– November 29, 1990 – CBS World News Roundup – Gordon Skene Sound Collection –
Desert Storm loomed this day in 1990. The UN Security Council was meeting later on this day to vote to approve military action if Iraq wasn’t willing to leave Kuwait on its own by mid-January. There were enough votes to easily pass the resolution, but there were still a few arms to twist. Twelve or thirteen of the fifteen Security Council members were expected to vote yes, but Secretary of State Baker didn’t feel it was enough and flew to Beijing for talks with Chinese leaders who said they wouldn’t vote yes, but also wouldn’t vote no. Talks continued well into the night in attempt to get China on board.
The vote did not ensure military action, even if the deadline came and went – members had hoped there would still be a peaceful settlement to the crisis. Still, the military buildup was continuing in anticipation Saddam Hussein balked, and Desert Storm would go ahead as planned.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia put its military on high alert in anticipation of an Iraqi pre-emptive strike ahead of the UN Vote. Saudi Arabia was being used as a staging area for the coalition forces in the lead-up to Desert Storm.
President Bush was scheduled to call Congress together for an emergency vote on being given the authority to launch the Desert Storm operation. Senate Republican leader Bob Dole said he was certain Bush was going to call the special session of Congress but wasn’t certain the measure giving Bush authority would be passed. Senate Majority leader Dick Gephart said President Bush hadn’t yet made the case that military force was necessary and there was growing sentiment on Capitol Hill that economic sanctions against Saddam Hussein ought to be given more time.
The Senate Armed Services committee was continuing its hearings into the Desert Storm question. Former Navy Secretary James Webb who argued the American people were not expressing much commitment into defending the Persian Gulf. Webb said America had no treaties in the region and that none of the countries involved were democracies – American had not been attacked and using the United Nations as a lever in forwarding military action was perplexing and cynical.
And that’s just a small slice of what happened, this November 29, 1990 as reported by The CBS World News Roundup.
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