648 Chapter 5
15,000 Saudi troops to aid the Kuwaiti military. Announcements of Iraqi troop with-
drawal were issued on April 4 and 5, and negotiations were entered into on April 6.
Those negotiations failed to resolve the issue.
Coding changes: End Date changed from April 8, 1973. Settlement changed from
None.
MID#1613
Dispute Number: 1613
Date(s): March 7, 1975 to June 25, 1975
Participants: 645 Iraq/690 Kuwait
Outcome (and Settlement): Compromise (Negotiated)
Fatalities: 1–25 deaths
Narrative: On March 7, 1975, 4,000 Iraqi troops re-occupied the islands of Bubiyan
and Warba. As in their earlier conflict in 1973 (see MID#1612), the Iraqis built huts in
the area to give legitimacy to its claim and Kuwait surrounded the huts with mosques
to keep the Iraqi troops confined. Iraqis then built more huts and mosques, negotiations
followed, and the situation was stable by March 12. Kuwait offered Iraq a 100-year
lease on Warba if Iraq agreed to demarcate the border. Iraqi and Kuwaiti officials met
again on May 1, and Iraq offered recognition of Kuwait’s borders if Kuwait agreed to
cede Warba and to lease Bubiyan for 99 years. From May 12–16, Egyptian President
Sadat mediated the dispute with Kuwait reportedly offering to lease territory to Iraq in
exchange for Iraqi territory that held freshwater reserves. No agreement was reached.
However, in June King Khaled and Crown Prince Fahd of Saudi Arabia were also
unsuccessful in mediating the dispute. On June 25, the Kuwaiti press announced that
Iraq and Kuwait had reached an agreement but that the agreement had yet to be given
“legal form.”
Coding changes: End Date changed from June 5, 1975. Outcome changed from Com-
promise. Fatalities changed from None.
MID#3029
Dispute Number: 3029
Date(s): February 19, 1985
Participants: 645 Iraq/690 Kuwait
Outcome (and Settlement): Unclear (None)
Fatalities: None
Narrative: Iranian missiles hit a Kuwaiti tanker, the Al-Manakh.
MID#3957
Dispute Number: 3957
Date(s): May 30, 1990 to April 3, 1991
Participants: 645 Iraq/2 United States of America, 20 Canada, 160 Argentina,
200 United Kingdom, 210 Netherlands, 211 Belgium, 220 France, 230 Spain, 255
Germany, 325 Italy, 350 Greece, 433 Senegal, 436 Niger, 451 Sierra Leone, 600