The current political and military situation between the USA and Iraq provides a timely promotion for this book. It examines the state of Iraq from its inception soon after the First World War up until 2006. The book presents a chronological study of these eighty years, with each chapter covering a decade, divided into a year‐by‐year account of various interactions between the USA and Iraq.
Very little official or unofficial information between Iraq and the USA is recorded between 1920 and the early 1950s, due to the fact that there was little reason for involvement or encroachment for either side during this time period. The 1990 invasion by Iraq into Kuwait however, drew international attention and resulted in a multilateral and international armed reaction now called the Gulf War. After this invasion, Washington's political machine kept a cautious eye towards Iraq and with the accession of George W. Bush in 2000 as president of the USA, a concerted effort to end the regime of Saddam Hussein because of a perceived programme to produce weapons of mass destruction began the Iraq War, which is still ongoing.
In the introduction, the author provides a detailed history of the nation of Iraq. Even though it was never a state before the 1920s, the word “Iraq” dates back for centuries. As part of the Ottoman Empire, which was on the losing side of the First World War, Iraq was formed by Britain through the combination of three former Ottoman provinces: Mosul, Baghdad, and Basra. Several military uprisings occurred in the 1930s and 1940s. Saddam Hussein, who came to power in 1968, led a bloody eight‐year war with Iran. The current situation is well known to the readers.
Each entry in the chronological presentation is listed under a year. The month and date are given, followed by the city where the event recorded in the entry occurred. A short description is then provided of the event itself. Each chapter begins with a short introduction summarizing the major events that happened between the USA and Iraq in each decade. Chapter 1 chronicles the 1920s and 1930s; Chapter 2 the 1940s and 1950s; Chapter 3 the 1960s and 1970s; Chapter 4 the 1980s; Chapter 5 the year 1990 through 1994; Chapter 6 the year 1995 through 1999; Chapter 7 the year 2000 through 2003; Chapter 8 the years 2004 and 2005; and Chapter 9 the year 2006.
In the conclusion, the author again provides a brief synopsis of the relationship between the USA and Iraq during this 80‐year time period, mentions that the conflict is still ongoing, and that the end is not in sight. Four appendices provide some of the historical documentation: Appendix I is the 2002 United States Congressional Resolution on Iraq; Appendix II contains a chronology of United Nations Security Council Resolutions on Iraq from 1974‐2006; Appendix III has short summaries of the United Nations Security Council Resolutions on Iraq from 1996‐2002; and Appendix IV is the December 2006 executive summary of the Iraq Study Group Report. A short bibliography and index follow.
This is an excellent chronological and historical reference book on relations between the USA and Iraq from 1920‐2006.
