Today marks the 20th anniversary of Operation Desert Storm, the blitzkrieg that ejected Saddam Hussein's Iraqi army from Kuwait and restored the Kuwaiti government.
This past Sunday Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, began a good will tour of the Mideast, largely to assure U.S. allies in the region of the American desire to see peaceful resolution of the street protests that have now spread from North Africa through the Persian Gulf. Adm. Mullen's trip coincides with the anniversary of Desert Storm.
Across this country, various groups are commemorating how the U.S. Armed Forces and their coalition allies turned the "mother of all battles" into 72-hour rout. Saddam's most enduring legacy may be turning a hyperbolic boast into a popular culture punch line.
The coalition forces had been preparing for the operation since August when Saddam brazenly stormed across the Kuwait border and annexed Kuwait as the 19th province of Iraq. While Kuwait pleaded its case before the United Nations U.S. President George H. W. Bush patiently worked the phones.
Pres. Bush had a long and distinguished record of government service and international relations. Twenty years before the invasion he had been the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. So he knew first hand the frustrations of dealing with that body on issues of international crisis. He went on to become the chief liaison of the U.S. to China in the '70s as well as C.I.A. director. He spend the 1980s as vice president under Ronald Reagan as the U.S. won the cold war against the Soviet Union. Perhaps no president was ever as prepared for an international crisis of this magnitude as George H.W. Bush.
While debate droned on at the UN, Pres. Bush "worked the phones." During his tenure in China, the UN and the C.I.A. in the 1970s he had met many young diplomats, international careerists, and politicians all over the world. He had built relationships with many of them. By the time Saddam's troops were in Kuwait City, many of these acquaintances had been promoted through the ranks to positions of power and authority in their countries. While Saddam boasted, Bush quietly worked his Rolodex, putting together an international coalition with these leaders, and ultimately an expeditionary force not seen since the beaches of Normandy.
Since August the allies had been building an air bridge to new bases in the Persian Gulf. Muslim leaders swallowed hard and agreed to let Western powers establish bases in their countries. They knew if Saddam's invasion were to stand, they could probably be next. The bombing started in mid-January. It was unrelenting and devastating.
By February 26 it was all over. Twelve years later it was all over for Saddam, deposed by Bush's son.
Totalitarian regimes celebrate military victories in their own inimitable way. In the U.S. we generally have a more respectful and quiet way of remembering these events. For example, in January a group of coalition leaders, including Pres. Bush, presented a "lessons learned" symposium on the war at Texas A&M University.
This month a Framingham, Massachusetts veterans group has a display of memorabilia set up at their local library.
Meanwhile, down in Columbia, South Carolina the state's military museum has its own exhibit, called Shield and Storm, on display.
And Berea, Ohio will commemorate Desert Storm with its recent designation as "Patriotic City of the Year." Berea's accomplishments in that area? Its annual Veterans Day memorial, its Memorial Day services, and its rememberance of those who have died at the hands of terrorists.
Not a rolling tank or goose-stepping division among them.
As we look at one international crisis after another today, it's hard to imagine that a war-weary world could come together with one purpose. But it did just that 20 years ago today.
Just thought you might like to know.
This past Sunday Navy Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, began a good will tour of the Mideast, largely to assure U.S. allies in the region of the American desire to see peaceful resolution of the street protests that have now spread from North Africa through the Persian Gulf. Adm. Mullen's trip coincides with the anniversary of Desert Storm.
Across this country, various groups are commemorating how the U.S. Armed Forces and their coalition allies turned the "mother of all battles" into 72-hour rout. Saddam's most enduring legacy may be turning a hyperbolic boast into a popular culture punch line.
The coalition forces had been preparing for the operation since August when Saddam brazenly stormed across the Kuwait border and annexed Kuwait as the 19th province of Iraq. While Kuwait pleaded its case before the United Nations U.S. President George H. W. Bush patiently worked the phones.
Pres. Bush had a long and distinguished record of government service and international relations. Twenty years before the invasion he had been the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. So he knew first hand the frustrations of dealing with that body on issues of international crisis. He went on to become the chief liaison of the U.S. to China in the '70s as well as C.I.A. director. He spend the 1980s as vice president under Ronald Reagan as the U.S. won the cold war against the Soviet Union. Perhaps no president was ever as prepared for an international crisis of this magnitude as George H.W. Bush.
While debate droned on at the UN, Pres. Bush "worked the phones." During his tenure in China, the UN and the C.I.A. in the 1970s he had met many young diplomats, international careerists, and politicians all over the world. He had built relationships with many of them. By the time Saddam's troops were in Kuwait City, many of these acquaintances had been promoted through the ranks to positions of power and authority in their countries. While Saddam boasted, Bush quietly worked his Rolodex, putting together an international coalition with these leaders, and ultimately an expeditionary force not seen since the beaches of Normandy.
Since August the allies had been building an air bridge to new bases in the Persian Gulf. Muslim leaders swallowed hard and agreed to let Western powers establish bases in their countries. They knew if Saddam's invasion were to stand, they could probably be next. The bombing started in mid-January. It was unrelenting and devastating.
By February 26 it was all over. Twelve years later it was all over for Saddam, deposed by Bush's son.
Totalitarian regimes celebrate military victories in their own inimitable way. In the U.S. we generally have a more respectful and quiet way of remembering these events. For example, in January a group of coalition leaders, including Pres. Bush, presented a "lessons learned" symposium on the war at Texas A&M University.
This month a Framingham, Massachusetts veterans group has a display of memorabilia set up at their local library.
Meanwhile, down in Columbia, South Carolina the state's military museum has its own exhibit, called Shield and Storm, on display.
And Berea, Ohio will commemorate Desert Storm with its recent designation as "Patriotic City of the Year." Berea's accomplishments in that area? Its annual Veterans Day memorial, its Memorial Day services, and its rememberance of those who have died at the hands of terrorists.
Not a rolling tank or goose-stepping division among them.
As we look at one international crisis after another today, it's hard to imagine that a war-weary world could come together with one purpose. But it did just that 20 years ago today.
Just thought you might like to know.
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