Military

(1) Kuwait began as a small fishing and trading settlement along the northern coast of the Arabian Peninsula. From about 4000 to 2000 B.C., this region controlled the Persian Gulf route to the East Indies and was the trading link between the civilizations of the Indus Valley and Mesopotamia. Traders enriched the first civilizations in Mesopotamia, both commercially and culturally. Because of its distance from Mesopotamia, Kuwait was not affected by the continuous upheavals experienced by other areas of Southwest Asia.

(2) During the early 1700s, drought and famine caused mass migrations of Arab tribes to the north coastal lands of the Persian Gulf, presently the site of Kuwait. The Utub tribe migrated from Saudi Arabia in the 18^th century and settled in a small town which they called Kuwait (fortress built near water), finding the mild climate a welcome change from the harsh desert. From the Utub tribe emerged the founders of present-day Kuwait.

(3) Kuwait came under British rule in 1889, at the time when British influence was displacing the Ottoman Empire. Britain assumed responsibility for Kuwait's foreign affairs and provided protection from foreign intervention. Until the end of World War II, Kuwait was a poor, traditional kingdom whose people earned their living from fishing, pearling, and trading with Persian Gulf neighbors. After the war they began to exploit the oil that had been discovered in 1938. Britain no longer needed Kuwait as a military frontier, and the increased oil income and stabilization of Kuwait's internal rule enabled the British to grant independence on 19 June 1961.

(1) Since the attainment of full independence in 1961, the most significant political innovation has been the increased power and prestige of the popularly elected assembly. Furthermore, Kuwait is the only state on the Arabian peninsula that has established a modern legal system. By the 1970s Kuwait boasted the world's highest per capita income and a system of social services including public education, free medical care, government housing, and pensions. The enormous wealth derived from Kuwait's oil resources has financed the remodeling of government services, upgraded the armed forces, improved the physical development of the state's infrastructure, and has stimulated foreign investment.

(2) The "oil boom" caused a significant migration of foreigners to Kuwait initially creating a major problem for the government. Strict naturalization laws, however, prevented these noncitizens had increased to 50% of the total population, and the government realized that the skills and manpower of the immigrants were essential for Kuwait's economic development. The Kuwaiti Government subsequently liberalized the naturalization laws and granted citizenship to a larger number of immigrants.

(3) At the Baghdad Summit in November l978, Kuwait pressed for a consensus among the Arab nations condemning the Israeli-Egyptian peace agreement. By the 1980's Kuwait had adopted an active role in preserving Arab unity and along with Saudi Arabia, emerged as one of the Persian Gulf's dominating forces. Kuwait had some success in the role of mediator in the conflict between the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen and the Yemen Arab Republic. Kuwait was also instrumental in resolving a crisis in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

(4) Kuwait supported Iraq in its war with Iran by contributing billions of dollars to the Iraqi war effort. However, Saddam Hussein threatened Kuwait with a takeover, unless Kuwait would join Iraqi efforts to raise oil prices. In August 1990, Iraqi troops invaded Kuwait and devastated this country, forcing about half the population to flee to Saudi Arabia. The United Nations passed 12 resolutions and urged Iraq to leave Kuwait by 15 January 1991, but to no avail. United States and multinational troops were rushed into Saudi Arabia in response to an urgent call from the rulers of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. On 16 January 1991, the Gulf War started with thousands of bombing raids. On 23 February 1991, the ground war started and within 100 hours Kuwait was liberated. As the Iraqis retreated, much of Kuwait's industry, infrastructure, and buildings were destroyed. Among the most heavily damaged were places of the royal family, government and other public buildings, oil wells, and roads. Since the war, Kuwait has been largely rebuilt. It will still take some years to repair the damage to the infrastructure and especially to repair the Iraqi destructions of the Kuwaiti petrochemical industry.

(1) The climate of Kuwait is somewhat less severe than in other parts of the Persian Gulf (Table 30). Intense humidity occurs in August. Sand and dust storms are frequent in the summer when the "shamal," a strong northeast wind, blows down the gulf from Iraq. The winter period from November to April is generally pleasant due to the abundance of sunshine; however, there can be periods of raw weather with cold temperatures and rather heavy rain (i.e., Desert Shield/Desert Storm).

(2) Rainfall varies from 8 to15 cm a year throughout the country. Some years, however, actual rainfalls have ranged from 2.5 cm to as much as 33 cm with most of the rain falling during the winter months. Sea temperatures in the summer rise to over 32° in August, increasing the humidity on the coastal lowland. Further inland the climate is more favorable due to stronger winds and lower humidity.

(1) Located at the northwestern corner of the Persian Gulf, Kuwait is bounded on the east by the Persian Gulf, on the north and west by Iraq, and on the south and southwest by Saudi Arabia (Figure 3-3). The area of the state is about 17,829 km² including offshore islands. There are a number of offshore islands, the largest of which is Bubiyan, separated from the mainland by a narrow waterway, Khawr al Sabiyah. The country's only prominent geographic feature is Kuwait Bay, which indents the shoreline for about 40 km and provides natural protection for the port of Kuwait.

(2) The northern border with Iraq was secured through an agreement with Turkey in 1913. Although the agreement was never formally ratified, it was accepted by Iraq in 1932. In the 1960s and 1970s Iraq made various attempts to claim the Kuwait territory. The boundary with Saudi Arabia was set by the Treaty of Uqair in 1922, which also established the 5,700 km² Kuwait-Saudi Arabia Neutral Zone. In 1966 Kuwait and Saudi Arabia divided the neutral zone and in 1969 each country became responsible for its own portion of the zone. A 3,520 km² neutral zone had been established west of the quadripoint with Iraq, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia, that had been jointly administered by Iraq and Saudi Arabia. In December 1981, Iraq and Saudi Arabia signed an agreement to divide the zone between them, but the agreement was not ratified. However, since Desert Shield began, all maps have eliminated this zone. Boundaries are now aligned along the facto boundary that divides the zone through the middle.

(3) Most of Kuwait consists of desert. There is one small oasis, Al Jahrah, at the western end of Kuwait Bay and a few water wells in the coastal villages. The Wadi al Batin, a broad shallow valley, forms the western boundary of Kuwait. At Raudhatain in the north, several shallow wadis converge the area and provide a temporary repository for winter floodwaters which quickly evaporate or are absorbed into the porous subsoil. There is a continual redistribution of topsoil caused by flood runoff and erosion.

(4) The Kuwaiti desert is undulating and gravelly with a few low hills or ridges like the Qarah az Zahr scarp west of Kuwait Bay. The 18 km-wide coastal plain is separated from the central part of the country by the 120 m-high Ahmadi Ridge that runs north and south. The only trees, aside from those in the date gardens at Al Jahrah, are tamariks in Kuwait City and a few nearby villages. Arfaj, the most common desert shrub, grows in the vicinity of the Wadi al Batin. It reaches a maximum height of slightly over .5 m and is used for firewood by nomadic tribesmen.

(5) Kuwait has numerous islands within its territorial waters. Warbah Island is a low-lying land mass which is separated from Iraq by the narrow Khawr Shatama channels. The island is 13 km long and is covered by rough grasses and reeds. Bubiyan Island lies south of Warbah and is separated from the Kuwait mainland by the Khawr al Sabiyah channel. The island is 43.5 km long and 25 km wide and has low terrain and swampy shores. The northwestern portion of Bubiyan is partly submerged at high tide and there is a mud flat which extends southeast of the island. The islands of Faylakah and Maskan are located on this mud flat. Faylakah is low and sandy; it is 11 km long by 5 km wide and is the only island that is inhabited. Maskan, Awhah, Kubbar, and Qaruh are quite small, and Kuwaiti ownership of Qaruh is disputed by Saudi Arabia. Trafficability in Kuwait is discussed at Table 32.

(1) Overlooking Kuwait Bay is Kuwait City--capitol, chief port, and commercial center of the country. Half of the country's population lives in Kuwait City and its suburbs, which include the town of Hawalli. The metropolitan appearance of this modern city is in remarkable contrast wit the surrounding desert. The city extends 24 km along the south side of Kuwait Bay and 10 km inland; it forms a concentric pattern from the original main gate of the old city. Trees and shrubs have been planted in the city and the surrounding suburbs as part of a program that seeks not only to beautify but to screen the metropolitan area against summer sandstorms.

(2) The only other town of major note is Al Ahmadi, the headquarters of the Kuwait Oil Company.