Iran, Iraq, and the Arab Gulf States

482 Pages·2001·70.49 MB·English

by  Dr. Joseph A. Kechichian (eds.)

Iran, Iraq, and the Arab Gulf States

Iran, Iraq, and the
Arab Gulf States
Edited by Joseph A. Kechichian
pal grave
*
IRAN, IRAQ, AND THE ARAB GULF STATES
©Joseph A. Kechichian, 2001
Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2001 978-0-312-29388-8
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any man
ner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quota
tions embodied in critical articles or reviews.
Firstpublished2001 byPALGRAVE™, 175 FifthAvenue,NewYork,N.Y.10010
and Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS. Companies and represen
tatives throughout the world.
PALGRAVE is the new global publishing imprint of St. Martin's Press LLC
Scholarly and Reference Division and Palgrave Publishers Ltd (formerly Macmil
lan Press Ltd).
ISBN 978-1-349-63445-3 ISBN 978-1-349-63443-9 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-63443-9
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Iran, Iraq, and the Arab Gulf States I edited by Joseph A. Kechichian.
p. em.
Papers presented at an international conference coordinated and hosted by
Gustave E. von Grunebaum Center for Near Eastern Studies, University
of California, Los Angeles, 3-4 May, 2000.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Persian Gulf Region-Politics and government-Congresses. 2. Per
sian Gulf Region-Foreign relations-Congresses. I. Kechichian, Joseph A. II.
Gustave E. von Grunebaum Center for Near Eastern Studies.
DS326 .168 2001
953.05'3-dc21 2001032756
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Design by Westchester Book Composition.
First edition: December 2001
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Transferred to Digital Printing 20 14
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments Vll
A Note on Transliteration lX
List <![Tables, Figures and Maps X
Contributors xu
Priface XXl
List <if Abbreviations XXlll
PART I-INTERNAL CONCERNS
THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF IRAN
1. Tensions and Options among the Iranian Clerical Establishment,
Olivier Roy 3
2. Reformists, Conservatives and Iran's Parliamentary Elections,
Shaul Bakhash 13
3. Civil-Military Relations in the Islamic Republic of Iran,
Ahmed S. Hashim 31
THE REPUBLIC OF IRAQ
4. The Position of the Iraqi Clergy, joyce N Wiley 55
5. Domestic Politics in A Post-Saddam Iraq, Laith Kubba 65
6. The Military in Iraqi Politics, Andrew Parasiliti 83
THE KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA
7. Assessing Saudi Susceptibility to Revolution, Mark N Katz 95
8. Image, Imagination And Place: The Political Economy Of Tourism In
Saudi Arabia, Gwenn Okruhlik 111
9. Saudi Arabia: Measures Of Transition From A Rentier State,
Robert E. Looney 131
vi CONTENTS
THE ARAB GULF STATES
10. Domestic Politics in the United Arab Emirates: Social and Economic Poli-
cies, 1990-2000, Fatma Al-Sayegh 161
11. Kuwait and Bahrain: The Appeal of Globalization and
Internal Constraints, May Seikaly 177
12. Kings And People: Information and Authority in Oman,
Qatar, and the Persian Gulf, Dale F. Eickelman 193
PART II-REGIONAL CONCERNS
BORDER DISPUTES
13. Down to the Usual Suspects: Border and Territorial Disputes
in the Arabian Peninsula and Persian Gulf at the Millennium,
Richard Schofield 213
14. The Kuwait-Iraq Border Problem, Hussein Hassouna 237
15. Yemeni-Saudi Relations Gone Awry, Mohammed A. Zabarah 263
RELATIONS BETWEEN GCC STATES
16. Unity on the Arabian Peninsula, joseph A. Kechichian 281
17. Forging Institutions in the GulfA rab States,
R. Hrair Dekmejian 303
18. The GCC States: Internal Dynamics and Foreign Policies,
Muhammed Saleh Al-Mu*-r 313
THE GULF STATES AND WESTERN POWERS
19. Constants and Variations in Gulf-British Relations, Gerd Nonneman 325
20. The Impact of U.S. Policy on the Stability of the Gulf States:
A Historian's View, Rosemarie Said Zahlan 351
21. Gulf States' Links with Their Post-Soviet Northern Neighbors,
Theodore Karasik 367
PART III-TRENDS FOR THE FUTURE
22. The UAE Vision for Gulf Security, Sultan bin Zayed bin
Sultan Al Nahyan 383
23. The Gulf Cooperation Council: Future Trends,
Saif bin Hash if AI-Maskery 393
24. The Arabian Gulf At The New Millennium: Security Challenges,
Hassan Hamdan Al-Alkim 407
25. Outlook for Iranian-Gulf Relations: Greater Cooperation or Renewed
Risk of Conflict?, Shireen T Hunter 427
26. What Makes the Gulf States Endure?,JE. Peterson 451
Bibliography 461
Index 464
..< ·-
,
__; _,
i~;.
f~··.{i'',_
~~;.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
On 3-4 May 2000, the Gustav E. von Grunebaum Center for Near Eastern
Studies at the University of California in Los Angeles hosted an international
conference on "Iran, Iraq, and the Arab Gulf States," which formed the basis of
this volume. The gathering assembled 25 Middle Eastern, European, and
American analysts to provide appraisals of the situation in the Gulf region in
early 2000 and identify trends for the next decade.
Both the conference and this book were made possible through the generous
support of His Highness Shaykh Zayed bin Sultan AI Nahyan, the president of
the United Arab Emirates. Much like his contribution on "Gulf Security: The
View from Abu Dhabi," which was published in A Century in Thirty Years:
Shaykh Zayed and the United Arab Emirates, (Washington, D.C.: Middle East Pol
icy Council, 2000), that of his son, Shaykh Sultan bin Zayed AI Nahyan, the
deputy prime minister of the UAE, adds value to it by contributing yet another
comprehensive essay on the critical subject of Gulf security. To my knowledge,
these two essays are the only ones written by high-ranking Gulf officials, to clar
ify evolving perspectives on regional security affairs. I thank His Highness for
his sustained efforts and foresight.
His Excellency Shaykh Saifbin Hashil Al-Maskery, the former assistant secre
tary-general of the Gulf Cooperation Council, graciously agreed to travel from
Muscat to Los Angeles to participate in the conference and write a paper that
highlights the genuine search for peaceful resolution of conflicts within the
region. By doing so, he joins several Gulf diplomats and scholars who seek to
reverse the complacency trend by sharing their unique perspectives with a wider
audience.
Several individuals at the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in Abu Dhabi,
including His Excellency Sultan bin Omeir AI Mashgouni and his assistant office
director, Khalifah bin Sabha AI Qubaisi, were gracious with their time and hos
pitality. Mr. Muhammad Khalifah, the multitalented executive director of the
Zayed Center for Coordination and Follow-Up, was equally cordial. To them,
and many others, I owe a special debt of gratitude.
Vlll ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
At UCLA, Professors Irene A. Bierman and Afaf Lutfi Al-Sayyid Marsot,
respectively the director and the assistant director of the Center for Near Eastern
Studies, welcomed and supported me at the university between the fall of 1998
and the spring of2001. Both recognized the conference's value when I first dis
cussed it with them in the fall of 1999. The Center team, including Jonathan
Friedlander, Lisette Hurtado Mora, and Diane James, coordinated the confer
ence and assisted in hosting 25 scholars from 14 countries. I thank all of them
for their assistance in what was truly a gargantuan task.
To Angelica-my inspiration-! owe deep gratitude for accepting her father's
many absences from home.
The Palgrave team performed in its usual professional practice. Editors Karen
Wolny and Ella Pearce shepherded the manuscript through an excessively long
"blind referee" process. Donna Cherry, Rick Delaney, Sabahat Chaudhary,
Meredith Howard, Alan Bradshaw, and Sonia Wilson proved to be devoted to
this project as they did their level best to make-up some of the lost time. Rod
ney Williams copy-edited our text-with its multi-cultural and multi-linguistic
twists-with his usual skill. These are true professionals and it is a pleasure to
work with such a team.
Last, but not least, I thank my colleagues who first accepted the invitation to
participate in the conference, wrote superb original papers, answered my
repeated queries, and considered many of my emendations. This collective book
is testament that each and every one has added value.
A NOTE ON
TRANSLITERATION
A modified version of the Library of Congress transliteration system has been
adopted throughout the book. In rendering Arabic words and names, however,
and because several authors use various spellings, I relied on the style used by the
International Journal of Middle East Studies. Thus a name that is commonly
rendered in English, for example Mohammed, becomes Muhammad, and Mecca
becomes Makkah. Whenever known, I used the common English spellings for
proper names, as well as for names of countries. Thus Fahd rather than Fahad
(although the latter is used if the individual writes his name with that spelling)
and Oman rather than 'Uman. Although special care was devoted to standardize
the spellings of as many transliterated words as possible, there are--inevitably-a
few inconsistencies which, I trust, readers will understand. For practical
purposes, all diacritical marks for long vowels and velarized consonants have
been eliminated. Arabic and Persian speakers will know the correct reference for
the transliterated words throughout the text.