LONDON (KUNA): Kuwait is deeply concerned about the possibilities of an environmental crisis caused by Iran’s Bushehr nuclear reactor, says Kuwaiti Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammad Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah. This came in a lecture “Kuwait Foreign Policy in a Changing Environment,” which Sheikh Mohammad delivered at the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS). He said that dealing with the Iranian nuclear issue should be within a regional framework, stressing the most important aspect of the framework should be creating an appropriate atmosphere by pushing the Middle East peace process forward and limiting stalemate factors in Arab and Islamic states.
Israel’s behavior and foreign policy, he said, in addition to the Palestinian people’s continuous suffering, has encouraged Iran to adhere to its nuclear program; therefore, these factors should be treated to encourage Iran’s cooperation with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Iranians, he continued, view their nuclear program as a legitimate right guaranteed by the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), which Tehran signed and Israel did not although the later possessed nuclear weapons. Sheikh Mohammad pointed to the double standards which further complicated the situation.
The international community, Sheikh Mohammad asserted, should present a set of plans to alleviate the tension in the region, which was created by the suspension of the peace process, international apathy to the Palestinian humanitarian crisis in addition to Israel’s refusal to sign the NPT and allow international inspectors to its nuclear facilities.
He said Kuwait was not concerned about military intentions behind Iran’s nuclear program, but noted that the Iranian nuclear reactor near the Kuwaiti naval border has been raising serious environmental worries. Sheikh Mohammad pointed out previous accidents in the US and the former Soviet Union, where thousands of lives were lost as a result of an accident at Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. He emphasized Kuwait’s environmental concerns, noting that several earthquakes occurred in the region and that Bushehr was very close to Kuwaiti coasts. He noted that Kuwaiti officials called for Tehran to use light water at their nuclear plants to limit the nuclear threat, hoping Iranian officials would consider this option.
Regarding Iraq, he said that violence escalated in the country due to foreign interference and finance, stressing that a solution to the Iraqi situation required limiting foreign interference and holding dialogues with all involved parties.
However, Sheikh Mohammad also noted that violence in Iraq also had internal roots such as the nature of politics in Iraq and the exclusion of an Iraqi segment from the political process. The exclusion led this segment to involve itself in an armed conflict to resist establishment of a federal system, he explained. Kuwait, he said, had a key role in this regard as a neighbor of Iraq and had shared with other neighboring countries the responsibility of stabilizing Iraq and restoring its security.
Asked if US policy in Iraq had been defeated, Sheikh Mohammad said defeat or victory could be ruled out compared to the achievement of goals, noting that the US achieved a great deal by liberating Iraq from a dictatorship.
He noted the notion of transformation of the Multinational Forces (MNF) from liberation to occupation forces was a mistake and led people to view these forces in a negative way, stressing the main reason behind the occupation of Iraq was unfortunate. Concerning Kuwait’s foreign policy, Sheikh Mohammad said Kuwaiti diplomacy had witnessed essential development since Saddam Hussein’s regime was ousted.
Kuwaiti diplomacy used to be skeptical of the former Iraqi regime’s intentions, which led the Kuwaiti government to adopt a prevention policy to thwart any attempt to occupy Kuwait again, he explained.
However, following the latest regional developments Kuwait adopted “economic diplomacy,” which had been focusing on the growth of its national economy through a strategic vision, he added. Kuwait has been trying to benefit from its geographic locations by reviving the old Silk Road, which used to be a key trade route linking the East to the West, Sheikh Mohammad said. Such a step will make Kuwait a commercial gate for the region, he said, noting that an ambitious plan was prepared to establish the Silk City as a commercial hub in northern Kuwait. Kuwait has also taken up a more liberal economic system manifested by granting more visas, welcoming foreign companies and banks to operate in the country and liberalizing communications, he added.
Kuwait’s economic steps were parallel to political changes that included granting women their political rights, ending the media oligopoly by granting licenses to tens of new media institutions. Concerning the Middle East conflict, he said Arab states had adopted the land for peace initiative of Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz in Beirut Summit in 2002, which has been a historic compromise from the Arab side. Sheikh Mohammed stressed that stability could not be achieved in the region without solving the Palestinian issue, noting that despair and depression have led youths to adopt unthinkable methods such as suicide attacks. Such a tendency should be seriously considered to uproot its reasons, he said
