What exactly was Operation Desert Storm? Operation Desert Storm (ODS) was the first major foreign crisis for the United States after the Cold War. What occurred was that Iraq's army invaded Kuwait. (During the 8 year war with Iran the US had given military support to Iraq making their army the 4th largest in the world).  Kuwait at the time was one of the major suppliers of oil to the United States. The Iraqi invasion not only posed a threat to Kuwait but also to Saudi Arabia, another major exporter of oil. If both of these countries were to fall to Iraq, it would control 1/5 of the world's oil. At first, the US participated in solely defending Saudi Arabia and this operation was called Operation Desert Shield. Over 500,000 American troops were placed in Saudi Arabia as a precaution in case Iraq wanted to invade. During this time the US looked for support in the United Nations Security Council; however, Iraq was an ally of the Soviet Union which held the power to veto any UNSC military actions. This time the USSR did not block the UNSC, instead it condemned Iraq to fight a coalition of the UN. Iraq was given an ultimatum to leave Kuwait by January 15, 1991 or they would attack them. When the time came there was no response from Iraq and the next day Operation Desert Shield became Operation Desert Storm. The fighting started with the US bombing various of Iraq's military targets. In turn, Iraq responded by launching missiles at American barracks. This type of fighting continued until February 24, when the ground war began. One hundred hours after after the ground war began the American troops declared Kuwait liberated. The United States advanced rapidly through Iraq hoping Saddam out of power but they feared they would not get any support from the United Nations. ​

What exactly was Operation Desert Storm? Operation Desert Storm (ODS) was the first major foreign crisis for the United States after the Cold War. What occurred was that Iraq's army invaded Kuwait. (During the 8 year war with Iran the US had given military support to Iraq making their army the 4th largest in the world).  Kuwait at the time was one of the major suppliers of oil to the United States. The Iraqi invasion not only posed a threat to Kuwait but also to Saudi Arabia, another major exporter of oil. If both of these countries were to fall to Iraq, it would control 1/5 of the world's oil. At first, the US participated in solely defending Saudi Arabia and this operation was called Operation Desert Shield. Over 500,000 American troops were placed in Saudi Arabia as a precaution in case Iraq wanted to invade. During this time the US looked for support in the United Nations Security Council; however, Iraq was an ally of the Soviet Union which held the power to veto any UNSC military actions. This time the USSR did not block the UNSC, instead it condemned Iraq to fight a coalition of the UN. Iraq was given an ultimatum to leave Kuwait by January 15, 1991 or they would attack them. When the time came there was no response from Iraq and the next day Operation Desert Shield became Operation Desert Storm. The fighting started with the US bombing various of Iraq's military targets. In turn, Iraq responded by launching missiles at American barracks. This type of fighting continued until February 24, when the ground war began. One hundred hours after after the ground war began the American troops declared Kuwait liberated. The United States advanced rapidly through Iraq hoping Saddam out of power but they feared they would not get any support from the United Nations. ​

1. Who was the dictator of Iraq during the 1990's?

2. Who was the President of the US during the 1990's?

3. What was the name of the plane used for the first time in this war?

4. Did Russia help Iraq in this war?

5. Why did the US hesitate to invade Iraq?

6. What is the difference between Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm?

7. Was Desert Storm successful?

8. What rank did Iraq's army have in the world?

9. What country did it invade to trigger conflict?

10. Saudi Arabia and Kuwait together control how much of the world's oil?