Kuwait Kuwait declined an Iraqi request to forgive its US$65 billion debt. An economic rivalry between the two countries ensued after Kuwait increased its oil production by 40 percent. Tensions between the two countries increased further in July 1990, after Iraq complained to OPEC claiming that Kuwait was stealing its oil from a field near the border by slant drilling of the Rumaila field. In August 1990, Iraqi forces invaded and annexed Kuwait. After a series of failed diplomatic negotiations, the United States led a coalition to remove the Iraqi forces from Kuwait, in what became known as the Gulf War.
Iraq–Kuwait relations Iraq–Kuwait relations The international relations between Iraq and Kuwait have been turbulent, fuelled by Iraqi debt and conflicts over oil. Until 2004, Iraqi-Kuwaiti relations were characterized by the Iraqi government claiming historic rights to Kuwait. Ever since Kuwaiti independence in 1961, the Iraqi governments sought various opportunities to reclaim and annex Kuwait. A short-lived crisis evolved in 1961, as the Iraqi government threatened to invade Kuwait and the invasion was finally averted following plans by the Arab League to form an international Arab force against Iraqi designs on Kuwait. Another crisis evolved on 20 March 1973, when Iraqi army units