Preparations for 2003 invasion of Iraq
Encyclopedia
The 2003 invasion of Iraq
began on March 20. On March 18, US President George W. Bush
had set a deadline for the ruler of Iraq
, Saddam Hussein
, and his two sons, Uday
and Qusay
to leave the country, or face military action. By the time of the ultimatum, political and military preparations for the invasion were well advanced.
Plans for securing Iraqi cities following the invasion, infrastructure reconstruction, and transitioning the country into a post-war government — plans to "win the peace" — were either nonexistent or woefully inadequate. The lack of a post-invasion security plan allowed widespread looting
and the violent insurgency
that immediately followed the invasion. The looting "caused far more damage to Iraq's infrastructure than the bombing campaign" and suggested to the insurgents that the US military was vulnerable. The Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction
wrote, "There was insufficient systematic planning for human capital management in Iraq before and during the U.S.-directed stabilization and reconstruction operations."
Former UK Minister of Defence Geoff Hoon
commented on this issue in 2007 and said, "There was an enormous amount of post-war planning. It's one of the things that the newspapers have never troubled to look at. I accept, and I've said so publicly, that we perhaps did not anticipate quite the kinds of trouble that we would have. I think we thought that because the population of Iraq hated Saddam Hussein, they would simply come out on the streets and everything would be fine... I don't think we quite estimated the degree of control that Saddam's people had in Iraqi society... So the kind of things we were planning for, with the benefit of hindsight, perhaps weren't quite the right things. But they were the right things in terms of the problems that we anticipated, which was the lack of food, water. We probably didn't quite appreciate, as I say, the ruthlessness of some of Saddam's [followers]."
with the authority of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1441
. The U.S. and its principal allies, the United Kingdom
, Spain
and Portugal
, maintained a skeptical position on the results of the inspections procedure. By 2003, the U.S. was keen to invade Iraq and secure the goal some argued it had ultimately been pursuing all along – the toppling of Saddam Hussein. Under pressure from his Secretary of State
, Colin Powell
, and his main ally, the UK, President Bush decided to try to obtain UN backing for an invasion. The so-called "second resolution" (the first being 1441) was eventually drafted and presented to the UN Security Council. It was a tough resolution, calling for immediate compliance with the previous resolutions requiring disarmament, and setting a 10-day deadline for compliance. Critics saw it as an unrealistic ultimatum designed to provide the U.S. with a cause for war, and it met considerable opposition in the security council, with opponents including the permanent members France
, the People's Republic of China
, and Germany
. After a period of intense diplomacy, President Bush met with his British, Spanish and Portuguese counterparts, Prime Minister
Tony Blair
, Prime Minister José María Aznar
and Prime Minister José Manuel Barroso in the Azores
, Portugal on March 15 and 16. Declaring that "diplomacy had failed," he announced the intention to drop the proposed resolution. Subsequently, both the U.S. and the UK accused France of effectively blocking the negotiations by threatening to veto the proposed resolution "whatever the circumstances", but France maintained that its position had been intentionally misconstrued. Lacking the "second resolution", the U.S. announced its intention to attack Iraq regardless if Saddam Hussein did not abdicate.
The U.S.'s rationale for war depended on several contentions. Firstly, it contended that Iraq was in possession of weapons of mass destruction
, which it claimed he might be willing to supply to terrorists. It accused Iraq of supporting terrorism, notably through payments to families of Palestinian
suicide bombers. In this way, the U.S. contended, Iraq presented a threat that it would be justified in removing, placing this as a new interpretation of the doctrine of self-defence. It further argues that the U.S. is legally justified in taking military action by previous UN resolutions, most notably 1441 which states that "serious consequences" would result from a failure to disarm on Iraq's part. Some have also argued that the invasion can be considered a resumption of the 1991 Gulf War
, which ended with a conditional ceasefire that (they contend) Iraq has subsequently breached.
This position has been criticised on several grounds, including skepticism regarding the administration's claims that:
Continued at: 2003 invasion of Iraq
.
2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
began on March 20. On March 18, US President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
had set a deadline for the ruler of Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
, Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
, and his two sons, Uday
Uday Hussein
Uday Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti , was the eldest son of Saddam Hussein from his first wife, Sajida Talfah. He was the brother of Qusay Hussein. Uday was for several years seen as the heir apparent of his father; however, Uday lost his place in the line of succession due to his erratic behavior and...
and Qusay
Qusay Hussein
Qusay Saddam Hussein al-Tikriti was the second son of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. He was appointed as his father's heir apparent in 2000.- Family :...
to leave the country, or face military action. By the time of the ultimatum, political and military preparations for the invasion were well advanced.
Plans for securing Iraqi cities following the invasion, infrastructure reconstruction, and transitioning the country into a post-war government — plans to "win the peace" — were either nonexistent or woefully inadequate. The lack of a post-invasion security plan allowed widespread looting
Looting
Looting —also referred to as sacking, plundering, despoiling, despoliation, and pillaging—is the indiscriminate taking of goods by force as part of a military or political victory, or during a catastrophe, such as during war, natural disaster, or rioting...
and the violent insurgency
Iraqi insurgency
The Iraqi Resistance is composed of a diverse mix of militias, foreign fighters, all-Iraqi units or mixtures opposing the United States-led multinational force in Iraq and the post-2003 Iraqi government...
that immediately followed the invasion. The looting "caused far more damage to Iraq's infrastructure than the bombing campaign" and suggested to the insurgents that the US military was vulnerable. The Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction
Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction
The Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction was created in October 2004 as the successor to the Coalition Provisional Authority Office of Inspector General . SIGIR is an independent government agency created by the Congress to provide oversight of the use – and potential...
wrote, "There was insufficient systematic planning for human capital management in Iraq before and during the U.S.-directed stabilization and reconstruction operations."
Former UK Minister of Defence Geoff Hoon
Geoff Hoon
Geoffrey "Geoff" William Hoon is a British politician who served as the Member of Parliament for Ashfield from 1992 to 2010...
commented on this issue in 2007 and said, "There was an enormous amount of post-war planning. It's one of the things that the newspapers have never troubled to look at. I accept, and I've said so publicly, that we perhaps did not anticipate quite the kinds of trouble that we would have. I think we thought that because the population of Iraq hated Saddam Hussein, they would simply come out on the streets and everything would be fine... I don't think we quite estimated the degree of control that Saddam's people had in Iraqi society... So the kind of things we were planning for, with the benefit of hindsight, perhaps weren't quite the right things. But they were the right things in terms of the problems that we anticipated, which was the lack of food, water. We probably didn't quite appreciate, as I say, the ruthlessness of some of Saddam's [followers]."
Political preparations
Political preparation for war began in earnest during the period of weapons inspections in Iraq over the winter of 2002–2003, carried out by a team led by Hans BlixHans Blix
is a Swedish diplomat and politician for the Liberal People's Party. He was Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs . Blix was also the head of the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission from March 2000 to June 2003, when he was succeeded by Dimitris Perrikos...
with the authority of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1441
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1441
United Nations Security Council Resolution 1441 is a United Nations Security Council resolution adopted unanimously by the United Nations Security Council on November 8, 2002, offering Iraq under Saddam Hussein "a final opportunity to comply with its disarmament obligations" that had been set out...
. The U.S. and its principal allies, the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, maintained a skeptical position on the results of the inspections procedure. By 2003, the U.S. was keen to invade Iraq and secure the goal some argued it had ultimately been pursuing all along – the toppling of Saddam Hussein. Under pressure from his Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
, Colin Powell
Colin Powell
Colin Luther Powell is an American statesman and a retired four-star general in the United States Army. He was the 65th United States Secretary of State, serving under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African American to serve in that position. During his military...
, and his main ally, the UK, President Bush decided to try to obtain UN backing for an invasion. The so-called "second resolution" (the first being 1441) was eventually drafted and presented to the UN Security Council. It was a tough resolution, calling for immediate compliance with the previous resolutions requiring disarmament, and setting a 10-day deadline for compliance. Critics saw it as an unrealistic ultimatum designed to provide the U.S. with a cause for war, and it met considerable opposition in the security council, with opponents including the permanent members France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. After a period of intense diplomacy, President Bush met with his British, Spanish and Portuguese counterparts, Prime Minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
, Prime Minister José María Aznar
José María Aznar
José María Alfredo Aznar López served as the Prime Minister of Spain from 1996 to 2004. He is on the board of directors of News Corporation.-Early life:...
and Prime Minister José Manuel Barroso in the Azores
Azores
The Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
, Portugal on March 15 and 16. Declaring that "diplomacy had failed," he announced the intention to drop the proposed resolution. Subsequently, both the U.S. and the UK accused France of effectively blocking the negotiations by threatening to veto the proposed resolution "whatever the circumstances", but France maintained that its position had been intentionally misconstrued. Lacking the "second resolution", the U.S. announced its intention to attack Iraq regardless if Saddam Hussein did not abdicate.
The U.S.'s rationale for war depended on several contentions. Firstly, it contended that Iraq was in possession of weapons of mass destruction
Weapons of mass destruction
A weapon of mass destruction is a weapon that can kill and bring significant harm to a large number of humans and/or cause great damage to man-made structures , natural structures , or the biosphere in general...
, which it claimed he might be willing to supply to terrorists. It accused Iraq of supporting terrorism, notably through payments to families of Palestinian
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
suicide bombers. In this way, the U.S. contended, Iraq presented a threat that it would be justified in removing, placing this as a new interpretation of the doctrine of self-defence. It further argues that the U.S. is legally justified in taking military action by previous UN resolutions, most notably 1441 which states that "serious consequences" would result from a failure to disarm on Iraq's part. Some have also argued that the invasion can be considered a resumption of the 1991 Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, which ended with a conditional ceasefire that (they contend) Iraq has subsequently breached.
This position has been criticised on several grounds, including skepticism regarding the administration's claims that:
- Iraq presents a clear threat to the U.S.,
- the extent of Iraq's partial disarmament was inadequate to remove that threat,
- the weapons inspection process no longer had any chance of effecting the disarmament of Iraq,
- there is reason to believe that Iraq is an important supporter of terrorism,
- Iraq represents a more significant or urgent threat to the United States than the other nations with Weapons of Mass Destruction and dictators,
- the existing UN resolutions provide a sufficient legal basis for an invasion. The UK and U.S. governments have presented detailed legal justifications, but these have been rejected by others, including the UN Secretary-General, Kofi AnnanKofi AnnanKofi Atta Annan is a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the UN from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 2006...
.
Continued at: 2003 invasion of Iraq
2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
.
See also
- Iraq disarmament crisisIraq disarmament crisisThe issue of Iraq's disarmament reached a crisis in 2002-2003, when U.S. President George W. Bush demanded a complete end to what he alleged was Iraqi production of weapons of mass destruction and that Iraq comply with UN Resolutions requiring UN weapons inspectors unfettered access to areas those...
- United Nations actions regarding Iraq
- Support and opposition for the U.S. plan to invade Iraq
- Iraq disarmament crisis timeline 1990-1996Iraq disarmament crisis timeline 1990-1996-1990:July 24, 1990* Nine days before Iraq's invasion of Kuwait US State Department spokeswoman, Margaret Tutweiller states: "We do not have any defence treaties with Kuwait, and there are no special defence or security commitments to Kuwait."August 2, 1990...
, 1997-2000, 2001-2003 - Iraqi production and use of weapons of mass destruction
- Worldwide government positions on war on Iraq
External links
- U.N. offered 'moment of truth' -- article in the Washington Times <-- 404 error
- Probe for Iraqi weapons should have continued -- article from the U.N. News Centre