2003 Invasion of Iraq

This article covers invasion specifics. For general information see: Iraq War, Post-invasion Iraq.

Prelude

Since the end of the Gulf War of 1991, Iraq's relations with the UN, the US, and the UK remained poor. In the absence of a Security Council consensus that Iraq had fully complied with the terms of the Persian Gulf War ceasefire, both the UN and the US enforced numerous economic sanctions against Iraq throughout the Clinton administration, and patrolled Iraqi airspace to enforce Iraqi no-fly zones. The United States Congress also passed the "Iraq Liberation Act" in October 1998, which provided $97 million for Iraqi "democratic opposition organizations" in order to "establish a program to support a transition to democracy in Iraq." This contrasted with the terms set out in U.N. Resolution 687 http://www.fas.org/news/un/iraq/sres/sres0687.htm, all of which related to weapons and weapons programs, not to what regime was in place. Weapons inspectors had also been used to gather intelligence on Iraq's WMD program, information that was then used in targeting decisions during Operation Desert Fox http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/daily/march99/unscom2.htm, http://www.library.cornell.edu/colldev/mideast/scomspy.htm. At the same time Tony Blair's Attorney General Lord Goldsmith, could not guarantee that an invasion in the circumstances would not be challenged on legal grounds http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/vote_2005/frontpage/4478023.stm.

Related Topics:
Gulf War - Persian Gulf - Economic sanctions - Clinton - Iraqi no-fly zones - Iraq Liberation Act - Operation Desert Fox - Tony Blair - Lord Goldsmith

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The United States Republican Party's campaign platform in the U.S. presidential election, 2000 called for "full implementation" of the Iraq Liberation Act and removal of Saddam Hussein with a focus on rebuilding a coalition, tougher sanctions, reinstating inspections, and support for the pro-democracy, opposition exile group, Iraqi National Congress then headed by Ahmed Chalabi. http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2000/conventions/republican/features/platform.00/

Related Topics:
United States Republican Party - U.S. presidential election, 2000 - Iraq Liberation Act - Iraqi National Congress - Ahmed Chalabi

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In September 2000, in the Rebuilding America's Defenses (pg. 17) report, Project for the New American Century, a right-wing think tank, suggested that the United States shift to more ground-based air forces to help contain the forces of Saddam Hussein so that "the demand for carrier presence in the region can be relaxed." Upon the election of George W. Bush as president, many advocates of such a policy (including some of those who wrote the 2000 report) were included in the new administration's foreign policy circle. According to former treasury secretary Paul O'Neill, as widely reported by the mainstream press, an attack was planned since the inauguration, and the first security council meeting discussed plans on invasion of the country. O'Neill later clarified that these discussions were part of a continuation of foreign policy first put into place by the Clinton Administration. http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/01/13/oneill.bush/

Related Topics:
Project for the New American Century - George W. Bush - Foreign policy - Paul O'Neill

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Notes from aides who were with Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld in the National Military Command Center one year later, on the day of the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attack, reflect that he wanted, "best info fast. Judge whether good enough hit at same time. Not only ." The notes also quote him as saying, "Go massive," and "Sweep it all up. Things related and not."http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/09/04/september11/main520830.shtml Shortly thereafter, the George W. Bush administration announced a War on Terrorism, accompanied by the doctrine of 'preemptive' military action dubbed the Bush doctrine. A preemptive war requires that the declared purpose be to respond to an imminent threat of war by the other power, whereas wars instituted against a hypothetical future threat are more properly called preventive war and generally considered a war of aggression. From the 90s, US officials have constantly voiced concerns about ties between the government of Saddam Hussein and some particular terrorist activities, notably in the context of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which have been confirmed by subsequent reports; on the other hand, the September 11 commission in June, 2004 released a staff report that said it found 'no credible evidence that Iraq and al Qaeda cooperated on attacks against the United States.'"http://edition.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/meast/06/18/saddam.terror/

Related Topics:
Donald Rumsfeld - September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attack - War on Terrorism - Bush doctrine - Preemptive war - Preventive war - War of aggression - Saddam Hussein - Israeli-Palestinian conflict - September 11 commission - June - 2004

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In 2002 the Iraq disarmament crisis arose primarily as a diplomatic situation. In October 2002, with the "Joint Resolution to Authorize the Use of United States Armed Forces Against Iraq" (Adopted 296-133 by the House of Representatives and 77-23 by the Senate), the United States Congress granted President Bush the authority to wage war against Iraq. The Joint Resolution was worded so as to encourage, but not require, UN Security Council approval for military action, although as a matter of international law the US required explicit Security Council approval for an invasion unless an attack by Iraq had been imminent — the US administration argued that there was an "urgent," "growing," and "immediate" threat. http://www.americanprogress.org/site/pp.asp?c=biJRJ8OVF&b=24970 The joint resolution allowed the President of the United States to "defend the national security of the United States against the continuing threat posed by Iraq and enforce all relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions regarding Iraq."

Related Topics:
Iraq disarmament crisis - Joint Resolution to Authorize the Use of United States Armed Forces Against Iraq

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In November 2002, United Nations actions regarding Iraq culminated in the unanimous passage of UN Security Council Resolution 1441 and the resumption of weapons inspections. However, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan later stated that the subsequent invasion was a violation of the UN Charter. Force was not authorized by resolution 1441 itself, as the language of the resolution mentioned "serious consequences," which is generally not understood by Security Council members to include the use of force to overthrow the government; however the threat of force, as cultivated by the Bush administration, was prominent at the time of the vote. Both the U.S. ambassador to the UN, John Negroponte, and the UK ambassador Jeremy Greenstock, in promoting Resolution 1441 on 8 November, 2002, had given assurances that it provided no "automaticity," no "hidden triggers," no step to invasion without consultation of the Security Council http://manila.usembassy.gov/wwwhira3.html. Such consultation was forestalled by the US and UK's abandonment of the Security Council procedure and their invasion of Iraq. Richard Perle, a senior member of the administration's Defense Policy Board Advisory Committee, argued in November 2003, that the invasion was against international law, but still justified http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/11/20/1069027255087.html, http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,2763,1089158,00.html. There is still much disagreement among international lawyers on whether prior resolutions, relating to the 1991 war and later inspections, permitted the invasion.

Related Topics:
United Nations actions regarding Iraq - UN Security Council Resolution 1441 - Kofi Annan - UN Charter - John Negroponte - Jeremy Greenstock - 8 November - 2002 - Defense Policy Board Advisory Committee

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The United States also began preparations for an invasion of Iraq, with a host of diplomatic, public relations, and military preparations.

Related Topics:
Preparations for an invasion of Iraq - Public relations

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