Gonzaga Debate Institute 2010

Kuwait Stability Solves Terrorism

A stable Kuwait is key to prevent al-Qaeda recruitment efforts

Business Monitor 10 (Mar. 10, Kuwait Defence and Security Report Q2 2010, http://www.reportbuyer.com/countries/middle_east/kuwait/kuwait_defence_security_report_q2_2010.html)IM

Kuwait is slowly recovering from the global crisis aided by an upswing in the oil price, although prospects for anything like a strong recovery in consumer spending remain bleak. Growth is being driven largely by government spending. This government spending has been first and foremost to weather the financial crisis but is also at least in part motivated by keeping raucous critics at bay. The opposition appears to be under control for now there remain threats to domestic political stability with a number of rebel opposition MPs prepared to disrupt the policymaking process. Structural security concerns remain more or less unchanged, some exacerbated by the economic situation. Kuwait's strong pro-US orientation risks antagonising the Shi'a population, a concern that has only intensified in the light of the Shi'a problems Saudi Arabia is currently facing in Yemen and the undoubted willingness of Iran to stoke them. The protest movement in Iran itself heightens these concerns as the leadership in Tehran seeks to draw attention away from domestic problems. There have been no further incidents like the one In August 2009 from al-Qaeda, which planned an attack - foiled by Kuwaiti security -on a US military base south of Kuwait City. That case reached the courts although details remain contradictory. In February 2010, six Kuwaiti citizens were accused by a Kuwaiti secret service officer a statement apparently at odds with the public prosecutor who, when the trial opened in December, withdrew the key conspiracy charge against them. The country continues to face a risk. The Bidoon of Kuwait (not the same as Bedouins), a stateless group numbering up to 140,000. Following the liberation of Kuwait from Iraqi occupation in 1991, they were nearly all removed from positions in the military and police. They remain discriminated against and, with a high rate of unemployment, the Bidoon are targets for al-Qaeda recruitment. Instability within the country would inevitably cause an upswing in recruits. Kuwait has no significant domestic arms industry and can confidently be expected to source equipment from abroad for the foreseeable future. Kuwait has sourced large quantities of advanced hi-tech weapons systems from major supplier countries, including the US, the UK and France. This is largely a consequence of Kuwait's important geostrategic position and generally pro-Western outlook.

Kuwait Stability Solves European Escalation

Any conflict resulting from Kuwaiti instability would involve France and escalate

Habib Toumi News 10 (Apr. 16 2010, http://www.habibtoumi.com/2010/04/16/france-pledges-to-support-kuwait-if-its-security-is-threatened/)IM

French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Friday said that France “would always support Kuwait” in the event its security is threatened. He also stressed that France would assume its responsibilities to ensure the security and stability of the Gulf region. Sarkozy made the pledge as he received Kuwaiti Prime Minister Shaikh Nasser Al Mohammed Al Ahmad Al Sabah at the Elysee Palace in Paris. Talks focused on “the strategic partnership” between the two countries, especially nuclear cooperation and economic relations, Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) said. The two countries are set to sign a civil nuclear cooperation agreement during the premier’s visit. Accords on the environment, durable development and diplomatic cooperation will also be signed. Diplomatic sources said that Sarkozy “recalled the robust friendship that was forged by the French in their commitment to Kuwait at the time of the Iraqi invasion and the Gulf war” in 1990. The two countries are linked by a defence accord signed in 1992 and updated in October 2009. Sarkozy said that the French base in Abu Dhabi was a further indication that France was ready to “assume its responsibilities for the security and stability of the region which is essential for world balance.” In the modern age of nuclear weapons, terrorist organizations and superpowers with stakes in multiple countries this pledge is increasingly dangerous and creates a promising scenario for dangerously escalating conflict. France is pleased that progress was being made in the political, economic, defence, cultural or industrial relations between Paris and Kuwait City and that there is success in the “transfer of competence and training programmes.” France is also willing to develop an electronuclear affiliate in Kuwait and furnish a complete cycle service that would include an EPR reactor and fuel and reprocessing, KUNA said.

Iraq-Kuwait Relations Solves Stability

Good Iraq-Kuwait relations led to regional stability

UNSC 10 (United Nations Security Council, June 15 2010, http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2010/sc9955.doc.htm)IM

The members of the Security Council noted that the confidence and cooperation-building period between Iraq and Kuwait, launched in April 2009, had proven to be useful, and welcomed the increased cooperation by the Governments of Iraq and Kuwait that has led to positive developments on the ground, including: the discovery of Iraqi missing persons in Kuwait; and that implementation has begun of an agreed plan to investigate the possibility that Kuwaiti missing persons may be found at new burial sites in Iraq. Nevertheless, the members of the Security Council recognized that no confirmed remains of Kuwaiti or third country nationals have been found during the reporting period, and again expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of those involved. The members of the Security Council welcomed the positive steps taken by the Government of Iraq, including: publishing the pictures and names of missing persons on the website of the Ministry of Human Rights and requesting anyone with information to come forward; and forming an Iraqi Inter-Ministerial Committee to take work forward on the issue of missing persons. The members of the Security Council took note that limited progress has been made on clarifying the fate of the Kuwaiti national archives. The members of the Security Council welcomed the public announcement made by the Government of Iraq in its official newspaper, calling on anyone in possession of Kuwaiti documents or other property to contact the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The members of the Security Council welcomed the decision of the Kuwaiti Government to fund a $974,000 project, sponsored by the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) and the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), to help build the capacity of the Iraqi Ministry of Human Rights in mass-grave excavation and identification of missing persons. The members of the Security Council took note of the action plan that was prepared by the Kuwaiti Government and provided to the Technical Subcommittee. The members of the Security Council supported the Secretary-General’s call for Iraq and Kuwait to continue to act in the spirit of the confidence- and cooperation-building process, and apply this to the resolution of a larger set of outstanding issues between the two countries, which should contribute to the further strengthening of their good-neighbourly relations and enhancing regional stability.