JULY 17

Iraqi President Saddam Hussein accuses Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) of exceeding production levels set by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and driving down the price of crude oil. Hussein says the move has cost Iraq $14,000 million in lost oil revenue and threatens use of force to halt overproduction.

JULY 18

The National Assembly of Kuwait votes to send various high officials to Arab capitals to present the Kuwaiti position. King Fahd of Saudi Arabia telephones Saddam Hussein and urges restraint.

The State Department reiterates that U.S. policy in the Gulf is "to ensure the free flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz and to defend the principle of freedom of navigation."

JULY 19

The Kuwaiti foreign minister delivers a letter to the Arab League responding to Iraqi charges and calling for Arab League arbitration of the border dispute.

JULY 20

Kuwait puts its armed forces on alert.

JULY 22

The Iraqi foreign minister meets with President Hosni Mubarak of Eygpt in Cairo. NATO military attachés in Kuwait, who are visiting Iraq, report seeing tanks on railway cars moving south and 2,000 to 3,000 trucks transporting 30,000 troops toward the border.

JULY 23

Saudi Arabian military forces in the northern and eastern command areas are put on alert. President Mubarak and Jordan's King Hussein confer on tensions in the Gulf.

JULY 24

President Mubarak travels to Baghdad and Kuwait to mediate and propose a meeting of Arab foreign ministers in Cairo. At an emergency OPEC session in Geneva, negotiators move rapidly to agree on production levels acceptable to all 13 members.

JULY 25

U.S. Ambassador-designate to Kuwait Edward Gnehm tells the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that the United States is "deeply concerned" about Iraq's intentions and recent actions in the Gulf.

JULY 26

OPEC agreements for tough production and export limits are formalized. Kuwait and the UAE pledge to abide by the agreement.

JULY 27

The U.S. Senate votes to cut off all farm credits to Iraq and to prohibit transfers of munitions and military applicable technology.

JULY 31

Intelligence sources report enormous Iraqi troop buildup, with nearly 100,000 troops massed along the border with Kuwait-about five times the size of the Kuwaiti army. Representatives of Iraq and Kuwait meet in Saudi Arabia to begin negotiations on the oil fields along the border, but talks break down after two hours.

AUGUST 1

Talks between Iraq and Kuwait collapse; Iraqi troops mass on the Kuwaiti border.

AUGUST 2

Iraqi troops cross the border into Kuwait, quickly gaining control of the country. The Emir flees to Saudi Arabia. A new "Provisional Free Government" closes all ports and the airport, bans foreign travel, imposes a curfew and cuts off telecommunications with the outside world.

An emergency session of the U.N. Security Council votes 14 to 0 to condemn Iraq, urge a cease-fire and demand the withdrawal of Iraqi troops from Kuwait. The Soviet Union, a major supplier of arms to Iraq, votes in favor of the resolution and announces an arms embargo against that country.

Kuwait's ambassador to the United States strongly condemns Iraq's invasion of Kuwait and makes a worldwide appeal for military assistance.

President George Bush strongly condemns the invasion as "naked aggression" and calls for Iraq's "immediate and unconditional withdrawal." President Bush signs an executive order to ban all trade with Iraq and freeze the assets of both Iraq and Kuwait, and calls on other governments to take similar action. Both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives move quickly to condemn Baghdad and to endorse President Bush's embargo.

AUGUST 3

The Iraqi army pushes toward Saudi Arabia. President Bush issues a stern warning to the Iraqis not to invade the Kingdom. Saddam Hussein announces he will meet with the Emir of Kuwait in two days and pledges a withdrawal of Iraqi troops beginning the same day. Baghdad begins jamming international broadcasts.

U.S. Secretary of State James A. Baker and Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard Shevardnadze issue an unprecedented joint statement condemning the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq.

Belgium, France, Britain and Luxembourg join efforts to freeze Kuwaiti assets in their countries. The Iraqi invasion is condemned by the European Community (EC), Luxembourg, Austria, Greece, Spain and Brazil.

AUGUST 4

Satellite photos indicate reinforcement, not withdrawal, of Iraqi troops in Kuwait.

Canada and Japan announce embargoes on Iraqi- and Kuwaiti-origin oil, among other sanctions. The European Community adopts similar sanctions.

AUGUST 6

Iraqi troops begin rounding up British and American citizens from hotels and houses in Kuwait City and transferring them to Iraq.

King Fahd invites friendly forces to Saudi Arabia to reinforce its defenses; President Bush orders a squadron of F-15 fighters to a Saudi air base, along with the 82nd Airborne Division.

The U.N. votes 13 to 0 for wide-ranging sanctions against Iraq. U.S. Chargé d'Affaires Joseph Wilson meets with Saddam Hussein in Baghdad and reiterates Washington's demand for the withdrawal of Iraqi forces from Kuwait. Saddam announces his seizure of Kuwait is "irreversible."

AUGUST 7

Saudi Arabia shuts down the Yanbu oil pipeline; Turkey shuts oil pipelines from Iraq to the Mediterranean. Thousands of U.S. troops prepare to move to Saudi bases.

For the first time in its history, neutral Switzerland decides to join with the international community and apply sanctions against Iraq.

Venezuela tells Washington that OPEC will make up the oil shortfall caused by the international embargo of Iraq and Kuwait.

AUGUST 8

In a nationally televised speech, President Bush officially announces the deployment of troops to the Middle East, saying, "The sovereign independence of Saudi Arabia is of vital interest to the United States." He stresses that "appeasement does not work. U.S. policy is guided by four principles: the demand for the withdrawal of Iraqi forces from Kuwait; restoration of the legitimate government of Kuwait; the U.S. commitment to peace and stability in the Gulf; and the protection of American lives in the region."

Iraq announces annexation of Kuwait.

Britain sends additional air and naval units to defend Saudi Arabia.

AUGUST 9

The UN Security Council rejects Iraq's annexation of Kuwait, voting 15 to 0. The Security Council sets up a special committee to monitor compliance with sanctions against Iraq.

AUGUST 10

Iraq calls for a "holy war" against Americans and Israelis, and orders the closing of all embassies in Kuwait.

The Arab League votes to send a peacekeeping force to Saudi Arabia. Twelve members vote in favor, three oppose (Iraq, Libya, PLO), two abstain (Yemen,

Algeria) and one is not present (Tunisia). Jordan, Mauritania and Syria express "reservations."

NATO ministers in Brussels give U.S. Gulf deployment "strong support" and endorse actions by other members, including naval commitments by France and Britain and decisions by Italy, Spain and Portugal to provide air bases.

The United States extends all sanctions on Iraq to Kuwait.

The emergency Arab summit votes to send a pan-Arab force to defend Saudi Arabia. All the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states, Lebanon, Syria, Morocco, Somalia and Djibouti vote in favor; Iraq and Libya oppose; Algeria and Yemen abstain. Australia and Canada announce they will send warships to the Gulf. The Iraqis inform all diplomatic missions in Kuwait to leave by August 24.

AUGUST 11

Egyptian and Moroccan troops begin landing in Saudi Arabia to guard against the threat of an Iraqi invasion. Syrian officials say Damascus will probably take part in the joint Islamic effort.

AUGUST 12

President Bush says he will order U.S. forces to interdict Iraqi oil exports and all imports to that country except some food shipments.

AUGUST 13

Pakistan and the Netherlands agree to send forces to Saudi Arabia and the Gulf.

AUGUST 14

King Hussein meets Saddam in Baghdad, then flies to Washington to confer with President Bush. Five thousand Syrian and Moroccan troops deploy in Saudi Arabia; Syrian President Hafiz al-Assad expresses his country's support for the U.S. deployment. U.N. Security Council permanent members meet to discuss setting up a U.N. force to enforce the trade embargo on Iraq. The British Navy begins challenging Gulf shipping.

AUGUST 16

Saddam threatens to intern all 4,000 Britons and 2,000 Americans in Kuwait; they are told to assemble at two hotels in the city. After meeting with Jordan's King Hussein, President Bush says Jordan has reaffirmed its commitment to observe U.N. sanctions. President Bush orders the U.S. Navy to intercept shipping to or from Iraq and Kuwait.

AUGUST 17

The speaker of Iraq's Parliament, Sadi Mahdi, announces that citizens of “aggressive" nations will not be released until the threat of war against Iraq ends.

AUGUST 18

The U.N. Security Council unanimously adopts Resolution 664 demanding that Iraq "permit and facilitate the immediate departure from Kuwait and Iraq❞ of all foreigners.