Iraq and Kuwait
Sec 4 Social Studies Chapter 1
Iraq and Kuwait
Iraq and Kuwait
Question
Q1. The Iraq and Kuwait conflict was inevitable. Do you agree? Explain.
Q2. The Iraq-Kuwait war could have been prevented. How far do you agree? Explain.
a) Larger underlying reasons/causes of the Iraq and Kuwait Conflict
Q1. The Iraq and Kuwait conflict was inevitable. Do you agree? Explain.
Q2. The Iraq-Kuwait war could have been prevented. How far do you agree? Explain.
a) Larger underlying reasons/causes of the Iraq and Kuwait Conflict
Factors
|
Explanation
in point form
|
Historical Relationship between
Iraq and Kuwait
|
·
Kuwait had been part of Iraq / a
province of Iraq in the past
·
Iraq felt that Kuwait was
essentially part of Iraq
·
Shared the same culture, language,
traditions and history.
·
Kuwait and Iraq were separated by
the British artificially – hence, it is only natural for Kuwait to be
reunited with Iraq.
·
Iraq had tried to take back Kuwait
before in the 1970s and threatened to invade it but backed down when faced with
British support for Kuwait.
·
With Kuwait now independent and
culturally and historically linked to Iraq, Iraq sought to reunify Kuwait to
Iraq.
|
Iraq’s economic problems
|
·
Iran-Iraq war last for 10 years
devastated the Iraqi economy and much of their oil revenue was spent was
spent on war with Iran
·
Much of Iraq was destroyed in the
war
·
Iraq had to spend well over $2 billion
to rebuild its economy
·
Iraq however owed money to the
Western powers and could not repay its debts and rebuild its infrastructure
at the same time
·
Believed that by invading Kuwait
which it also owed money to , it would wipe out their debt to Kuwait plus
give them access to Kuwait’s wealth and oil reserves that could help them
repay their foreign debts and also pay for the rebuilding of their country.
·
Iraq felt that Kuwait which was
not affected by Iraq-Iran war and had benefitted from Iraq’s was with Iran
because Iran would have invaded Kuwait eventually to spread its brand of
Islamic governance was unkind not to forgive Iraq its war debt.
·
By controlling Kuwait, Iraq could
also better control world oil prices as control of Kuwaiti oil reserves would
allow Iraq to control 20% of the world’s oil and therefore allow it to better
set oil prices at higher levels and allow it to reap greater profits to help
them get out of their economic problems.
|
Disputes over territory
|
(1) Bubiyan and Warbah
·
Bubiyan and Warbah islands were
ceded to Kuwait by the British
·
Iraq had long wanted control of
these 2 islands for their strategically value as they guarded the entrance
into port of Umm Qasr, Iraq’s only port and access to the Persian gulf.
·
Access to the Persian Gulf was
crucial as it allowed Iraq to export their oil to the world and earn much
needed money for rebuilding Iraq.
·
In the past, Iraq had asked to
lease the 2 islands but was rebuffed by Kuwait. The inability of Iraq to
secure the permanent use and control of Bubiyan & Warbah islands meant
that Iraq would always live under the fear that Kuwait could block its only
sea-route to export oil.
·
By control Bubiyan and Warbah,
Iraq would widen the amount of port area it controlled and extend of its
control of that area of the Persian gulf and guarantee its sea-route for oil
export.
·
Secure its economic survival.
·
Hence, since Kuwait had refused to
lease the 2 islands to Iraq, it chose to use force to invade Kuwait and seize
control of these 2 strategically important islands.
(2) Rumalia oil fields
·
The 2 nations had a long-standing
dispute over their shared oil field Rumalia across the 2 nations’ borders.
·
Tensions increased when Iraq
accused Kuwait of using slant drilling to steal oil from the Iraqi side of
the border.
·
Kuwait denied this but tensions
were already raised and Iraq probably felt that the only way to stop Kuwait
from stealing its oil was to invade it and therefore take control of the
entire oil field for itself and put an end to the stealing of Iraq’s
resources.
·
Iraq asked Kuwait for US2.4
billion compensation for allegedly stealing its oil but Kuwait refused
·
Tensions were further raised.
|
Disputes over oil production
|
Increased oil production by Kuwait led to a fall in oil
prices.
·
Iraq wanted Kuwait to restrict its
oil production and keep to quotas to hold upoil prices.
·
This would allow Iraq to sell its
oil at better prices and earn more profits to solve its economic problems
·
Kuwait refused to cut back despite
OPEC’s call to do so.
·
A fall of oil price by US$1 meant
a loss of $1b for Iraq.
·
Saddam considered this an economic
war waged by Kuwait and this raised tensions between the 2 nations
·
For Iraq to control oil prices in
its favor, it decided to invade Kuwait to put an end to it flooding the
market with cheap oil and to reduce supply and raise oil prices so that Iraq
would be better off economically by selling its main export oil at higher
prices that would bring in more revenue for Iraq which needed money badly to
repay loans and rebuild their country after the Iran-Iraq war. Hence, it was
Kuwait’s overproduction of oil that led Iraq to invade it.
|
Key factor that caused the crisis
|
The economic problems faced by
Iraq due to its devastated economy. If Iraq was economically doing well, it
would not have been as concerned about the loss of oil revenue due to Kuwait’s
oil overproduction or its control over Bubiyan and Warbah. It could have been
less worried about the alleged slant drilling by Kuwait. Historical ties
between Kuwait and Iraq was an excuse for their invasion. If Iraq had been so
set on reunification with Kuwait, it would have invaded Kuwait much earlier
in its history. Clearly having Kuwait back as an Iraqi province was something
Iraq would have liked but it probably wasn’t the trigger for the 1991
invasion.
|
b) Why did Iraq finally decide to invade Kuwait? [What
triggered the decision by Iraq?]
Factor
|
Explanation
|
Misreading of US position
|
·
Iraqi believed that the United
States would not interfere if a conflict broke out between Iraq and Kuwait
·
Iraq was confident it could
overwhelm Kuwait’s far smaller defense forces and successfully invade Kuwait
with minimum casualties.
·
Iraq did not want a military
confrontation with the US which has a powerful military force.
·
Hence, Iraq believed it was
risk-free and cost-free military adventure to invade Kuwait. Getting hold of
Kuwait’s resources would solve Iraq’s economic problems.
·
Had the Iraqis thought that the US
would come to Kuwait’s defence Iraq would not have started the war.
|
Saddam saw himself as the leader
of the Arab world.
|
·
Saddam’s leadership style and
ambition led to the invasion of Kuwait.
·
Saddam wanted to be the Arab
world’s leader as he was from the majority Sunni Muslim group like many of
the Arabs in the Middle East
·
He felt that he could rightfully
be their leader.
·
Invading Kuwait was the first step
of him fulfilling his vision.
·
The invasion of Kuwait was meant
as a lesson for the other Arab states to take note of what happens to those
who defy him
·
The invasion would raise his own
profile and power in the middle east, setting him one step closer to being
the ruler of the Arab world.
·
A successful invasion of Kuwait
would show that he was powerful leader and was rightful to lead the Arabs.
|
Saddam’s leadership style
|
·
Saddam ran a dictatorship
·
He did not listen to the advice of
his advisors
·
He wanted his own way
·
His general who had warned him
against the invasion because of the likelihood of US involvement was executed
for opposing him.
·
Hence the rest of his generals
simply followed his call to invade even though some realised it was not a
wise decision.
|
War was a way to divert attention
of the Iraqi military and the public away from Iraq’s economic problems
|
·
Saddam was worried that unless he
fixed Iraq’s problems soon there would be a revolution to overthrow him by
the armed forces
·
To keep the armed forces busy, he
chose to occupy them with war.
·
This would help divert attention
away from the poor economic situation and focus on invading Kuwait.
·
Reduced the likelihood of a
military-led revolution against him.
|
Key reasons
|
Mis-read the US position and
miscalculated in thinking the US would not defend Kuwait.
If Iraq had believed that the US
would intervene to support Kuwait, Iraq would never have invaded because Iraq
knew that they would be unable to defeat the US in war because the US is a
superpower. However, because of the miscalculation by Saddam Hussein that the
US would turn a blind eye to the invasion, led Iraq to carry out the
invasion.
|
c) Reaction to invasion and attempts to prevent war [This
can also be tweaked to be considered as factors that led to the invasion of
Kuwait]
Factor
|
Explanation
|
Arab Solution – diplomatic
attempts by the Arab league to negotiate ( Failure of)
|
Another possible factor that led
to the invasion was the failure of diplomatic efforts between Iraq and Kuwait.
Initially, the negotiations with
OPEC were more successful in appeasing Iraq and reduced tensions à Oil price was raised + Kuwait agreed to lower oil
production to within OPEC limits.
However, between Iraq and Kuwait,
the negotiations did not go as well and while Kuwait agreed to discuss the
war debt owed to Kuwait, it refused to pay the compensation for the oil that Iraq
accused Kuwait of stealing from it and also to concede any territory.
Hence, it was this breaking down
of the dialogue with the Arab League interceding that could have led Iraq to
abandon the 4th August meeting after the 1st Aug talks
broke down and caused them to decide to invade on 2nd August when
concessions on oil payments and territory did not materialize.
Nonetheless it was not the main
reason for the Iraqi invasion because it was NOT the root problem.
|
Economic Sanctions against Iraq
|
The UN imposed economic sanctions
against Iraq to force it to negotiate rather than invade Kuwait à this could have forced Iraq into a corner as it was
unable to gain access to foreign medical supplies and other essential goods.
However, it was Iraq’s overall desperate economic situation that pushed Iraq
into a corner such that it chose invasion.
|
d) Consequences of the Iraq and Kuwait Conflict
Factor
|
Explanation
in point form
|
Impact on Kuwait
|
·
Country’s infrastructure destroyed
·
Loss of heritage as Museums were
looted and artefacts were stolen or damaged by the Iraqis
·
Loss of homes as Iraqi troops
looted homes and took away personal possessions.
·
People died as Kuwaiti were tortured
by Iraqi troops
|
Regional and international impact
|
Environmental
impact
·
Environment affected by Iraq
burning the Kuwaiti oil wells as their troops à
Air pollution
·
Sea and marine life affected by
oil spills as fish and other marine life died à
loss of natural heritage of the region and also negative impact on the
fishery business
Economic
impact
·
Tourist and business travelers
avoided the region
·
Loss of business and tourism
dollars à
unemployment in the region rose.
·
Many of the foreign workers who
worked in Kuwait also left and lost their jobs which affected their families
back home.
Health
impact
·
Air pollution led to increased
health risks e.g. lung disease of the people in the Middle East.
|
Impact on Iraq
|
·
Launch of military attack to free Kuwait
of Iraqi control – Operation desert storm
·
An international coalition was
formed to eject Iraq out of Kuwait.
·
Much of Iraq was destroyed during
this war and many Iraqis were killed in the bombing of Iraq to force Iraq to
leave Kuwait.
·
Large part of Iraqi army destroyed
– Iraqi army had over 25% of its manpower wiped out and it became a smaller
force. Many Iraqi soldiers died and their families suffered loss if loved
ones.
·
Power vacuum in the region created
- It was less of a counter-balance against the larger Aran states like Syria
and Iran – potentially destabilizing.
·
Bombing of Iraq by the coalition
forces led to the destruction of the infrastructure of the country. Sewage
system damaged leading to spread of diseases. Water resources polluted leading
to more illness spreading that are water-borne – sickness and death of its
citizens.
|
Social Studies Chapter 1 Sec 4/5
A) Impact of
transnational terrorism
Q. The loss of
privacy is the most serious impact of terrorism. How far do you agree? Explain
your answer.
Factors
|
Notes
|
Political Impact
·
Loss of personal privacy à Citizens become
less trusting of the Government and hence suspicious of their intentions à this has a political
impact because it creates a negative feeling between the government and its
people.
Police and customs officers are more thorough in checks on citizens at the different entry and exit points of the country e.g. immigration check-points à
·
the citizens may feel
inconvenienced & they feel
that their personal rights have been violated by the government à
·
citizens’ personal data and
activities like phone calls may also be tapped by the government to monitor citizens
suspected of terrorist links à
·
The impact is that some innocent
citizens’ personal data and private communicates may also be monitored àpersonal privacy of
citizens will be violated à
·
Citizen rights may be further
affected when innocent citizens are arrested or questioned on suspicion of
being terrorists but are not à
·
in the aftermath of the 9/11 terror
attacks, then US government implemented the US Patriot Act that allowed for
the wire-tapping of the telephone conversations of citizens without their
prior approval or knowledge à this
is an example of how citizen’s rights are violated in the name of managing
terrorism and this is thus the political impact of transnational terrorism à reducing the trust and
bond between the people and the government à citizens may be unwilling to cooperate with the government à
gulf grows between the people and the government à the nation becomes divided as the people no longer feel they can
trust the government nor do they wish to cooperate with it à
there is national disunity à negative
political impact.
|
Citizens’ rights are a political
issue.
However, not all citizens may feel
that their rights have been trampled on and most would be willing to trade
some inconvenience and loss of privacy for greater sense of security.
|
·
Social Impact à a sense of distrust is
created between different races and religions following a terrorist attack by
members of a specific community à
·
members of this community are
shunned by people of other races/religions and hence feel hurt.
·
Members from the other communities
may feel uncomfortable in the presence of innocent members of the community
from which the transnational terrorists belong to, as they may think that
everyone in that community is a terrorist à
terrorists by association à
hence racial and religious tension increases à
disharmony à danger of civil war or racial riots.
·
For example, following arrest of
member of Jema Islamiyah(JI) in Singapore, non-Muslim and non-Malay Singaporeans
may feel uncomfortable in the presence of Malay-Muslims since the JI members
who were arrested were Malay Muslims.
·
In addition, the members of
the race/religion being accused will feel discriminated since they are viewed
with suspicion by their fellow countrymen à this
leads to disunity amongst Singaporeans
·
Hence, a breakdown in the
relationship between the Malay Muslims and other races and
religions could happen and this would disrupt the harmony in the
nation with the different races/religions growing suspicious of one
another's motives à
such distrust once created is hard to heal.
|
|
Economic Impact à after terrorist attackà
a) Fall in air travel à fear of being a victim of terrorism because of hijacking and bombingsà tourism declines worldwide à less revenue generated by the hospitality and travel sectors à fewer jobs created à more unemployment.
b)
Aviation and travel business affected à people
feared avoided air travel àairlines go out of business à people
lose their jobs à
families suffer à
economies of many countries shrink.
e.g. In the aftermath of the Bali attacks, many tourists avoided the island and its economy suffered à Balinese businesses collapsed as it depended on tourists for survival à increased unemployment à e.g. After the Sep 11 terrorist attacks on US à the world economy was negatively affected à stock market plunged
c) Investors and businesses stay
away from country affected à fear loss of investment à fewer companies operate in the country à fewer jobs for locals à unemployment rises à lower standard of living à lesser taxes collectedà less money to improve public works à quality of life falls in the nation à hence economic impact is serious.
d) Increased government spending on security services like police to protect key installations and citizens à lesser resources available for other national needs e.g. Education and Health à hence fall in quality of public services
e) There could also be disruption
to daily lives with terrorist drills. E.g. Exercise Northstar- MRT train
services were disrupted à some impact on the economy of Singapore since national
infrastructure is used for such drills.
|
NB: Although, social impact is the
most serious, Singapore has tried to reduce its negative impact by
creating the Community Engagement Program to help strengten
the relationship between the different ethnic and religious groups (page 38
of Sec 4 TB)
|
Weighing
The most serious/devastating impact
of Transnational Terrorism would be the social impact because the
social impact is the most difficult to reverse. Once a rift is created
between the various communities and distrust is created, hard to erase it as
race and religion is a sensitive matter. If the different ethnic and
religious communities feel uncomfortable amongst one another or think
negatively about one another as a result of a transnational terrorist act,
there is potential for such emotive feelings to escalate and
erupt into open violence and conflict such as in the form of racial
and religious riots or even civil war. In other words, inter-racial/religious
hate causes "wounds" that are hard to heal and the social
impact of transnational terrorism lasts longer/more permanent.
On the other hand, the economic
impact of terrorism while devastating is usually temporary and the economy
will eventually recover as long as such attacks are not sustained. For
instance, tourism have since returned to Bali and the tourism industry there
is thriving as it did before.
Finally, the political impact
causes some inconvenience and to a degree personal rights are violated, but the
effects are not permanent unless one is unlucky enough to be arrested on suspicions
of being a terrorist. Hence, the numbers of people affected by the political
impact are fewer than the social or the economic and the social impact has
far more permanent ramifications/consequences than the economic or the
political.
|
Examples
Impact of
Sep 11 on US and world economy - stock market plunged - people feared flying
and airlines went out of business - tourism suffered - economies of many
countries saw a fall in business
Impact on
Bali in 2002 - tourists stayed away from Bali - Balinese businesses collapsed
as it depended on tourists for survival - many Balinese became unemployed
|
B)
Management of Terrorism
Key question: What’s the best way to manage transnational terrorism?
Key question: What’s the best way to manage transnational terrorism?
|
Ways
to Manage Terrorism
|
Remarks/Notes
|
|
Why
does terrorism need to be managed?
|
|
|
Regional
level cooperation
For example, regional
cooperation helped:
For example: The
Convention on Counter Terrorism was signed by ASEAN leaders in 2007 to create
a legally bonding anti-terrorism agreement.
|
|
|
International
efforts to combat transnational terrorism (TNT)
However, TNT have
means to evade security.
|
|
|
Nurturing
an environment that censures[does not support] terrorism
|
|
|
Weighing
|
|
C) What is
the cause of transnational terrorism?
Cause
|
Explanation
|
Post-Colonialism?
|
|
Clash of cultures/ civilisations?
|
|
Ambitions of transnational
terrorists?
|
|
Rise of deviant teachings?
|
|
Extremist capitalism?
|
|
Globalisation?
|
No comments:
Post a Comment