This study will examine the causes of the Gulf War of 1991 and the impact the war had in the Gulf region and in the Arabic world. The causes or justification for the war can be found in part in the results which the victors claimed for themselves in the aftermath of the war. The essential cause was the invasion by Iraq of Kuwait, and the determination of the international community, via the United Nations, to free Kuwait. While numerous nations were involved in the attack on Iraq, the sources are unanimous in stating that the United States was the heart and soul of the war. Without American leadership, the war would likely not have taken place, or would have not ended as quickly or decisively as it did.
Added to this basic aim were the goals of crippling Iraq militarily so that it would not pose a danger to its neighbors in the Gulf and destroying its capacity to manufacture and use weapons of mass destruction.
Of course, the threat to the oil supply for the world from the Gulf also played a major role in the decision of the UN to engage Iraq militarily, but the most verbalized reason was the territorial integrity of Kuwait and the military threat of Iraq to the region.
The major nations involved in the war were Iraq, the United States (along with other nations representing the United Nations), Kuwait (at least insofar as it had been occupied by Iraq and its liberation was the major goal of the war), and Saudi Arabia, which served as the primary base of operations for the attack against Iraq.
Iraq was led by President Saddam Hussein and Foreign Minister Tariq Aziz. The United States was led by President George Bush, with the military led by Colin Powell, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and General Norman Schwarzkopf, the CENTCOMM Commander. The Emir was the leader of Kuwait. King Fahad was the leader of Saudi Arabia. The United Nations was headed by the Secretary General, Javier Decuellar. Peripheral players we...