I did my disseration for my Master's degree on the whole history of Iraq and conflict in the XXth century. The seeds of conflict were sown as early as the 1920s right after WWI when Iraq became a British protectorate.
Kuwait which until then had been a port city was cut from the southern province of Basra and made a state for the interest of the British. The Kurdish territories in the north were never actually part of what was Iraq in the past but despite the fact that they had different peoples and religions than the majority of Iraq was still incorporated by the British into Iraq as it held important oil reserves. Because of these issues and many others Iraq wasn't a very stable country until the Ba'th party with Saddam as an important member came to power in the late 60s.
Then lets not forget that the Iraq-Iran war of the 1980s was supported by the USA and its allies in the region.
The Kuwait occupation of 1990 should be judged in the right context. Iraq was weakend economically by the war, it was indebted with tens of billions of dollars to Kuwait which also demanded the sum to be payed back at once. Further more Kuwait had occupied the oil fields of southern Basra and didn't want to give them back, it was rigid when negotiation with Iraq and it also undermined Iraq's economy by selling its oil under the OPEC quota, fully supported by the US in this.
These problems combined with the fact Kuwait was considered Iraqi territory and the USA didn't make its intentions very clear is what actually lead to the Gulf War. It seamed to Saddam to be an easy way of solving all his problems.
It was all in the interest of the USA. If they really had wanted to depose of Saddam who they knew was a very cruel leader they could have easily done so then when they also had a lot of support from the population.
They willingly left the Iraqi people to suffer for another 13 years and then went to war against them under false pretenses. WAY TO GO!
I don't hate the USA but I do hate the hypocrisy of its policies and its leaders.
How do you destroy a country?
With two bushes! 😄
