Although at the time Iraq imported over 70% of its food, even food and medicines were included in the first months of the sanctions regime. Iraqi oil sales were forbidden and the country's hard currency accounts were frozen. The sanctions were intended to force the withdrawal of Iraqi troops from Kuwait. For its part, Iraq suggested that the withdrawal of its troops from Kuwait be linked to an Israeli withdrawal from the occupied territories. The Americans rejected this proposal.

Meanwhile, the U.S., supported by Britain, began a massive troop build-up in the Gulf and pushed vigorously for military action. To get King Faud to accept the deployment of U.S. troops in Saudi Arabia, the Americans told him that Iraqi troops were massed along the Saudi border. As satellite photos have shown, this was not, in fact, the case. In November 1990, U.S. insistence secured the passage of U.N. Security Council Resolution 678. This provided for the use of "all necessary means" to end the occupation of Kuwait if Iraq did not withdraw by January 15, 1991.

Various Arab and European countries as well as the Soviet Union made unsuccessful diplomatic efforts to avert war. The Americans stuck to their demand that Iraq withdraw unconditionally. In December 1990 U.S. officials were quoted in the press "as saying that a peaceful Iraqi withdrawal was a 'nightmare scenario' because then Iraq might place its disputes with Kuwait on the negotiating table".

The fact that Iraq had invaded a sovereign country enabled the U.N., under U.S. pressure, to create a coalition in support of military action against Iraq. On January 17, 1991 the U.S.-led air assault began. Over 42 days it inflicted massive damage on Iraq's infrastructure and civilian population. President Bush senior began urging the Iraqi people to overthrow Saddam Hussein and on February 23 the Americans launched Operation Desert Storm. This was the ground assault that succeeded in driving Iraqi forces out of Kuwait.

The U.S. and other forces in its coalition decided not to pursue the Iraqis and continue fighting within Iraq. They did, however, bomb the roads being used by the retreating forces, killing thousands of soldiers and civilians. The retreat of the Iraqi army triggered an uprising by Shiites in the south, due in no small part to President Bush's urgings. However, the American and other coalition forces simply stood by while the Iraqi regime brutally suppressed the uprising. A similar uprising by the Kurds in the north was also crushed.

Turkey closed its borders to the fleeing Kurds, leaving them stranded. The U.S.-led coalition sent in forces to secure a Kurdish safe haven in the north of Iraq, at the same time establishing a no-fly zone over the area. Initially instituted to protect the coalition troops, the no-fly zone remained in place right up until the current aggression against Iraq. A no-fly zone was also proclaimed over the south of the country in 1992. These have been the justification for ongoing U.S. and British bombing of northern and southern Iraq for the past 12 years.

In April 1991 the U.N. Security Council passed resolution 687 which laid down the ceasefire terms. These included: elimination of Iraq's programs for developing chemical, biological and nuclear weapons and the dismantling of its long-range missiles; institution of an inspections system to verify compliance; acceptance of a U.N.-demarcated Iraq-Kuwait border; payment of compensation and the return of Kuwaiti property and prisoners of war. The U.N. Special Commission (UNSCOM) established to verify Iraq's compliance with the weapons provisions first entered Iraq later in 1991. Meanwhile, the sanctions imposed within days of the invasion of Kuwait have remained in effect ever since with devastating consequences for the Iraqi people.