Prior to the invasion, Saddam was literally and figuratively under the gun on account of the United States' conventional military superiority, as well as Iran's nascent nuclear program. Any way you slice it, he would eventually have to go nuclear. My own view is that Saddam's actions were defensive in nature and intent...Iraq was a weak and isolated state attempting to safeguard its own security through the acquisition of a nuclear deterrent.

 

If your interested, the following articles will get you started:

 

 "http://www.apsanet.org/imgtest/1988AddrWALTZ.pdf"

 

 "http://repositories.cdlib.org/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1055&context=igcc

 

Waltzing Matilda

Sorry your links didn't work. I do think however that it would of ended up in another conflict in the region between Iraq and Iran.

copy and paste into your browser...and be sure to delete the quotation marks.