The problem of demarcating maritime borders in the territorial waters between Iraq and Kuwait and its potential strategic dimensions
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
The problem of the maritime border between Iraq and Kuwait centers around the dispute over the demarcation of the border in the Gulf of Abdallah and beyond, especially in the area known as "Fisht al-Eij". To divide the shipping lane, where many Iraqis object to its constitutionality and consider that it belongs to Iraq's economic and maritime sovereignty, the Fisht al-Aij area is a major point of contention, as Kuwait claims that it has sovereignty over it because it is a natural maritime land, while Iraq sees it as an industrial or modified area that has affected the maritime borders. The plans of the two cities to establish large ports (Al-Faw Al-Kabir for Iraq and Mubarak Al-Kabir for Kuwait) have aggravated the dispute, as each country saw that building the other might affect on her interests The official dispute today is not related to the presence of internationally recognized maritime borders, but rather to the administration of the maritime border in Khor Abdallah, and the legal status of the agreement in 2012 after the decision of the Iraqi Court, as well as to the files of the completion of the maritime border south of the boundary known as "Alama 162".
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
- Rashid Saadoun Muhammad Hassan Al-Abadi, The Iraqi-Kuwaiti Border, Master’s Thesis, College of Arts, University of Baghdad, 2001, p. 123.
- Qasim Abd Ali Atheeb Al-Bahadli, Iraqi ports and their impact on the power of the state, a study in political geography, Master’s thesis, Ibn Rushd College of Education, University of Baghdad, 2010, p. 100.
- Jawad Kazem Al-Bakri, and Qasim Muhammad Obaid, the Kuwaiti Mubarak Port Crisis and its Impact on Iraq, Strategic Brochure, Hamo Rabi Center for Strategic Studies, 1st edition, 2011, p. 11.
- Rashid Saadoun Muhammad Hassan Al-Abadi, The Iraqi-Kuwaiti Border, Master’s Thesis, College of Arts, University of Baghdad, 2001, p. 57.
- Muhammad Abdullah Khaled Al-Abdulqader, The Kuwaiti-Iraqi Border: A Study in Political Geography, Kuwaiti Research and Studies Center, Kuwait, 1st edition, 2000, p. 180.
- Jaafar, Muhammad Radi (2013) The economic effects of the establishment of the Kuwaiti Mubarak Port on Iraqi ports, Gulf Economic Journal, Issue 24, p. 26.
- Al-Mahmoud, Hassan Khalil Hassan (2018), article on the great port of Al-Faw, whose beginning is stumble and its end is heartbreak - an article published on the Voice of Iraq website - Al-Muthaqaf newspaper - Writings in Al-Mizan 11-25-2018.
- Muhammad Thamer Al-Saadoun, Iraqi Maritime Borders, doctoral thesis, College of Law, University of Baghdad, 2002, p. 107.
- Ahmed Adnan Abdul Karim, The United Nations and the International Peacekeeping Forces, Master’s thesis, College of Political Science, Baghdad, 1992, p. 181.
Internet sources:
The Arabic Encyclopedia (14/1/2023). History, Geography and Archeology: Khor Abdullah, Volume Fifteen, Human Sciences, accessed on the link on (5/7/2026):
www.arab/ency.com/index.php?module=pnencyclopedia&fence=display- term
Ziadeh, Ikram (2023 AD), The Importance of the Arab Gulf States During International Wars and Conflicts, European Center for Counter-Terrorism and Intelligence Studies, accessed 6/9/2026 AD at the link: https://www.europarabct.com/
“KUNA: Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled...signing two agreements with Iraq as a culmination of the visit of His Highness the Emir of the country to Baghdad - Political Affairs - 04/30/2012.” www.kuna.net.kw. Archived from the original on 2023-10-18. Viewed on 09-23-2023.
“Judge Rahim Al-Ugaili in his weekly article for #Iraq_Observer: The Khor Abdullah Agreement still exists! - Observer Iraq.” September 9, 2023. Archived from the original on 2023-10-18. Viewed on 09-19-2023.
“Iraqi Facts 4 Law of Ratification of an Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Iraq and the Government of the State of Kuwait Concerning the Regulation of Bahrain Navigation in Khor Abdullah No. (42) of 2013” (PDF). Iraq: The Iraqi Facts A. 4299. Muharram 21, 1435 AH November 25, 2013 AD The fifty-fifth year: Archived from the original (PDF) on 06-02-2023.
“An Iraqi appealed to the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister against the decision to invalidate the Khor Abdullah agreement with Kuwait.” Archived from the original on 04/16/2025. Viewed on 05/07/2025.
Iraqi facts. “Law Ratifying an Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Iraq and the Government of the State of Kuwait Concerning the Regulation of Maritime Navigation in Khor Abdullah” (PDF). Issue No. 4299 Muharram 21, 1435 AH / November 25, 2013 AD, fifty-fifth year: 1 and 2. Archived from the original (PDF) in 2024.
New maps revealed confirming that Iraq is deprived of any view of the Gulf The information was archived on March 7, 2017 on the Wayback Machine website
- United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, Third Conference, 1981, Jamaica, Montego, p. 71. Text of the agreement on the Al Meezan website, the Qatari Legal Portal at the link www.almeezan.qa/AgreementsPage.asp?id=9917language=ar
- he Iraq-Kuwait Dispute: Evolution of the Iraq-Kuwait international boundary
- “United Nations, Security Council Resolution 833 (1993), Annex, Map No.30, Khor Abdullah Boundary”