SOAS Research Online

Abstract

American engagement with the world is one of the most important factors in international relations. One leading example is the Wilsonian School, which has a long tradition of influencing American foreign policy. With the 25th anniversary of Operation Desert Storm, this article will review the Wilsonian influences that led the United States to intervene in the First Gulf War. Since the end of the Cold War, visions have differed dramatically in terms of how the United States should conduct foreign policy and engage with the rest of the world. These debates continue to be dominated by a clash between a Jeffersonian neo‐isolationist call to withdraw from international conflicts and a more hawkish interventionist vision of American primacy in foreign affairs. The Wilsonian tradition has arguably received comparatively little discussion by scholars despite the important role it has played in the history of American foreign policy. As we mark the 25th anniversary of operation Desert Storm, this article argues that the Wilsonian framework is helpful in understanding why President Bush entered the First Gulf War of 1991. The article begins with a discussion of what constitutes the Wilsonian ideology in terms of its key principles and assumptions before presenting the utility of the Wilsonian viewpoint in explaining this conflict.