Files
Download Full Text (365 KB)
Description
As tensions between Iraq and the United States worsened in mid-to-late 2002 and as preparations began for Operation Iraqi Freedom, policymakers and military planners began to wrestle with the challenges posed by Iraqi weapons of mass destruction (WMD). Indeed, Iraqi defiance and deception in the face of United Nations (UN) sanctions, coupled with growing fears of WMD transfer to terrorist organizations—most prominently al Qaeda—were two primary reasons for confronting Saddam Hussein. Just as in the first Gulf War in 1991, deterring and defending against possible Iraqi use of WMD against coalition forces were key concerns for planners. However, as the crisis escalated in 2002, Department of Defense (DOD) planners began to foresee another challenge: how to remove comprehensively and permanently the threat of Iraqi WMD, not just to U.S. troops but also to the Middle East region and the world.
Document Type
Policy Brief
Publication Date
10-2004
Publication
Strategic Forum
Publisher
National Defense University Press
City
Washington, DC
Recommended Citation
Hersman, Rebecca K.C. and Koca, Todd M., "Eliminating Adversary WMD: Lessons for Future Conflicts" (2004). Strategic Forums. 101.
https://digitalcommons.ndu.edu/strategic-forums/101