1. Rejuvenating the U.S. Partnership with Kuwait
- Author:
- Hardin Lang, Alia Awadallah, and John Craig
- Publication Date:
- 04-2017
- Content Type:
- Special Report
- Institution:
- Center for American Progress - CAP
- Abstract:
- For more than a quarter century, Kuwait has served as a key strategic partner for the United States in the Middle East. It hosts more than 15,000 U.S. military personnel, leads the Middle East in providing humanitarian assistance, and plays an important diplomatic role in the region. The country is also home to the Gulf’s only elected parliament. In recent years, however, Kuwait has experienced an unusual degree of political, economic, and social turbulence that has led some to question the long-term viability of its domestic power-sharing arrangements.1 Beginning in 2011, Kuwait was rocked by the aftershocks of the Arab uprisings; the collapse of oil prices; and a public struggle over the royal line of succession. Most recently, the emir dissolved the legislature in October 2016 and announced snap elections after members of parliament disrupted the government’s austerity agenda.2 Those elections returned opposition parliamentarians in force to the National Assembly.3 Tensions between the government and the opposition continue to rise, but they do not yet pose a serious challenge to Kuwait’s long-term stability or the U.S.-Kuwaiti bilateral relationship.
- Topic:
- Security, Defense Policy, Diplomacy, Military Strategy, Bilateral Relations, and Alliance
- Political Geography:
- Kuwait, North America, Persian Gulf, and United States of America