Khor Abdullah opens the Iraqi-Kuwaiti border file again

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[size=52]Khor Abdullah opens the Iraqi-Kuwaiti border file again[/size]

[size=45]The Gulf Cooperation Council called on Iraq to respect Kuwait's sovereignty and not to violate international resolutions, especially UN Security Council Resolution No. 833 of 1993, regarding the demarcation of the borders between the two countries and the agreement to regulate maritime navigation in Khor Abdullah, which was deposited with the United Nations.[/size]
[size=45]The Gulf Cooperation Council, in a meeting of its foreign ministers at its 157th session on Thursday in Riyadh, called on Iraq to complete the demarcation of the maritime borders with Kuwait beyond Mark 162, expressing its categorical rejection of any violation that affects Kuwaiti sovereignty and its reserve of its right to respond according to legal channels.[/size]
[size=45]What is the border dispute between the two countries? Why does it come to the fore from time to time? In fact, the issue of border demarcation between Iraq and Kuwait recently emerged, following the visit made by Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Salem Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah late last July to Baghdad, during which he met his Iraqi counterpart, Fuad Hussein. .[/size]
[size=45]During this visit, both sides stressed the need to end “border issues” between the two countries within the framework of joint dialogue. Border issues are one of the outstanding issues between the two countries for years. The latest development that occurred on the issue of the border file between the two countries is the decision issued by the Federal Supreme Court in Iraq to invalidate the vote on the maritime navigation agreement in Khor Abdullah, which was ratified by the Iraqi parliament in 2013. The court’s decision was based on the fact that the parliamentary vote on the agreement did not take into account the fourth point. From Article 61 of the Iraqi Constitution, which stipulates the following: “The process of ratifying international treaties and agreements shall be regulated by a law enacted by a two-thirds majority of the members of the House of Representatives.”[/size]
[size=45]In this case, the agreement is suspended from the Iraqi side, but it remains in force for the Kuwaitis, according to what the head of the Gulf Forum for Peace and Security, Dr. Fahd Al-Shulaimi, who was a former international member of the Kuwaiti border demarcation committee, told us. Kuwait is not concerned with the recent Iraqi action, according to what Al-Shulaimi reported.[/size]
[size=45]Al-Shalimi wondered about the timing of the court’s decision and the reasons for the absence of an Iraqi objection in the past three decades, that is, since the issuance of UN Resolution No. 833 issued in 1993 and also, since the signing of the Khor Abdullah Agreement about ten years ago. He considered that the reason behind the controversy surrounding this agreement was the Iraqi provincial council elections on the nineteenth of next December and the sharp division inside Iraq between the political blocs.[/size]
[size=45]On the other hand, according to Ali Al-Tamimi, an expert in Iraqi law, suspending the agreement opens the door to several scenarios. The first scenario, according to what Al-Tamimi said, revolves around calling on the House of Representatives to re-vote on the agreement with the aim of approving it, which requires a vote of two-thirds of the members of the Iraqi House of Representatives, and in this case, the agreement will be re-implemented. The second scenario includes sending a letter to the other party (i.e. the Kuwaiti) and informing him of the suspension of the agreement. If negotiations between the two parties fail, the two countries will be faced with a third scenario, which is to raise the issue to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, which looks into maritime disputes between countries, according to Al-Tamimi.[/size]
[size=45]The decision, according to the official document, “determined precisely the coordinates of the borders contained in the minutes agreed upon between Kuwait and Iraq regarding the restoration of relations of friendship and recognition and related matters signed by both parties on October 4, 1963.”[/size]
[size=45]This decision considered the waterway, Khor Abdullah, as a border line between the two countries. This waterway is located in the northern Arabian Gulf between the Kuwaiti islands of Warba and Bubiyan, and the Iraqi Al-Faw Peninsula.[/size]
[size=45]In addition to the differences related to the maritime and land borders, it must be noted that there have also been ongoing negotiations between the two countries since 2018 to study the joint oil fields on the border between the two countries, and the production policy of each country will be determined based on the study.[/size]
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