Kuwait is a Middle Eastern emirate ruled by the House of al-Sabah. Its capital is Kuwait City, and it had the world's sixth-largest oil reserves despite its small size - for this reason, it has been a major country in the Middle East, being threatened by Iraq multiple times and invaded in 1990.
History[]
The location of Kuwait
Kuwait gained its independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1913, giving formal independence to Kuwait. After World War I it was occupied by the United Kingdom, and on 19 June 1961 it was given independence. However, there were relationships between the UK and Kuwait that helped to defend it from Iraq, with Prime Minister Abd al-Karim Qasim's plans to annex Kuwait being halted by the deployment of British Army troops to Kuwait. Kuwait later became a trade partner of Iraq, selling them oil and debts during the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s, but in 1990 Ba'athist Iraq invaded Kuwait to take over their oil reserves, to annex a 19th province, and to default on their debts. However, the United Nations sent an army to liberate Kuwait in the Gulf War, and from 22-28 February 1991, the UN defeated Iraq and liberated Kuwait City and its islands. After the Gulf War, Kuwait was a regional ally of the United States along with Saudi Arabia, and it took part in Saudi Arabia's air campaign against the Houthis during the Yemeni Civil War in 2015. In addition, they joined the Saudi anti-terror bloc on 15 December 2015 to fight terrorism across the world, including that of the Islamic State.
Kuwait had a population of 4,044,500 in 2014, with 60% of their population being Sunni Muslim and 40% Shia Muslim. There were minorities adhering to Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism, with 600,000 Hindus, 450,000 Christians, 100,000 Buddhists, and 10,000 Sikhs living in the country.