It was over almost before it started. People expected a meat grinder, a "Vietnam in the sand" that would drag on for years and come home in thousands of flag-draped coffins. Instead, the world watched on CNN as a massive, high-tech coalition dismantled the fourth-largest army on earth in a matter of weeks. But when you ask about the Gulf War who won, the answer depends entirely on whether you’re looking at a map, a scoreboard, or the decades of chaos that followed in the Middle East.
Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in August 1990 because he was broke. He owed billions to the Kuwaitis after his long, bloody war with Iran, and he figured he could just erase the debt by erasing the country. He was wrong. President George H.W. Bush famously declared, "This will not stand," and within months, a coalition of 35 nations—including some unlikely partners like Syria and Egypt—had moved nearly a million troops into the Saudi desert.
The Clear Military Victor
If we are talking strictly about the battlefield, the United States and the Coalition won a victory so lopsided it’s still studied in war colleges today. The air campaign, Operation Desert Storm, kicked off in January 1991. It didn't just hit targets; it blinded the Iraqi military. Using F-117 Nighthawk stealth fighters and Tomahawk cruise missiles, the Coalition took out Iraq's "eyes"—their radar and command centers—in the first few hours.
General Norman Schwarzkopf, often called "Stormin' Norman," executed what he called the "Hail Mary" play. While the world's attention was fixed on the Kuwaiti border, he swung his heavy armor deep into the western desert, outflanking the Iraqi army and cutting them off. When the ground war finally started on February 24, 1991, it lasted exactly 100 hours.
👉 See also: Casey Ramirez: The Small Town Benefactor Who Smuggled 400 Pounds of Cocaine
Iraq’s vaunted Republican Guard, the elite units Saddam relied on, were decimated. By the time a ceasefire was declared on February 28, Kuwait was liberated. The Coalition had lost fewer than 300 soldiers in combat. Iraq? Estimates range from 20,000 to 50,000 dead. It was a blowout.
Why Saddam Thought He Won
Here’s where it gets weird. Saddam Hussein actually stayed in power. He held a "victory" parade in Baghdad. To a dictator, winning isn't about territory or casualty counts; it’s about survival. Because the UN mandate was specifically to liberate Kuwait—not to topple the Iraqi government—the US-led forces stopped at the border. They didn't go to Baghdad.
Saddam used this to his advantage. He told his people that Iraq had stood alone against the entire world and survived. He brutally crushed uprisings by the Kurds in the north and the Shiites in the south right after the war ended, often using helicopters that the Coalition allowed him to keep flying under the ceasefire terms. To Saddam, the fact that he was still sitting in his palace while George H.W. Bush eventually lost his re-election in 1992 was proof of a moral victory.
✨ Don't miss: Lake Nyos Cameroon 1986: What Really Happened During the Silent Killer’s Release
The Ghost of Victory: Long-Term Consequences
You can't really talk about the Gulf War who won without looking at the 2003 invasion. The first Gulf War left a lot of "unfinished business." The harsh sanctions placed on Iraq after 1991 devastated the Iraqi civilian population but did little to weaken Saddam's grip on power. It also led to the "no-fly zones," where US and British pilots spent the next decade playing a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse with Iraqi air defenses.
Then there’s the Osama bin Laden factor. One of the main reasons bin Laden cited for his hatred of the United States was the presence of "infidel" American troops on the holy soil of Saudi Arabia during and after the Gulf War. In a strange, dark way, the decisive military victory of 1991 planted the seeds for the War on Terror.
Modern Perspectives on the Outcome
Military historians like Rick Atkinson, who wrote Crusade, point out that the Gulf War was the last "clean" war. It had a beginning, a middle, and a definitive end. It restored the American public's faith in the military after the trauma of Vietnam. It showed that precision-guided munitions were the future of warfare.
🔗 Read more: Why Fox Has a Problem: The Identity Crisis at the Top of Cable News
But political scientists often argue the victory was hollow. By leaving Saddam in power, the US ensured a second conflict was almost inevitable. We saw that play out twelve years later.
- The US/Coalition won the tactical and strategic objective: Kuwait was freed.
- Saddam Hussein won the survival game: He stayed in power for another 12 years.
- The Region lost stability: The power vacuum and subsequent sanctions set the stage for decades of insurgency.
The 1991 Gulf War changed how we see war. It was the first time we saw "smart bombs" hitting chimneys on the evening news. It was the first time we saw a massive international coalition work together so efficiently. But it also showed that winning a war on the ground is a lot easier than winning the peace that follows.
Actionable Insights for History Buffs
If you're trying to understand the full scope of this conflict beyond the "who won" headlines, you should look into the specific accounts of the Battle of 73 Easting. It's often called the "last great tank battle of the 20th century" and explains exactly why the technical gap between the two sides was so insurmountable.
To get the most accurate picture of the war's conclusion, research the "Highway of Death." This was the road between Kuwait City and Basra where Coalition aircraft destroyed hundreds of retreating Iraqi vehicles. The images were so gruesome they actually pressured the Bush administration to end the war sooner than some generals wanted.
Finally, check out the National Museum of the United States Air Force’s digital archives on Operation Desert Storm. They have incredible primary source documents on the air campaign that show just how much planning went into those first 24 hours. Understanding the logistics of the "left hook" maneuver provides the best context for why the ground war ended as quickly as it did.