Taken from: http://www.justrememberthepast.com/causes-of-the-gulf-war.

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HOW DID SADDAM HUSSEIN RISE TO POWER IN IRAQ?
The recent history of Iraq has been a bloody one. Since independence in 1932, there have been 6 revolutions
or coup d'etat (only one of which was bloodless), the country has been involved in 4 conflicts that cost the lives
of thousands of Iraqis and since 2006 has been involved in a brutal civil war. Currently, the extremist Islamist
group ISIS (The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) controls large parts of Western and Northern Iraq operating a
savage regime of executions, beheadings and crucifixion of innocent civilians.

Saddam Hussein rose to power because he was a ruthless strongman who did not hesitate to remove any
opposition to his rule. He was born in 1937, 5 years after the Kingdom of Iraq was given independence by
Britain.

He took part in a failed rebellion against King Faisal of Iraq in 1956 but two years later, Faisal was
assassinated by a group of Army officers who seized power and abolished the monarchy.

Saddam then attempted to assassinate the Prime Minister of Iraq, Abd-al Karim Qasim in 1959. When this
failed, he fled to Egypt.

Qasim was indeed removed from power and killed in 1963 by his deputy, Abdul Salam Arif, who was assisted
by General Ahmed Hassan Al-Bakr of the Ba'ath Party.

Months later, Arif removed al-Bakr and the Ba'athists from government. Saddam, who had returned from Egypt
following the murder of Qasim, was placed in jail.

Arif died in 1966 and was replaced by his brother and in 1967 Saddam escaped from jail.

In 1968, Al-Bakr and Saddam led a bloodless coup and seized power.

By 1979, an increasingly frail Al-Bakr moved aside for Saddam, who immediately purged the Ba'ath Party of
any suspected opponents.

As one exiled former Iraqi diplomat said of Saddam: "[He was] a dictator who is ready to sacrifice his country,
just so long as he can remain on his throne in Baghdad."
The period between 1968 and 1979 was crucial in terms of Saddam's rise to power. He proved himself to be a
cunning and ruthless politician who emerged as the next Iraqi strongman, capable of holding all the different
factions in the country together. As Deputy Chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC- the most
important decision making body in Iraq) he was the second most important politician after al-Bakr.

His relationship with al-Bakr was key as both men acted as equals rather than President and Deputy. His
position on the RCC was also vital, as he was in charge of the Iraqi security forces. With this power, he was
able to investigate and eliminate rivals (often the victims of fabricate plots and conspiracies). He was also able
to appoint his supporters into important positions of power; He did all this by keeping a low profile and never
drawing much attention to himself or al-Bakr.

He was proving very good at handling foreign and domestic policy issues. In 1972, he negotiated a peace
treaty with the USSR, ensuring a superpower ally. The nationalization of the Iraqi oil industry created revenues
which he directed towards education and healthcare. This made him increasingly popular with ordinary Iraqis,
particularly in the countryside, where he was able to build a large support base.

By 1979, he was able to force aside an increasingly frail al-Bakr and take power for himself. His first act was to
purge the Ba'athist party of potential rivals, particularly Abdul Hussein Hashhadi, the Secretary-General of the
RCC who had questioned Saddam's rise to power. In total, 66 party officials were accused of plotting against
the government of Iraq. 22 were executed and 33 imprisoned (after lengthy torture).
THE ISLAMIC REVOLUTION IN IRAN
The 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran was a defining moment in recent Middle Eastern history. It led to the creation of
Islamism or Political Islam, which was the use of Islamic (Sharia) law and beliefs as a basis for a political ideology. As a
result of the revolution, Iran became an Islamic Republic with an Ayatollah (high ranking Shia Islamic religious leader) as
its supreme leader and a constitution based on Islamic beliefs.

Prior to the revolution, Iran had been ruled by monarchs (or shahs), the last of whom- Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, had
attempted to make Iran a more secular society through a program of modernization and westernisation known as the
White Revolution, which he introduced in 1963.This served to anger a large part of the Iranian population, who were
conservative Shi'a.

The Shah had also (along with his Western allies) attracted opposition from nationalists for his part in the removal of his
democratically elected prime minister, Mohammad Mossadegh, eleven years earlier in 1953.

Mossadegh was elected into office in 1951 and set about enacting a series of ambitious reforms, including nationalization
of industry and land redistribution. He also managed to restrict the power of the Shah. These policies alarmed Anglo-
Iranian Oil, a British oil company that owned the majority of Iranian oil holdings. They complained to the British
government, who were able to secure the cooperation of the US government by claiming that Mossadegh was part of plot
to bring Iran into the Soviet sphere of influence (the Cold War was well under way by this stage).

The results of the US and UK negotiations was a joint CIA and MI6 covert operation (known as Operation Ajax) to
remove Mossadegh from power and restore the Shah to full power.

This operation was a success and resulted in Iran firmly remaining in the Western sphere of influence and Anglo-Iranian
Oil (later BP) retaining possession of its oil holdings. However, it was not good for the Iranian population as a whole. The
Shah was able to become much more autocratic and introduced his unpopular White Revolution and suppressed
opposition with the much feared SAVAK.

One of his opponents, the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, was exiled in 1964 but was able to reach out to his followers via
tape recordings, thereby sustaining massive support. Khomeini was allowed to live in Iraq, which to this day also has a
large Shi'a majority, from 1965 to 1978, when he was told to leave by then Iraqi Vice-President, Saddam Hussein. After
leaving Iraq, Khomeini was denied access to other Arab countries and moved to suburb of Paris.

By late 1978, civil unrest as a result of the Shah's policies had reached a peak and it was clear that he was losing control.
Despite as attempted transition to a provisional civilian government, the Shah left Iran and Khomeini returned to Iran in
early 1979. Khomeini actively opposed the civilian government and proposed the appointment of his own government
under his choice of prime minister, Mehdi Barzagan. Soldiers began to defect to his side. Within a few weeks of his return
to Iran, the provisional government had collapsed and the army had declared neutrality.

At the end of March, a referendum was held asking the following question: 'should the monarchy be abolished in favour
of an Islamic Government?'

The Consequences of the Revolution

The revolution had far-reaching consequences across the region and at a global level.

In November 1979, a group of students stormed the US Embassy in Tehran and took 52 diplomats hostage for 444 days.
The hostages were not released until the 20th of January 1981. Operation Ajax, the 1953 coup which removed Mossadegh
from power, had been planned inside the embassy which the students labelled "a den of spies". This was extremely
humiliating for US President Jimmy Carter, whose administration had been caught by surprise by the events of the
revolution since 1978 and was viewed by many political opponents with the USA as projecting weakness.

The international response, and especially that of the US, was one of outrage. As a result, Iran was subject to wide ranging
economic sanctions, preventing the sale of Iranian oil to previously important trading partners. The impact of these
sanctions upon the Iranian economy and society are still being felt today.

The US attempted to free the hostages in 1980 using a covert special forces operation but this was unsuccessful. 6
diplomats who escaped capture and took refuge in the Canadian ambassador's house were extracted from Iran by a joint
US-Canadian operation in the same year. This was made famous by the recent Hollywood movie "Argo".

The Carter administration entered into negotiations with the Iranian government to secure the release of the hostages. Iran
agreed to their release but only followed through on this deal minutes after incoming US President Ronald Reagan had
been officially inaugurated. This was the final insult for Carter, preventing him from taking the credit for getting the
hostages freed during his presidency.

Within the Middle East, Arab countries saw the newly created Islamic Republic of Iran as a threat. Although not an Arab
country, Iran had been a monarchy that had not promoted a Shi'a agenda. As Sunni monarchies, they felt threatened by a
Shi'a republic for fear that the revolution could incite their Shi'a populations to revolt. This was especially worrying for
Iraq and Bahrain where the Shi'a were in a majority.

In response to the revolution, neighbouring Iraq declared war on Iran in 1980. This is covered in more detail later on.

Finally, of even more significance was the rise of Islamism or political Islam, whereby Islam became a basis for a political
ideology. As during the Cold War, this led to the creation of Islamic insurgent groups who helped to destabilize some
Arab countries and commit acts of terrorism.

Hezbollah, a Shi'a insurgency group from Southern Lebanon, was created and funded by Iran in response to the Israeli
occupation of Southern Lebanon during the Lebanese Civil War. They are involved in both the Israel-Palestinian conflicts
and Syrian Civil War.

Hamas, a Sunni insurgency group from the Gaza Strip, was formed in the late 1980's. Today they are in control of the
Gaza Strip and are frequently involved in conflict with Israel.

Al Qaeda, a Sunni terrorist organization founded by Osama bin Laden, a wealthy Saudi national. Most notorious for the
9/11 attacks on New York and Washington D.C. in 2001, they were formed out of the remnants of the Mujahedeen, who
resisted the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan between 1979 and 1989. Bin Laden was killed by US special forces during a
raid on a Al Qaeda safe house in Pakistan in 2011.

ISIS (Islamic State in Iraq and Syria), a Sunni insurgency and terrorist group who currently control large part of astern
Syria and western Iraq. They were formed in the aftermath of the US and UK invasion of Iraq in 2003 and aim to create a
Caliphate (Islamic state controlled by a supreme religious leader), incorporating large parts of the Middle East.

All 4 groups possess ideologies and beliefs based on a strict interpretation of Islamic law and hav

THE IRAN-IRAQ WAR

The Iran-Iraq War was one of the costliest and most pointless wars of the twentieth century. Ultimately, roughly one to
one and a half million Iranians and Iraqis (many of whom were civilians) died between 1980 and 1988 but at the war's
conclusion there were no border changes or reparations levied by either side. The fighting was characterised by intense
trench warfare and 'human wave' attacks with high levels of attrition. There was also the use of chemical weapons such as
Mustard Gas and VX Nerve Gas. These developments concerned
WHY DID IRAQ INVADE KUWAIT IN 1990?
http://www.justrememberthepast.com/why-did-iraq-invade-kuwait-in-1990.html
CAUSES OF THE GULF WAR
Background
1. Geography of Kuwait/Arabian Peninsula
Kuwait is a small, flat country in the North-Eastern corner of the Arabian peninsula. It has huge reserves of oil and a
relatively long coastline. It has better access to the Arabian Gulf than its northern neighbor, Iraq, with whom it also shares
the Rumaila oil field.

2. 1973 oil crisis

Started in October 1973, when the members of Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries or the OAPEC
(consisting of the Arab members of OPEC, plus Egypt, Syria and Tunisia) proclaimed an oil embargo.

In the Yom Kippur War of that year, Egypt and Syria, with the support of other Arab nations, launched a military
campaign against Israel on the holiest day of the Jewish calendar in order to regain Arab territories lost to Israel in the
1967 Six Day War. Israel went on full nuclear alert, loading warheads into planes and long-range missiles. The United
States chose to re-supply Israel with arms and in response, OAPEC decided to retaliate against the United States,
announcing an oil embargo. It lasted until March 1974.

With the Arab nations' actions seen as initiating the oil embargo and the long-term possibility of high oil prices, disrupted
supply, and recession, a strong rift was created within NATO. Additionally, some European nations and Japan sought to
disassociate themselves from the U.S. policy in the Middle East.
To address these developments, the Nixon Administration began parallel negotiations with both Arab oil producers to end
the embargo, and with Egypt, Syria, and Israel to arrange an Israeli pull back from the Sinai and the Golan Heights after
the Arabs withdrew from Israeli territory. By January 18, 1974, Secretary of State Henry Kissinger had negotiated an
Israeli troop withdrawal from parts of the Sinai. The promise of a negotiated settlement between Israel and Syria was
sufficient to convince Arab oil producers to lift the embargo in March 1974. Howev er the impact of the embargo was to
remind Western countries, and the USA in particular, of the importance of the region's oil and the need for positive
relations with Arab countries.

3. Islamic Revolution of Iran or the 1979 Revolution

In 1979, the Pahlavi dynasty under Mohammed Reza Shah Pahlavi (who was supported by the United States) was
overthrown. This Sunni kingdom was replaced with an Islamic Republic under the ‘Grand Ayatollah’ Ruhollah Khomeini,
the leader of the revolution, and supported by various leftist and Islamic organizations and Iranian student movements.
While the Soviet Union immediately recognized the new Islamic Republic, it did not actively support the revolution,
initially making efforts to salvage the Shah's government.

The revolution resulted in the exile of many Iranians, and replaced a pro-Western semi-absolute monarchy with an anti-
Western authoritarian theocracy based on the concept of Guardianship of the Islamic Jurists.

Effects of the revolution on the Middle East

In its region, Iranian Islamic revolutionaries called specifically for the overthrow of monarchies and their replacement
with Islamic republics, much to the alarm of its smaller Sunni-run Arab neighbors Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the
other Arabian Gulf States – most of whom were monarchies and all of whom had sizable Shi'a populations.

Islamist insurgents (opposing to western influences) rose in Saudi Arabia (1979), Egypt (1981), Syria (1982), and
Lebanon (1983); the rise of Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, for
instance.

The Iran-Iraq war took place, following a long history of border disputes, motivation by fears that the Iranian Revolution
in 1979 would inspire insurgency among Iraq's long-suppressed Shia majority, and Iraq's desire to replace Iran as the
dominant Arabian Gulf state.

The Islamic Revolution of 1979 and the Iran-Iraq War of 1980-88 are extremely important events that explain the
context of the Gulf War. If you want to gain a high level understanding of the Gulf War, it is a good idea to understand
the impact of both events. There documentaries on these events that can be found on the relevant pages in the IGCSE
tab- look under topic 7 (Events in the Gulf 1970-2000).

Before Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait

Since 1935, Saudi oil began to get an attention as a strong political weapon. In the 1970s, US started to officially get
involved with the regional security. After the collapse of Shah’s government in Iran, the US were faced with growing
Soviet influence and stronger anti US sentiment. US didn’t want the USSR to influence the region, so therefore it put its
large economic and military resources in the region. Iraq, for instance, received billions in aid from the US; which was
used to buy armaments. However, communist governments in Eastern Europe had already collapsed in 1989 and the
USSR was in the process of collapsing by the time of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.

Causes of the Gulf War

Long Term Causes

In regards to economics, the Iran-Iraq War fuelled the Gulf War.

In 1979, the pro-American, pro-Western Shah of Iran was overthrown in the Iranian Revolution and a new anti-Western
Ayatollah Khomeini came to power. In response to that the United States of America began to support the Iraqi regime
under Saddam Hussein to act as a counter-weight to Iran. Though Iraq and Iran are both nations with a Shi'ite Muslim
majority, Iran's leadership was Shi'ite while Iraq's was Sunni Islam. Furthermore Saddam's oppressive regime oppressed
the rights of an Iraqi Kurdistan which Iran supported. Soon enough with these tensions Saddam Hussein invaded Iran in
1980. The war only ended in 1988 and went on for 8 years.
Though Saddam emerged from the war, self-proclaimed as the victor, it left both Iran and Iraq in economic turmoil. The
damage to Iraq was very high and costly. Saddam had already been forced to borrow large loans to fund the war, and how
in order to repair the damage done to Iraq he would need more money. Though Iraq had a large oil supply, it relied
heavily on it and was not sufficient to repair the economy back to the way it was for at least decades to come.
Additionally, Iraq had been out-maneuvered during the 1980's by Kuwait, who had not been at war and had a longer
coastline. Kuwait was able to utilize this coastline to export more oil quicker, in effect flooding the market with cheaper
Kuwaiti oil.

Iraq's relationship to the West and the decline of the Soviet Union.

Saddam fostered good relations with the West especially the United States and France and in 1982, the United States
removed Iraq from its list of terrorist nations to trade with it and provide it with weaponry and support it in the war and in
other events as well. The friendship between Chirac and Saddam got Iraq millions of francs in weaponry and technology.
These warm relations with the great powers of the West made Saddam confident that if he acted militarily he would not be
invaded or be threatened by the United States or any great power. Furthermore, with the decline of the Soviet influence in
the area (as seen with the failure of the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan), made Saddam become more confident that the
Soviet Union would not be able to deter him or interfere. He also could not rely on the same level of funding from either
side as the Cold War was coming to an end.

Short Term Causes

Why did he attack?

 Saddam was faced with a potentially severe economic crisis following the Iran-Iraq war. To many Iraqis, the war
had been total and had stymied industrial output and oil production. He also faced the dilemma of how to
demobilize a huge army- the Iraqi Army was 1,000,000 soldiers strong- without further disrupting the economy.
Maybe more pertinently, Saddam had faced 4 assassination attempts since the end of the Iran-Iraq War and knew
that Iraq politics had a bloody and violent past as monarchs and past leaders had been brutally killed in both 1958
and 1963.
 Hussein’s argument for OPEC quotas-Since Iran-Iraq war (1980-88) Iraq had to pay $230billion dollars for
reconstruction after the war. Hussein asked the OPECs to increase the selling price of oil since it had least amount
sold in comparison to other nations. The Gulf states refused this request and insisted that Saddam repay the loans
they had given him to fight the Iran-Iraq war.
 US & Iraq had military and economic ties; large support from US for the purpose of restraining Saudi Arabia.
These were in danger of decline after the Cold War and the US were looking to build a "peace dividend" by
cutting down on defense spending. Some Western governments were becoming increasingly concerned by
Saddam's human rights record- a British journalist had been hanged for espionage in early 1990. Human Rights in
Iraq had become a bigger issue in the post-Cold War world and after the death of Ayatollah Khomeini in Iran.
 US Ambassador told Saddam, “we have no opinion…on your border disagreement with Kuwait”-It is likely that
Saddam gained confidence.

Attack on Kuwait

August 1st, 1990 Saddam Hussein ordered his army to invade his neighbor, Kuwait. The next day the Iraqi invasion began
with 100,000 soldiers and 2,000 tanks. Within a day, most of Kuwait was conquered and the Iraqi army was moved to the
Kuwait/Saudi Arabia border. On 28th of August, Kuwait proclaimed the 19th province of Iraq.
USRR’S CONTROL OVER EASTERN EUROPE
Hungary (1956)
Describe the events in Hungary in 1956.
There was fighting on the streets. It was invaded.
Rakosi, leader of the Hungarian Communist Party, was forced to resign. His successor, Erno Gero, was not popular and soon began to
lose control. Nagy, the PM, wanted to leave the Warsaw pact. This was a threat to Soviet security.
On 6th October thousands turned out to watch state funeral of Rajik.
On 23rd October there was rioting on the streets of Budapest.
Khrushchev sent in tanks but they were withdrawn after a week.
It was announced that Hungary would withdraw from the Warsaw Pact.
On 4th November 200,000 Soviet troops and 2,500 tanks arrived in Budapest.
After two weeks it is thought that 27,000 Hungarians had died and Soviet control restored. Nagy was hanged.

Describe how the Soviet Union reacted to events in Hungary in 1956.

It was brutal. They employed the military and used force to suppress the reforms.
Khrushchev sent in tanks but they were withdrawn after a week. On 4th November
200,000 Soviet troops and 2,500 tanks arrived in Budapest.
After two weeks of bitter street fighting, about thousands of Hungarians had died and Soviet control restored.
They executed Nagy and his fellow leaders. It prevented Hungary from leaving the Warsaw Pact.

The Soviet Union was determined not to let go of countries within its sphere of influence.

Berlin Wall (1961)

Describe how the Berlin Wall affected the people living in Berlin.
It was a physical barrier. It split Berlin. West Berlin was cut off from East Berlin.
If you tried to cross you were shot. It took no account of roads and buildings.
It put some people in communist held area and others in capitalist area.
It stopped the movement of refugees. People from the east could not move to the more prosperous west.
There was only one crossing point – Checkpoint Charlie. Families were divided.

Why was the Berlin Wall built?

As a warning. To maintain the east-west split. Because Kennedy would not back down.
To prevent people moving from the east.
The city had been split at the end of the war and the west enjoyed a higher standard of living.
Many skilled people left East Germany for the West. This loss of citizens was humiliating for communism.
Berlin was a focus of Cold War tensions with Khrushchev trying to force the west out of Berlin.
It was to prevent refugees escaping to the west.
The East German authorities said it was to keep spies from the west out of East Berlin.
To try to help the Soviet Union maintain control of its east European satellites.

Czechoslovakia / the Prague Spring (1968)

Why did the USSR invade Czechoslovakia in 1968?
Why was the Soviet Union worried by developments in Czechoslovakia in Spring 1968?
The USSR thought they would lose control as Dubcek launched reforms known as the “Prague Spring”. Dubcek planned to modernise
communism with “Socialism with a human face” by introducing free expression and ending rule of terror by secret police. There was
talk of setting up the Social democratic Party as a rival to the Communists. The USSR thought this would threaten their control of
Eastern Europe.
Dubcek assured Brezhnev that he did not want to leave the Warsaw Pact but Brezhnev knew that if control was lessened in one
country others would follow. This would undermine Soviet control. The USSR feared that Czechoslovakia would ally with
Yugoslavia and Romania.
Czechoslovakia was too important to the security of the Soviet Union as it had borders with West Germany and the USSR.
Brezhnev was the new Soviet leader and he was just as determined as previous leaders to maintain Soviet control of eastern Europe
and he felt this control was being threatened.

Poland's Solidarity Movement

What was the Solidarity?
- A trade union of workers in Poland at the end of 1980s.
- It was led by Lech Wałęsa
- backed by popular opinion and the use of non-violent methods to seek workers rights, more freedom of
speech, the right to strike, and release of political prisoners.
- the 1st non–communist party-controlled trade union in a Warsaw Pact country.
- reached 10 million members before 1981 (1/3 of Poland's work force).

Why was the Solidarity Movement important?

- Solidarity began calling for greater political and religious freedoms.
- Government feared to take action!
- The banning and imprisonment did not work. Solidarity went from strength to strength.
- a symbol for opposition to communism. It set an example to the rest of Eastern Europe. It was the first
successful movement in the late 1980s within the Warsaw Pact against the communist dictatorship.
- It pushed the USSR under Gorbachev to implement his polices of 'Perestroika' and 'Glasnost', which
eventually led to the fall of the Warsaw Pact and the USSR.

Poland's Solidarity Movement / Gorbachev / Fall of the Soviet Union

Factor #1 - Solidarity

Very important as it brought change and it set an example to others.

It challenged the USSR by showing that if people stood together against oppression, it would force the
government to give way through popular opinion and non-violent methods.

The government in Poland had lost the confidence of the people and Solidarity showed that a Communist
government could not solve Poland’s economic problems.

Solidarity began calling for greater political and religious freedoms. As it was strong, the government feared to
take action, as did the Soviet Union. The USSR did not use force to ensure this unlike in Hungary and
Czechoslovakia.

The movement showed that tough moves of threats, banning and imprisonment did not work. Solidarity only
grew stronger. In the free elections of 1989, Solidarity won massive support and Walesa became first non-
communist President.

This set an example to communist control for the rest of eastern Europe.

Factor #2 - Gorbachev

Gorbachev created a more open atmosphere and no longer used armed forces to enforce Soviet rule over Satellite
states. This helped to reduce spending on the military.
Gorbachev proposed that the Soviet economy should be improved by “perestroika” – restructuring, including
capitalist practices. More competition in industry was encouraged.

Interest in free market capitalism and trade with the West increased. This also increased Soviet awareness of
better standards of living in the West.

He introduced “glasnost” – openness to restoring faith in government and end corruption. People who criticised
the government should no longer be persecuted. This allowed discontent to grow.

He proposed a cut back in money spent on the arms race and signed arms limitation treaty with the USA.
He sought to establish more friendly relations with the west and signed arms reduction treaties.

In 1989, communist regimes of eastern Europe toppled one by one as Gorbachev's reforms signalled that the
Soviet Union could no longer intervene.

BUT: The problem was that the reforms were introduced too quickly and without preparation. The Soviet Union
was in confusion and economic chaos.

Factor #3 - Weaknesses of the Communist system and the Warsaw Pact

Communism was seen by many as corrupt and Soviet industry and agriculture inefficient.
The Soviet Union was in economic crisis. Food shortages were everywhere. Large sums of money were being
spent on defence at the expense of many citizens living in poverty. An expensive war was being fought in
Afghanistan in 1979.

Crisis in Soviet Union and communism played its part: Communism is based on equality and fairness but many
had lost faith in it as there was much corruption; Industry and agriculture were inefficient leading to significant
levels of imports; Large sums of money were being spent on defence and the Afghanistan war.
Warsaw Pact countries were clearly behind western countries in both economic and social development. The
economy of the Soviet Union was failing.

Corruption ran too deeply for the changes to happen. His withdrawal of Red Army support for other communist
countries resulted in one by one the communist governments coming to an end.

Communist governments in E. Europe could no longer expect support from Red Army to exercise control.
There was much corruption with Party members living in luxury whilst the workers were living in poverty.
The people no longer had faith in their government as they saw the West getting richer.

Industry and agriculture were not efficient and there was the need for expensive imports.

Korean war : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lb0aZc97dKc

Vietnam: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRDXtaUfsGk

Russia: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kU-KUIRbvGk

Gulf war: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=If71ek0iSIQ