Knowledge Tree
Relations (1)
related 5.61 — strongly supporting 48 facts
Iraq and Kuwait are related through the 1990 invasion of Kuwait by Iraq, which was preceded by failed negotiations regarding oil pricing and border disputes {fact:2, fact:3, fact:16, fact:19}. The two nations were central to the Gulf War crisis, with Iraq occupying Kuwait and subsequently facing international intervention {fact:10, fact:15, fact:27}.
Facts (48)
Sources
The Persian Gulf TV War by Douglas Kellner (http://www.gseis.ucla ... pages.gseis.ucla.edu 48 facts
measurementThe Economist reported on August 4, 1990, that Iraq's invasion of Kuwait gave Iraq control of twenty percent of the world's known oil reserves, allowing Iraq to rival Saudi Arabia as OPEC's 'swing' producer.
claimJohn Kelly, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for Middle Eastern affairs, characterized the potential invasion of Kuwait by Iraq as 'a hypothetical' that he could not discuss.
claimThe author asserts that the motivations behind the Bush administration's failure to warn Iraq against invading Kuwait remain unclear due to the administration's history of incompetence and Machiavellian actions.
claimTime magazine claimed that the failure of the August 1, 1990, negotiations between Iraq and Kuwait was due to the Iraqi delegation, who demanded total capitulation from Kuwait and were determined to see the negotiations break down.
claimOn August 12, 1990, Iraq proposed withdrawing from Kuwait contingent upon Syria and Israel withdrawing from occupied Arab lands in Lebanon and other occupied territories, an initiative the United States dismissed.
claimIraq was motivated to move troops to the Kuwaiti border because Kuwait was selling oil below the agreed-upon OPEC price, which reduced Iraq's oil revenue by billions of dollars.
accountRepresentatives from Iraq and Kuwait met on August 1, 1990, in Jidda, Saudi Arabia, to negotiate disputes, but the negotiations failed to resolve the issues.
claimDouglas Kellner claims that major U.S. newspapers, news magazines, and television networks failed to criticize or debate the wisdom of the George H.W. Bush administration's decision to deploy troops to Saudi Arabia.
quoteHighly placed figures within Iraq told us that during the course of his meetings with King Hussein, the Iraqi President had agreed to go to Jeddah for a mini-summit on August 4 to negotiate with King Fahd and, if the negotiations were successful, to withdraw from Kuwait.
perspectiveDouglas Kellner argues that President George H.W. Bush could have prevented the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait by directly contacting Iraq or making a public statement warning Iraq of the consequences of invading its neighbor.
claimFred Dawson reported in the Middle East Report that the breakdown of the August 1, 1990, negotiations between Iraq and Kuwait was caused by the contemptuous and dismissive attitude of the Kuwaiti delegation, which prompted the Iraqi team to walk out.
claimOn July 31, 1990, John Kelly, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for Middle Eastern affairs, stated that the United States had no formal commitment to the defense of Kuwait.
claimDouglas Kellner notes that the alternative press advocated for a UN peacekeeping force instead of a massive U.S. military deployment, but this perspective was largely excluded from mainstream media coverage.
claimThe author claims that the United States continued to appease Iraq despite clear signals and intelligence from the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and military intelligence that an invasion of Kuwait was imminent.
accountWithin 36 hours of the invasion of Kuwait, the Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council announced that Iraqi armed forces had completed their duties in Kuwait and would begin withdrawing on August 5, provided no threats to the security of Kuwait or Iraq emerged.
accountOn the weekend of July 21, 1990, Iraq deployed 30,000 troops, tanks, and artillery to its border with Kuwait.
accountA planned meeting between Iraq, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia in Jidda, Saudi Arabia, intended to resolve the Gulf crisis, was announced on August 3, 1990, but failed to produce results.
accountPentagon officials stated after the Persian Gulf War that the Iraqi divisions positioned furthest south in Kuwait were not the elite Republican Guard forces, as the Republican Guard had been moved back to Iraq during the first week of the invasion.
quoteThe Financial Times stated: "The 'immediate issue' is for 'Iraq to get out of Kuwait'; but in the light of Iraq's proposal, 'the onus is now on everyone involved, including Middle Eastern and Western powers, to seize the initiative and harness diplomacy to the show of political, military and economic force now on display in the Gulf"
claimJim Hoagland interpreted Iraq's invasion of Kuwait as a challenge to the legitimacy of remaining monarchies in the Arabian Peninsula, where Britain established most existing boundaries and political systems during the colonial era.
accountThe London-based Mideast Mirror reported that King Hussein of Jordan brought a peace proposal from Iraq to President George H.W. Bush, in which Saddam Hussein expressed willingness to negotiate a withdrawal of Iraqi troops from Kuwait, provided that U.N. sanctions were lifted and the U.S. military buildup in Saudi Arabia ended, with the exception of the restoration of the al-Sabah clan in Kuwait.
accountThe National Security Council considered and rejected an Iraqi offer to withdraw from Kuwait on August 10, 1990, because the proposal was considered to be moving against United States policy.
claimInitial reports following the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait suggested Iraq had between 80,000 and 100,000 troops in Kuwait, a figure frequently cited by the Bush administration and mainstream media.
accountThe United States mobilized United Nations resolutions against Iraq, including a resolution on November 29, 1990, that authorized the use of force to eject Iraq from Kuwait.
perspectiveVialls (1991) suggested that the Gulf War may have been a ploy to exhaust Saudi, Kuwaiti, and Iraqi oil supplies to increase oil prices, thereby making the development of off-shore oil resources near the Falkland Islands profitable for the U.S. and Britain.
claimRumors circulated that Iraq was willing to withdraw from Kuwait in exchange for concessions regarding the disputed Rumaila oil field, debt forgiveness, and access to Kuwaiti islands to ensure Gulf access.
claimDouglas Kellner claims that the George H.W. Bush administration exaggerated the number of Iraqi troops in Kuwait and the threat to Saudi Arabia to scare the Saudis into accepting U.S. troops and to justify the U.S. military buildup and eventual military action.
claimThe actual number of Iraqi troops deployed in Kuwait during the first six weeks of the crisis is uncertain, despite Bush administration reports of 100,000 troops pre-invasion.
accountOn August 9, 1990, the United States received a back-channel offer from Iraq to withdraw from Kuwait in return for the settlement of some border disputes.
perspectiveDouglas Kellner argues that the Bush administration set the stage for the Gulf War by failing to warn Iraq of the consequences of invading Kuwait, quickly sending troops to Saudi Arabia, and undercutting diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis.
claimSaddam Hussein miscalculated the international response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, believing that Western powers would allow the seizure because they had previously provided military support, technology, and economic arrangements to Iraq during the Iran-Iraq War.
claimU.S. Ambassador to Iraq April Glaspie told Saddam Hussein that the United States had 'no opinion' on the border dispute and other disputes between Iraq and Kuwait.
accountIraqi forces crossed the border into Kuwait early on the morning of August 2, 1990, following the breakdown of negotiations in Jidda.
measurementThe Washington Post reported on August 4, 1990, that U.S. intelligence monitored a buildup of 100,000 Iraqi troops in Kuwait south of the capital and near the border with Saudi Arabia.
accountThe 'conspiracy account' suggests that the United States encouraged Kuwait to lower oil prices and refuse to settle disputes with Iraq to provoke Iraq into a military action that would justify U.S. intervention and the destruction of Iraq.
accountIraq canceled the mini-summit scheduled for August 4, 1990, in Jeddah because Egypt successfully passed a resolution condemning the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait at an Arab League meeting in Cairo on August 3, 1990.
claimCockburn and Cohen argued that the George H.W. Bush administration was attempting to pressure Kuwait into a more tractable position regarding oil prices and the leasing of two islands to Iraq for the construction of a deep-water harbor in the Gulf.
measurementIraq and Kuwait combined controlled approximately 20 percent of the world's known oil reserves at the time of the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.
claimThe author argues that the Bush administration is largely responsible for the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait and the subsequent war because it failed to warn Iraq against the invasion or urge Kuwait to negotiate with Iraq.
referenceThe American Friends Service Committee published a report on August 8, 1990, which argued that Iraq would not continue past Kuwait to the Saudi oil fields for five reasons: (1) Iraq and Saudi Arabia had been coordinating oil pricing policies in opposition to Kuwait; (2) Iraq needed time to absorb Kuwait; (3) Saudi Arabia's military forces were larger and more capable than Kuwait's; (4) Iraqi supply lines would become overstretched and vulnerable to air attack; and (5) An attack on Saudi Arabia would prompt military intervention by the United States and other countries.
claimThe Bush administration dismissed Iraqi peace offers because President George H.W. Bush demanded the unconditional withdrawal of Iraq from Kuwait.
claimIraq had grievances against Kuwait regarding a long-standing border dispute and Kuwait's refusal to cancel debts Iraq incurred during the Iran-Iraq war of 1980-1988.
claimU.S. Ambassador to Iraq April Glaspie hinted in a New York Times interview that the United States was surprised that Iraq seized the entirety of Kuwait, suggesting the U.S. expected Iraq to only take the off-shore islands and the disputed oil field.
accountThe conspiracy account posits that the United States signaled to Iraq that it would not object to an invasion of Kuwait, intending to trap Iraq and mobilize a coalition against it.
measurementOn August 1, 1990, reports indicated that Iraq had amassed 100,000 troops on the Kuwaiti border.
claimThe conspiracy theory provides a rationale for Kuwait's refusal to negotiate with Iraq and Iraq's decision to invade, suggesting that Kuwait would not have provoked Iraq without a prior U.S. pledge of support.
claimDouglas Kellner claims that mainstream media exclusion of oppositional voices prevented serious public debate regarding the appropriate U.S. response to Iraq's invasion of Kuwait.
accountAlgerian diplomats made a serious attempt at negotiation during the Gulf crisis, as some observers believed they were in a good position to resolve the situation because they were not closely allied with Iraq, Saudi Arabia, or Kuwait.