KUWAIT

The 1991 Persian Gulf War brought the small Middle Eastern nation of Kuwait to the attention of the world when an international alliance led by the United States forced neighboring Iraq to withdraw its occupation forces. Afterward the United States became the guarantor of Kuwait's security in the region, but Kuwait still faced potentially dangerous internal and external threats. Its most serious internal threats have come from reformists who accuse its long-ruling monarchy of impeding progress toward real democracy and free political expression. Internal pressures for political reform hold the potential for revolution. Meanwhile, external threats come from Kuwait's much larger and more powerful neighbors, Iraq and Iran. Iraq is suspected of having designs on Kuwait's offshore islands, control of which would improve its access to the Persian Gulf waters. The Kuwaiti monarchy fears that Iran might try to support a Shiite Muslim insurgency against it in order to establish a government that is friendlier toward Iran.

The tiny wedge-shaped Middle Eastern nation of Kuwait is located at the northwestern head of the Persian Gulf. It covers about 6,880 square miles, an area slightly smaller than the state of New Jersey in the United States. It is bordered to the north and west by Iraq, to the south by Saudi Arabia, and to the east by the Persian Gulf. Its coastline is 180 miles long.

In addition to its mainland, Kuwaiti territory includes nine offshore islands, the most important of which are Bubiyan, Warbah, and Faylakah. Faylakah is the only habitable island among them. The rest are either too small or otherwise unsuitable for habitation. Iraqis used the two uninhabited islands of Warbah and Bubiyan as a base from which to bomb Iranian cities and oil installations during their war with Iran between 1980 and 1988. Annexation of these two islands, which are claimed by the Iraqi government as Iraqi territories, was one of the main objectives of the 1990-1991 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.

Kuwait is mostly flat desert. The country has virtually no usable surface water, and only 1 percent of its soil is cultivated. Ag-

Riculture is only possible with the help of extensive irrigation and fertilizers. Among Kuwaiti agricultural products are tomatoes, radishes, melons, and cucumbers. The Kuwaiti government has also been successful in developing dairy and poultry farms as well as in improving their fishing industries.

Kuwait's access to the Persian Gulf has given this small country strategic global importance. The country supported Iraq during the Iran-Iraq War with financial resources, and Kuwait provided port access for the U. S. Navy. Kuwait's oil resources also give the country global importance. When Iraq invaded the country in 1990, the United States and the United Nations provided military support to Kuwait.