U.S. Foreign Policy
Dates of the Conflict: |
19 March 2003 – 15 December 2011
|
Presidents in office: |
George W. Bush
Barack Obama |
Opposing Sides Leaders: |
Saddam Hussein
He was the opposing side leader during the Iraq War. He was the leader of the Socialist Ba’ath Party in Iraq. Ra’ad al-Hamdani He was a commander of the II Republican Guard Corporal. He was assigned to keep the Karbala region secure. Ibrahim Ahmad Abd al-Sattar Muhammad Al-Tikriti He was the chief of staff of the Iraqi armed forces which ruled under Saddam Hussein. These leaders were the main leaders during the beginning of the conflict of the Iraq War. |
us Goals in Iraq: |
President Bush made the goals of the U.S. in Iraq clear in his radio address on March 22, 2003, saying, “Our mission is clear, to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction, to end Saddam Hussein's support for terrorism, and to free the Iraqi people.” Bush also addressed the controversy of the war when he stated, “Our nation entered this conflict reluctantly, yet with a clear and firm purpose. The people of the United States and our friends and allies will not live at the mercy of an outlaw regime that threatens the peace with weapons of mass murder.”
|
Foreign policy in Iraq: |
The type of foreign policy the US used during the Iraq war was “Collective Security ”. This is because the US had a force made up of US soldiers amongst many others from multiple European countries. But, the US was the real spearhead in the entire situation and were the ones who captured Saddam Hussein and went to the UN to request search of Iraq for weapons of mass destruction.
|
Compare/Contrast to prior conflict: |
The conflict prior to the 2003 Iraq War, known as Operation Iraqi Freedom, was the Gulf War. During the Gulf War, the US employed Collective Security as their foreign policy. When the conflict started, the US presented to the United Nations, and urged other countries to help with the conflict. This is mostly similar to what happened during the Iraq War. During the Iraq War, the US did speak to the UN about what was happening, although only the US ended up going into the country to occupy it.
|