International Security: Saudi-Iraq Border Dispute Essay

When the Saudi Arabian authorities began to see the rebellion of societal motions in the sixtiess. one of the first suspects of beginning was Baghdad. The tenseness that had been traveling on between the two states rapidly degenerated to a point where it became volatile. Since forces in Baghdad had been surmising of holding a function to play in motions similar to the 1 in Saudi Arabia around the same clip. it was natural for Saudi Arabia to develop dealingss towards Baghdad that were all the more labored in nature.

This paper shall supply an debut to the relationship between Saudi Arabia and Iraq and shall try to get down by set uping an apprehension of the development of their relationship over clip in order to achieve a clearer image of attain a clear image and a complete apprehension of the existent nature of relationship that exists between the two states. The paper shall get down by supplying a brief debut to the relationship between the two states and shall so continue to dig into the scenario that exists with regard to the volatility of the Saudi-Iraq boundary line.

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The paper shall give particular attending to countries that pertain to the terrorist menace posed because of the scenario that exists on the boundary line of Saudi Arabia and Iraq. The paper will foreground the job of the terrorist motion across the Saudi-Iraq boundary line and shall lucubrate upon the legion facets that pertain to the terrorist motion across the Saudi-Iraq boundary line and how it serves to set both the states at a hazard in the procedure. In the latter paragraphs. the paper shall besides lucubrate upon the cultural jobs that exist in Iraq in order to foreground the volatile nature of the current Iraqi state of affairs.

Particular consideration will be given to the facet of migration that exists across the two parts and in the country of illegal migration with regard to state of affairss such as the Saudi-Iraq boundary line in general. As a consequence of the deteriorating dealingss with Iraq and the close propinquity with the same that Saudi Arabia was faced with. it was merely natural that Saudi Arabia began to try to beef up its relationship with other neighbouring states and Alliess such as Iran. Kuwait. Syria and the United States.

It is non excessively hard a undertaking to observe that Saudi Arabia was peculiar in bettering relationships with states that held a similar abhorrence towards the Iraqi authorities. The 1970s saw an betterment in the dealingss between Saudi Arabia and Iraq. basically because of the fact that both states were in fright of the deductions of the Persian Islamic Revolution sloping over into their districts. In the 1980s. Saudi Arabia really served to help Iraq during the Iran-Iraq war through legion loans that were designed upon generous return footings ( Tollitz. Prados and Blanchard ) .

However. this maturation of the relationship between the two states did non last long when Iraqi forces took clasp of Kuwait. In revenge. Saudi Arabia took action against Iraq and besides sought aid from the United States in facing Iraqi forces. The United States responded by directing its military personnels to Saudi Arabia upon the invitation of the threatened state and utilizing the alliance that they held in the resistance of Iraq. the United States forces were given complete permission to do usage of Saudi Arabia’s military installations.

The United States did non simply help the Saudi Arabia authorities in the war against Iraq but besides served as an built-in spearhead in the war. The United States forces were took portion in land assaults every bit good as areal assaults against Iraqi forces. The fact that the Iraqi forces chose to establish Scud-B missiles at legion towns in the Saudi Arabia served to hit the nail on the caput with respect to the impairment of the dealingss between both states. The harm to Saudi Arabia as a consequence of the missiles was preponderantly that of civilian life and belongings.

By this clip. the dealingss between Iraq and Saudi Arabia damaged to a point where following to nil could perchance be done to mend them since the people of the two states had grown to abhor each other as the war raged on. As clip went by after the war. every foreign policy that Saudi Arabia formulated was designed to guarantee that it addressed any all menaces that Iraq could present towards Saudi Arabia. Elementss such as these were countries of Saudi Arabia’s foreign policy which dictated that Saudi Arabia would back up forces in Iraq that opposed the authorities and desired to take Saddam Hussein’s reign ( Al-Rasheed ) .

The Saudi Arabia proceeded with this stance for a few old ages without doing it excessively public. but as clip went by and the 1990s approached. the desire to tumble Saddam’s authorities became all the more dominant and outstanding in Saudi Arabia’s foreign policy. When Saddam Hussein’s reign eventually ended. Saudi Arabia was relieved of one issue with respect to Iraq. but was instantly visited by another. Over the old ages. the Saudi and the Iraqi boundary line had been a much disputed part. Impersonal zones had been established along the margin as a consequence of drawn-out treatments and dialogues between the two states.

When the United States forces invaded Iraq. the inflow of terrorists into Iraq and the out flux of refugees. both became functional in a mode such that the Iraq-Saudi Arabia boundary line was incorporated ( Tripp ) . It is indispensable to foreground at this point that in the latter half of 2006. it was reported that Al-Qaida secret agents had begun to travel from bases located and operational in the Pak-Afghan part. to Iraq where Al-Qaida has seemingly decided to impart its adult male power for the approaching period.

It was speculated that there is a opportunity that Al-Qaida secret agents may take to come in Saudi Arabia and so derive entree to Iraq through the boundary line linking Saudi Arabia and Iraq. It would non be unjustified to agree that Iraq is playing out the function of a magnet of kinds for hostile elements such as Al-Qaida and parts that fall around Iraq are hence falling into the line of fire ( Regan ) .

As Al-Qaida secret agents move from around the universe towards the Middle East. Saudi Arabia is faced with a security menace that makes it non merely vulnerable to terrorist menaces. but by functioning as a tract for terrorist elements to traverse through into Iraq. besides puts Saudi Arabia in a conciliatory place with respect to its function in continuing international peace. The scenario for Saudi Arabia is rather similar to that which exists for the United States with respect to Mexico and for Israel with respect to Palestinian countries. Much like the United States. Saudi Arabia is besides sing set uping a barrier along its boundary lines.

The Saudi Arabia is sing serious programs to set up a incursion cogent evidence barrier along its boundary line with Iraq in order to maintain out any violent and hostile elements. Not merely are political extremists an issue. but the supplementing menace of drug runners does non come as any betterment in the scenario because this serves to open paths for other unwanted parties such as arms traders and human runners. The engagement of elements such as these causes the farther debasement of the scenario and puts Saudi Arabia at a high security hazard degree.

The menace to Saudi Arabia has merely increased with the recent war in Iraq that has caused infinite Iraqis to choose to fly across the Iraq-Saudi Arabia boundary line. Along with the few refugees that have attempted to make so. hostile elements have besides attempted to take advantage of the helter-skelter state of affairs and have tried to derive entree to Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia faces a extremely vulnerable standing because of its boundary line differences with Iraq because of the fact that the Shia minorities of the state are located in the most important oil bring forthing parts of the state ( The Associated Press ) .

However. the boundary line is non doing jobs simply for Saudi Arabia. but is besides doing jobs on the other side of the fencing. This is because of the fact that as the war in Iraq furies on. hostile elements from Saudi Arabia are taking to traverse the boundary line and articulation terrorists groups in Iraq that are runing against the alliance forces. The state of affairs worsens farther with the fact that this puts Saudi Arabia in a place where it may perchance function as a gateway for terrorists into Iraqi district.

It has become about natural for the adjacent states of Iraq to fear that the force with which alliance forces are transporting out operations in Iraq may do hostile elements to choose for utilizing Iraq’s neighbouring states as their bases of operations or as safe houses for safety ( Saudi-US Relations Information Service ) . It is for the same ground that Saudi Arabia has decided to set about security undertakings along its boundary lines with Iraq that guarantee that there will be about no possibility of any infiltration from any of the two sides of the boundary line.

Measures such as these are because of the fact that the frequent illegal motion of hostile elements and illegal immigrants across the boundary line tends to promote such elements to try to transport equipment across the boundary line every bit good. In the instance of terrorist elements. this facet is nil less than dismaying sing the harm that terrorists groups can do to Saudi Arabia and Iraq both if they managed to set up a tract to transport heavy arms to and from the two states.

Because of the presence of such many-sided menaces. both the Saudi Arabia and the Iraqi authorities have attempted to accommodate on differences that they antecedently did non take to convey up ( Saudi-US Relations Information Service ) . Another inauspicious deduction of the being of the cross-border motion difference between the two states is the fact that there is a possibility that the inordinate motion of hostile elements from Iraq may promote elements to travel across the boundary line that could incite the Shia minority into acquiring carried off with their emotions and working against the alliance forces ( The Associated Press ) .

Iraq has been pestilences with cultural jobs for old ages now. The struggles between Sunnis and Shiite Arabs have turned Iraq into an progressively volatile conflict land. Under the absolutism of Saddam Hussein. the Shiites grew exponentially powerful and reached a point in the Iraqi society where they constituted 60 per centum of the Iraqi society and were still denied their cardinal political and spiritual rights. Under Saddam Hussein’s government. the Sunnis gained more power and reached a point where they formed the majority of Saddam’s disposal.

A fact that serves to gall the Sunni population of Iraq is the presence of the political ties with Iran. This serves to anger non merely the Sunnis of Iraq but besides the Arab states that are United States Alliess. The fright of Persian influences step ining in the already progressively volatile Iraqi scenario is an facet that serves to increase uncertainties about the prospective Iraqi scenario. However. it is indispensable to advert that Kurds besides play a important function in the Iraqi scenario since they comprise of about 20 per centum of the entire Iraqi population.

This puts them in a place where they are a minority that can hold a important influence upon the series of events that Iraq undergoes. The Kurds have their ain distinguishable linguistic communication. civilization. history and traditions and are by and large concentrated in and around the northern countries of Iraq. The Kurds have been fighting for their rights in the parts of northern Iraq. eastern Turkey. northeasterly Syria. northern Iran and southern Georgia. Incidents where the Kurds have chosen to originate a motion and have been faced with barbarous subjugation from the resident society.

However. since the gulf war in 1991. the Kurds have found a considerable grade of independency in the parts in and around northern Iraq and have entered into Iraqi political relations every bit good. However. even though the Kurds have gained a important grade of acknowledgment in Iraq. their desire to derive independency still exists with the same energy as it held several decennaries ago. Basically. the Kurds are a portion of the Sunni Muslim population of Iraq. but the facet of secular patriotism is rather strong in them.

Another fact which serves to do the Kurds a extremely important component in the Iraqi scenario is that they are concentrated in the northern parts of Iraq where oil is found rather normally ( Karon ) . This puts the Kurds in a place where they can take to maintain grosss with themselves alternatively of passing them over to the province. hence enabling them to set up an independent authorities that they can protect it from an external invasion. However. the Kurds are faced with resistance from non merely the powers of the province but besides from the Turkmen minority that besides has the same purposes.

There has been a huge sum of migration in the Arabic gulf states and specially the United Arab Emirates and if one was to see the facet of the migration that is caused as a consequence of differences such as the Saudi-Iraq boundary line issue. there are a figure of natures of immigrants that can travel approximately. The first and most unsafe are the terrorist elements that more than frequently choose to travel around when differences such as the Iraq-United States war erupt. When terrorist elements move about. they tend to set up a base of operations in any part they can during their stay at that place.

Their motion causes the exercise of terrorist elements that may otherwise hold become stationary and of no menace to the part where they are hiding themselves. As a consequence of the motion of active terrorist elements. these otherwise stationary terrorist elements become an active menace to the immediate part and the exchanging of information amongst these elements serves to increase the danger of the executing of a terrorist activity exponentially.

This is besides associated with the fact that the uninterrupted motions of terrorists across different parts causes them to organize safe houses in these parts that can later turn into their base of operations. Therefore. a state that is lodging an active terrorist act component may be really functioning as a base of operations for a terrorist activity in another state.

The presence of scenarios such as these serves to do impairment of the relationship amongst Alliess because of the fact that grounds found at a terrorist onslaught which directs towards the engagement of an ally state serves to diminish the grade of trust that the victim part has on its ally and besides at the same time serves to demo the inability of the part in maintaining terrorist elements out or managing them one time they have gained entree. doing a impairment in overall international dealingss.

The 2nd signifier of immigrants in a scenario such as this include refugees who choose to go forth behind their native land and effort to set up a safety in a part that is non their native part by birth. In instances such as these. the part to which they migrate in order to seek safety more than frequently has to confront an instability of kinds because of the accommodation of an unexpected inflow of refugees into the part. In instances where the part is already enduring through an economic instability. the inflow of refugees causes a farther impairment of the economic scenario.

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