Bush knew what to do, when to halt

President George H.W. Bush deserves to be remembered for one achievement in particular. He demonstrated how the United States’ military might can be used most carefully and effectively when it is needed. The first Gulf War, which lasted just 100 days in 1991, ought to be studied as a model in statecraft.

Bush became President as the Cold War was ending. In his first year of office the Berlin wall came down. Soon the Soviet Union collapsed and the nations of its former empire gave way to new states embracing capitalism and democracy. Old enmities were replaced by a new spirit, not confined to the nuclear superpowers. Northern Ireland’s long civil war found a settlement. Apartheid gave way to majority rule in South Africa. Bush talked about a “new world order” and many looked forward to spending a “peace dividend” diverted from the arms race to social programmes.

Just when there seemed no limit to the new spirit, Iraq invaded and annexed oil-rich Kuwait. For a few days it seemed nothing might happen. The United Nations appeared helpless. Some argued Kuwait was not worth saving, or at least not at the expense of the peace prevailing in the world.

Bush decided to demonstrate that national sovereignty mattered. He issued an ultimatum to Iraq’s dictator, Saddam Hussein, who stood firm, and Operation Desert Storm went ahead. It was memorable for its coverage, around the clock on a new TV channel dedicated to news, CNN, and reporters “embedded” with US units. But it ought to be memorable for its copybook planning, execution and most of all, its ending.

Bush and his military strategists led by General Colin Powell gave Desert Storm a precise objective, to drive Iraqi forces from Kuwait, and once that was achieved they did what is perhaps the hardest thing for a successful military operation to do — they stopped. The mission had been easier than expected. Many thought the US ought to press on to Baghdad and remove Saddam.

One who thought that way was Bush’s son, George W. Bush, who became President nine years later. The younger Bush and the “neocons” he brought into the White House believed regime change in Iraq would be greeted by a popular demand for democracy throughout the Middle East, much as the end of communist regimes had seen in Eastern Europe.

We know now how wrong that belief was, and how wise the older Bush had been to stay out of the politics of Iraq. Muslim fundamentalism was already undergoing a revival in Arab states at that time. The second Gulf War implicated the US and its allies in religious and tribal conflicts they still dimly understand and cannot see an exit.

George Bush I was a professional in public policy, a diplomat, UN ambassador, head of the CIA and Vice-President to Ronald Reagan. He had only one term in the Oval Office. Events had yet to vindicate his restraint in the Gulf and he appeared weak.

He was not. He knew what had to be done and knew when it was done. He leaves an example to all who wield America’s power.