Iraq and the International Oil System: Why America Went to War in the Gulf - Hardcover

by Stephen C. Pelletiere (Author), Stephen Pelletiere (Author)

Ten years after the end of the Gulf War, the conflict continues with unresolved questions about economic sanctions and Iraq's participation in the oil export system. A specialist in Middle Eastern politics and an intelligence officer, Pelletiére covered the Iran-Iraq War as well as the subsequent Gulf conflict. He argues that Iraq's victory over Iran in 1988 gave the nation the capability of becoming a regional superpower with a strong say in how the Gulf's oil reserves were managed. Because the United States could not tolerate an ultranationalist state with the potential to destabilize the world's economy, war then became inevitable.

Author Biography

STEPHEN PELLETIÉRE is a Professor of National Security Affairs at the U.S. Army War College. He is a specialist in Middle East politics. As an intelligence officer from 1982, he has covered the Iran-Iraq War and the subsequent Gulf conflict. Prior to that, he was a Professor of Political Science and a foreign correspondent in the Middle East. He has written several books on the Middle East, including The Iran-Iraq War--Chaos in a Vacuum (Praeger, 1992).