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Kuwait: The Past and the Geography Introduction Geographically, Kuwait is considered to a relatively small country, covering the territory of 6, 880 square miles, with a population of just over two million people. It is located at the head of the Persian Gulf, which is strategically a crucial area in the geopolitics of our time, in world affairs. This tendency is caused with the countrys geographical position, vulnerable and economically exceptional. The advantages of its wealth have also brought some misfortune on Kuwait, in the form of outside attack. Kuwait is bordered by Saudi Arabia on the south, and by Iraq on the north and west. It is a modern and very wealthy nation, but in some ways it still is behind the rest of the modern world in some of its cultural practices, for example equality of women.
Although women in Kuwait live light years better than their Muslim sisters in Iran, they are still relegated second-class status and denied opportunities for public roles (Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, 1113). Also, Kuwait has been criticized for its treatment of foreign laborers, especially poor women from the Philippines and Indonesia, who come to work as cheap domestics in the homes of wealthy Kuwaitis (Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, 1117). In other respects, however, Kuwait enjoys a very important role in world affairs because of its oil supply. Demographically, the population of Kuwait is predominantly Arab, but only about one-third of the Kuwaiti population is actual Kuwaitis. This is due to the fact that native Kuwaitis have a very high per capita income, and pay no taxes.
They also enjoy extensive social services. Therefore, there is not a viable work force that can perform all of the duties needed by a modern society. That is why many foreigners come to Kuwait to perform these duties and make a good living. Some of the major ethnic groups that come to Kuwait to find work are Iranians, Indians, Pakistanis, Yemenis, and Palestinians. 85 -percent of the population is Muslim, but there are other religious groups active in Kuwait. Although there are no sharp distinctions between urban and rural population of Kuwait, from the contemporary point of view, demography of Kuwait has been transformed from rural dwellers towards urban ones.
The majority of urban population lives in Kuwait City and its suburbs Al Java and Hawaii, mainly because of the harsh desert climate farther inland. Kuwait Citys is characterized with moderate changes in weather and air temperature and high humidity, while maximum temperatures in the desert region usually range drastically between 108 F and 115 F during summer and dropping almost to the freezing point at night in winter. Practically, weather conditions in Kuwait are notably marked with occasional dust storms, accompanied with thunder and light rain. Countrys annual rainfall constitutes 6 inches. Interestingly, 90 percent of this amount occur almost entirely between November and May. From the political point of view, Kuwait constitutes a monarchy, but the ruling sheikh does pick a prime minister to head the government.
Kuwait has a unicameral national assembly made up of 50 members who are elected by popular vote. There are no official political parties. Women do not have the right to vote in Kuwait. In 1999, the sheikh issued an edict giving Kuwaiti women the right to vote and to run for office, but parliament failed to ratify it. History of Kuwait: From Monarchy to Capitalistic Economy The history of Kuwait is characterized with two notable features: from one point it is a history of world famous dynasty and from another one it is a history of discovery and distribution of oil.
From the critical point of view, there are two main tendencies that shaped Kuwait's history and image of the country we have today: traditions and oil (Gause, 63). Historians indicate the origin and early development of famous Al-Sabah dynasty to the mid-eighteenth century. From 1760 Kuwait was a nominal province of the Ottoman Empire, ruled from Constantinople. In 1899 under the threat of the Turkish oppression, the Sheikh received military and political protection of Great Britain (Gause, 69). In 1939, the Kuwait Oil Company discovered enormous oilfields on the territory of the country, however oil has not been exported until 1946 because of the World War II (Cook, 93).
Eventually, the large-scale oil trade turned Kuwait into one of the world largest exporters. The country retained the status of British protector until 1961, when Kuwait obtained independence under Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salem Al-Sabah (Gause, 71). Although from political point of view, it was a great achievement, under the threat of Iraq, claimed the emirate in the early 1960 s, Kuwait gain inquired British protection. During the period of 1961 - 1963 Kuwait made serious steps on the international arena, enforcing its political status and sovereignty, first by joining the Arab League and second, by becoming a member of the United Nations. In 1966, in political agreement with Saudi Arabia, Kuwait divided the neutral zone border, which gave Kuwait additional access to famous oilfield of the Arabia peninsula (Cook, 101). Practically, oil remarkably changed the entire state, increasing its living standards, educational systems and life expectancy.
In 1960, Kuwait became a founding member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Countrys vast oil revenues have been used to support other Arab countries. One of the main causes supported by Kuwait has been the Palestinians, in their conflict with Israel. Kuwait has also kept up relations with the West. Not to be too tied up into ideological arguments and positions, Kuwait was also the first Persian Gulf State to establish diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union in 1963.
Kuwait did take part in the oil embargo against the nations that supported Israel in the 1973 war, and Kuwaiti troops stationed in Egypt along the Suez Canal fought against Israeli forces. Serious of significant political, economic and social troubles marked Kuwait's history in 1980 s. During 1980 - 88, Kuwait supported Iraq during the Iran-Iraq War. This support caused Kuwait's income from oil to drop some fifty percent. Iran went so far as to attack a Kuwaiti oil refinery in 1982, and fire upon Kuwaiti tankers in the Persian Gulf. Iran instigated terrorist activity in Kuwait through radical Muslim groups.
In 1980 the American embassy was bombed. In 1982 a Kuwait Airways plane was hijacked and the same year two bomb explosions took the lives of many innocent civilians in two sea-front cafes (Brynen et al, 213). The Sheikh al Sabah endured an attempted assassination in 1985. In 1987, Kuwait asked the United States for protection from attack in the Gulf, and American ships patrolled the Gulf until the end of the war in 1988. Traditionally, Kuwait was always worried about relations with its neighbors - not from Israel, but from bigger, more aggressive Arab countries like Iraq.
Saddam Hussein was not the first Iraqi leader who held designs on annexing its small neighbor to the south. As mentioned earlier, Iraq laid claims of its sovereignty over Kuwait shortly after Kuwait gained its independence. Kuwait's abundant oil reserves would be a treasure for any foreign country that would gain control of it. The problem that faces Kuwait is its small population and small size. Kuwait realized early on that it would need outside help.
Therefore, when the United States and the West offered its assistance, Kuwait was not about to refuse. Even though the Kuwaiti government opposes Israel, and supports their fellow Arabs in Palestine and elsewhere, they did not let ideology get in the way of conventional wisdom. Although Kuwait and Iraq were allies throughout the Iran-Iraq War, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein accused Kuwait of flooding the international oil market, which brought oil prices down considerably. On August 2, 1990 Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait. Saddam Hussein then declared Kuwait annexed as Iraqi territory. Many native Kuwaitis fled the country, including the royal family.
This invasion of Kuwait resulted in the Persian Gulf War. A coalition of Western and Arab forces, mainly American forces, drove Iraq from Kuwait by force, and freed Kuwait. The Iraqi's destroyed much of Kuwait on their way out, burning oil wells. 80 -percent of Kuwait's oil wells were destroyed or damaged by Iraq in their retreat. The roots of the Iraqi-Kuwaiti conflict go very far back in history. There were economic disagreements stemming from Kuwait's aid to Iraq during the costly Iran-Iraq war.
Iraq was not in a good economic position to repay these loans after the eight long years of fighting, and hoped that the wealthy Kuwaiti nation would forgive its international debts. Iraq also accused Kuwait of poaching from the Iraqi oil reserves during the war, when Iraq shut down all oil production. Besides these economic disagreements between Iraq and Kuwait, there were also border disagreements (Brynen et al, 218). Iraq claimed that it had once owned Kuwaiti territory.
However, critically those claims did not correspond to the traditional historical evidence (Brynen et al, 218). Iraq does not have a very solid argument when it comes to its claims on Kuwait. First of all, when Iraq applied to the League of Nations for membership in 1932, it seems they had finally given up all claims on Kuwait, and offered up border agreements worked out earlier with the British, that set firm borders between Iraq and Kuwait. But soon after oil was discovered in Kuwait, and Iraq renewed its verbal claims on the territory. As mentioned earlier, they even tested the resolve of the British when Kuwait first gained their independence from Britain. But Britain still maintained a force in Kuwait, thwarting the desires of Iraq.
Iraq still made great efforts to support insurgents and rebels inside Kuwait, but had no great opportunity to act on their claims until 1990. Interestingly, Iraq did not bring up their claims of sovereignty over Iraq when they initially entered Kuwait. Iraqi forces claimed to be assisting a Kuwaiti rebellion. Soon it became clear that no pro-Iraqi rebellion existed. Iraqi then tried to set up a provisional government in Kuwait, but failed miserably.
Only after Iraq had no more options did they renew their claims that they had sovereignty over Kuwait (Brynen et al, 219). Iraq then resorted to direct occupation of Kuwait, until American and...
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