The Kuwait–Saudi Arabia border is 221 km (137 mi) in length and runs from the

tripoint A triple border, tripoint, trijunction, triple point, or tri-border area is a geography, geographical point at which the boundaries of three countries or Administrative division, subnational entities meet. There are 175 international tripoints ...

with

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

in the west to the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...

coast in the east.

Description

The border starts in the west at the tripoint with Iraq on the Wadi al-Batin; a straight line of 90 km (55 mi), angled slightly to the south-east, then proceeds eastwards. The border then turns southwards via a series of irregular lines, before turning sharply to the east, with a straight line of 70 km (43 mi) running to the Gulf coast.

History

Historically there was no clearly defined boundary in this part of the Arabian peninsula; at the start of the 20th century the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

controlled what is now Iraq and

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

controlled

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

as a

protectorate A protectorate, in the context of international relations, is a State (polity), state that is under protection by another state for defence against aggression and other violations of law. It is a dependent territory that enjoys autonomy over ...

, with the interior consisting of loosely organised Arab groupings, occasionally forming emirates, most prominent of which was the

Emirate of Nejd and Hasa The Emirate of Nejd and Hasa was the second iteration of the Third Saudi State from 1913 to 1921. It was a monarchy led by the House of Saud.Madawi Al-Rasheed. (2002). ''A History of Saudi Arabia''. Cambridge, England, UK: Cambridge University ...

ruled by the al-Saud family.

Madawi Al-Rasheed Madawi al-Rasheed, (; born ) is a British citizen of Saudi origin and a professor of social anthropology. Al-Rasheed has held a position at the Department of Theology and Religious Studies in King's College London and as a Visiting Professor a ...

. ''A History of Saudi Arabia''. Cambridge, England, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2002. Pp. 40. Britain and the Ottoman Empire theoretically divided their realms of influence via the so-called '

Blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB color model, RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB color model, RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between Violet (color), violet and cyan on the optical spe ...

' and ' Violet lines' in 1913–14, by which the Ottomans recognised British claims on Kuwait, divided from Ottoman

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...

along the Wadi al-Batin (the so-called 'green line', ''see map right''). During the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Arab Revolt The Arab Revolt ( ), also known as the Great Arab Revolt ( ), was an armed uprising by the Hashemite-led Arabs of the Hejaz against the Ottoman Empire amidst the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. On the basis of the McMahon–Hussein Co ...

, supported by Britain, succeeded in removing the Ottomans from most of the Middle East; in the period following this

Ibn Saud Abdulaziz bin Abdul Rahman Al Saud (; 15 January 1875Ibn Saud's birth year has been a source of debate. It is generally accepted as 1876, although a few sources give it as 1880. According to British author Robert Lacey's book ''The Kingdom'', ...

managed to expand his domains considerably, eventually proclaiming the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932. Ibn Saud claimed Kuwait as part of his new state, attempting to annex it in 1919, resulting in the Kuwait–Najd War; when that failed he instituted a blockade of Kuwait. In December 1922

Percy Cox Major-general (United Kingdom), Major-General Sir Percy Zachariah Cox, (20 November 1864 – 20 February 1937) was a British Indian Army officer and Colonial Office administrator in the Middle East. He was one of the major figures in the creati ...

, British High Commissioner in the British Mandate of Iraq, met with Ibn Saud and signed the Uqair Protocol, which finalised Saudi Arabia's border with both Kuwait and

. The treaty also created a large Saudi–Kuwaiti neutral zone in the southeast, where both parties were to share equal rights pending further agreement. When oil was later discovered in this zone it was agreed to partition it in 1965, this division being ratified in 1969–70, at which point the Kuwait-Saudi border was finalised at its current position. Iraq invaded and annexed Kuwait in 1990, breaching the Kuwait–Saudi Arabia border in 1991 at the

Battle of Khafji The Battle of Khafji was the first major ground engagement of the Gulf War. It took place in and around the Saudi Arabian city of Khafji, from 29 January to 1 February 1991. Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, who had already tried and failed to dr ...

during the

Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

Border Crossings

The two main border crossings are at Salmi (

Jahra Governorate Jahra Governorate ( ) is one of the six governorates of Kuwait. It is the largest Governorate in Kuwait accounting for 63 percent of its land area. It includes the town of Al Jahra, most of the northern and western parts of Kuwait, several isl ...

) and Nuwaiseeb (

Ahmadi Governorate The Ahmadi Governorate is a Governorates of Kuwait, governorate in southern Kuwait. It is the second most populated governorate in Kuwait, behind Farwaniya Governorate. Many oil and petroleum companies such as Kuwait Oil Company, KOC and Kuwait ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kuwait-Saudi Arabia border Borders of Kuwait Borders of Saudi Arabia International borders

Description

History

Border Crossings

See also

References