Case 177 - Getting to No: The Diplomacy of the Gulf Conflict, 1990-1991

Staniland, Martin

This three-part case study begins by discussing the events leading up to Saddam Hussein’s’s August 2, 1990, invasion of Kuwait, the economic, territorial, and diplomatic issues in dispute, and the unsuccessful attempts to resolve them peacefully. The first two parts examine the two responses to the crisis within the international community: Several Arab states attempted to mediate, while the major powers sought a formal authorization of force against Iraq, which was eventually codified in United Nations Security Council Resolution 678. The third part of the case study centers on U.S. diplomacy in the fall of 1990 and the tactical problems facing Secretary of State James Baker, who worked to secure unanimous support for UNSCR 678 while also trying to protect the autonomy of U.S. military and diplomatic leadership.