Ba'athist Iraq reducing international oil prices, further weakened the Iraqi economy. In response to this, Saddam threatened Kuwait that, unless it reduced its oil output, Iraq would invade. Negotiations broke down, and on 2 August 1990, Iraq launched an invasion of Kuwait. The resulting international response led to the Persian Gulf War, which Iraq lost. The United Nations (UN) initiated economic sanctions in the war's aftermath to weaken the Ba'athist Iraqi regime. The country's economic conditions worsened during the 1990s, and at the turn of the 21st century, Iraq's economy started to grow again as several states ignored the UN's sanctions. In
Iraq–Kuwait barrier Iraq–Kuwait barrier The Iraq–Kuwait barrier ( "Hudud al-'Irāq-al-Kuwayt") is a border fence extending six miles (10 km) into Iraq, three miles (5 km) into Kuwait, and across the full length of their mutual border from Saudi Arabia to the Persian Gulf. Constructed by authorization of the United Nations Security Council, its stated purpose was to stop a re-invasion of Kuwait by Iraq. The border barrier, made of electrified fencing and concertina wire, is braced by a -wide and -deep trench, complete with a -high dirt berm and guarded by hundreds of soldiers, several patrol boats, and helicopters. Construction of the