It was the first major foreign policy crisis for the U.S. since the end of the Cold War. Iraq, which…
“It was an Unwinnable War”
George Ball was the Under Secretary of State for Economic and Agricultural Affairs in the Kennedy and Johnson administrations. He supported…
A Look Back—First Director of the Population, Refugees, and Migrations Bureau
The Biden administration nominated Ambassador Julieta Valls Noyes to serve as assistant secretary of state for the department’s Bureau of…
Iraq’s Weapons of Mass Destruction: Establishment of the United Nations Special Commission
Following the 1990–1991 Gulf War, the United Nations wanted to prevent any further aggression, and feared that Iraq had developed…
Washington Demands and Disaster Assistance: USAID and the 2010 Haiti Earthquake
Lewis Lucke was called out of retirement in 2010 to coordinate USAID’s response to the disastrous 7.0 magnitude Haitian earthquake,…
Guns, Oil and Education: Qatar’s Evolving Relationship with the U.S.
The State of Qatar declared independence from Great Britain on September 3, 1971 and the U.S. recognized it two days…
A Day of Mixed Messages over Iraq’s Invasion of Kuwait
In 1991, the U.S. led a coalition of over 30 nations to force Iraqi troops out of Kuwait after Saddam…
The Long, Incomplete Road for the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty
The movement to limit or even prohibit the testing of nuclear weapons has been around almost since the dawn of…
Igniting Iraq’s Invasion of Kuwait – Loans, Land, Oil and Access
Iraq invaded Kuwait on August 2, 1990 largely for economic reasons, but the contiguous Gulf countries had long-standing territorial conflicts…
Thailand’s Bloodless Coups d’état
When a country undergoes internal conflict and something as dramatic as a coup d’etat, the results can often lead to…