Iraq War: Background and Issues Overview (CRS Report for Congress)
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| Release Date |
Revised April 22, 2003 |
| Report Number |
RL31715 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Raymond W. Copson, Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
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Summary:
The Iraq war was launched on March 19, 2003, with a strike against a location where Iraqi
President
Saddam Hussein and top lieutenants were believed to be meeting. On March 17, President Bush had
given Saddam an ultimatum to leave the country or face military conflict. Although some resistance
was encountered after U.S. troops entered Iraq, all major Iraqi population centers had been brought
under U.S. control by April 14. In November 2002, the United Nations Security Council had
adopted Resolution 1441, giving Iraq a final opportunity to "comply with its the disarmament
obligations" or "face serious consequences." During January and February 2003, a U.S. military
buildup in the Persian Gulf intensified and President Bush, other top U.S. officials, and British
Prime Minister Tony Blair repeatedly indicated that Iraq had little time left to offer full cooperation
with U.N. weapons inspectors. However, leaders of France, Germany, Russia, and China urged that
the inspections process be allowed more time.
The Administration and its supporters assert that Iraq was in defiance of 17 Security Council
resolutions requiring that it fully declare and eliminate its weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
Further delay in taking action against Iraq, they argued, would have endangered national security and
undermined U.S. credibility. Skeptics, including many foreign critics, maintained that the
Administration was exaggerating the Iraq threat and argued that the U.N. inspections process should
have been extended. In October 2002, Congress authorized the President to use the armed forces
of the United States to defend U.S. national security against the threat posed by Iraq and to enforce
all relevant U.N. resolutions regarding Iraq ( P.L. 107-243 ).
Analysts and officials are concerned about the risk of instability and ethnic fragmentation in
Iraq after the war. U.S. plans for post-war governance of Iraq are just starting to be implemented,
and the role of the United Nations in administering Iraq, if any, is still under debate. Whether the
overthrow of Iraq President Saddam Hussein will lead to democratization in Iraq and the wider
Middle East, or promote instability and an intensification of anti-U.S. attitudes, is also an issue in
debate. The Iraq war has created concerns over the humanitarian situation, particularly in Baghdad
and other cities affected by the war, but large-scale refugee flows have not occurred.
Constitutional issues concerning a possible war with Iraq were largely resolved by the
enactment of P.L. 107-243 , the October authorization. International legal issues remain, however,
with respect to launching a pre-emptive war against Iraq and the prospective occupation. Estimates
of the cost of a war in Iraq vary widely. If war or its aftermath leads to a spike in the price of oil,
economic growth could slow, but oil prices have fluctuated widely during the conflict to date.
Conceivably, global oil production could increase significantly after the war.
This CRS report provides information and analysis with respect to the 2003 war with Iraq,
reviews a number of war-related issues, and provides links to additional sources of information. It
will not be further updated. For current CRS products related to Iraq, see the CRS home page at
http://www.crs.gov .
