Middle East and Counter-Terrorism expert Anthony Paice uses research and analysis to trace the underlying causes of the Iraqi takeover of Kuwait in 1990, adding his own personal experiences of the events. He reveals how neither London nor Washington had their eyes on the ball in the months leading up to the invasion and missed opportunities to prevent it.

The successful liberation of Kuwait, he contends, allowed American and British authorities to bury mistakes and hide behind bland denials – including that a special operation had compromised BA flight 149, leading to the detention of hundreds of passengers. This book explores this position and goes on to show how Western miscalculations have led to further sorry situations in the Middle East, culminating in the precipitate withdrawal of forces from Kabul in August 2021 and the disgraceful betrayal of the Afghan people.