Kuwait: the Transformation of an Oil State
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- 41,99 €
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- 41,99 €
Beschreibung des Verlags
Kuwait, unlike most of its neighbours, has a well-established national identity and a long history as a nation, dating back to the eighteenth century. In this book, first published in 1992, Dr. Jill Crystal focuses on two recurring themes in Kuwaiti history: one, the preservation of a sense of community in the face of radical economic, social and political transformations; the second, internal rivalry over the conventions governing relations among members of the community. Crystal skilfully weaves these themes into a broad profile of Kuwait, analysing the nation’s transformation from a pre-oil to an oil economy; its social structure and composition, including the country’s tribal roots and key divisions involving class, gender and immigrant labour; political tensions resulting from the nation’s sudden wealth and the accompanying changes in social structure; and its relations with other countries in the Gulf and the Middle East.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This scholarly overview covers Kuwait's transformation from a poor British protectorate to an oil-wealthy independent state, untangling along the way the complicated Kuwaiti-Iraqi relationship. Crystal ( Oil and Politics in the Gulf ) contends that the recent Gulf crisis began not in August but in July 1990, when Saddam Hussein complained to the Arab League that Kuwait, besides producing too much oil, was siphoning from Iraq's side of the Rumailah oil field. She describes the effects of the Iraqi invasion and occupation on Kuwait's economy, society and politics, then analyzes the government's postwar goals, which include reducing the country's longtime dependence on foreign labor (non-Kuwaitis constitute more than 80% of the work force). The immediate impact of the Gulf war on Kuwait, the author avers, was to sharpen the conflicting impulses toward democratic reforms and authoritarian repression. This is an important addition to the literature of the Persian Gulf war. Illustrations.
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