Operation Iraqi Freedom: Learning Lessons from a Lost War

American-led efforts to state and nation-build in Iraq all but failed, resulting in the deaths of 4,431 US troops, hundreds of thousands of Iraqi fatalities, and mixed-at best results in creating a viable state. Despite these failed efforts in Iraq, the United States will most likely need to work with allies, partners, and the Ukrainian people to reconstruct their country in the wake of Russia's war against Ukraine. Therefore, learning lessons from the war in Iraq is critical for future efforts at state stabilization. 

-SSP alum Heather S. Gregg in Foreign Policy Research Institute