The Realist Explanation Of Wars In The Persian Gulf Region After The Cold War

Abstract

Since the end of the Cold War in late 1989, the international environment has witnessed a myriad of internal armed and regional conflicts. Of all these, Wars in the Persian Gulf region have been the most differently interpreted, particularly from the strategic, legal and Marxist or radical scholars' perspectives. This paper provides an alternative explanation to the Western military campaigns in the region from the realists' perspective. The paper argues that although war and possibility of war among great and small powers have been the motor of international politics, the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait and the US-led action to evict the invading forces as well as subsequent Western. military campaigns in the region were power moves, that is, the pursuit of interests defined in terms of power. The paper concludes with an observation that international conflicts and the resulting wars would typically be resolved on the balance-of-power principles.