Number: RL30184
Title: MILITARY INTERVENTIONS BY U.S. FORCES FROM VIETNAM TO BOSNIA: BACKGROUND, OUTCOMES, AND "LESSONS LEARNED" FOR KOSOVO
Authors: Nina M. Serafino, Foreign Affairs, Defense, and Trade Division 
Abstract: This report provides basic information on nine cases where the U.S. military has intervened, either unilaterally or together with other nations, and a summary, for each operation, of assessments of the operation relevant to the use of force, particularly for cases such as Kosovo. The cases are Vietnam Lebanon, Grenada, Panama, Iraq, Somalia, Rwanda, Haiti, and Bosnia. Information includes: the situation in which U.S. military forces were deployed, the size and length of deployment, the number of U. S. military personnel killed in or as a result of hostilities, the situation in which U.S. troops were deployed, the rationales, purposes, and/or interests involved in a deployment, and whether there was an international mandate and a congressional authorization for the action. The introductory overview includes a synopsis of the "lessons learned" for the use of force from all operations, and a brief discussion of the implications for future operations.
Pages: 30
Date: Updated May 20, 1999