Kuwait, a key Middle East ally of the United States, is reeling from repeated attacks by Iran. As the United States and Iran continue to clash even after the cease-fire, critics say the damage is falling on Gulf countries hosting U.S. troops.
According to Bloomberg on the 4th (local time), Kuwait suffered at least six attacks over two months after the U.S.-Iran cease-fire took effect on Apr. 8. On the night of the 3rd in particular, 30 projectiles were fired, striking Kuwait International Airport and a nearby military base in the largest attack since the cease-fire. A person familiar with the matter said the airport and nearby military facilities were each hit three times.
Bloomberg said Kuwait is a core U.S. ally where thousands of U.S. troops are stationed. Since the 1990 Gulf War, U.S. forces have been based at five military installations in Kuwait, including Ali Al Salem Air Base. In the latest attack, Ali Al Salem Air Base was again targeted.
Kuwait had already spent millions of dollars to repair the airport damaged by multiple attacks during the war that began in late February. But with the airport again damaged in the attack on the 3rd, concerns are rising that national infrastructure is directly exposed to threats.
The Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry said it demanded that the Iranian government reduce the number of its diplomats in the country and notified two diplomats to leave within 24 hours. It is seen as effectively raising the level of diplomatic response.
Anxiety is also growing among residents. Residents said the latest attack matched the intensity of the early days of the war, with explosions heard nationwide and buildings shaking.
Iran effectively acknowledged carrying out the attack. Abbas Araghchi, Iran's foreign minister, said on social media X (formerly Twitter) that it was a "self-defense attack targeting facilities used by the United States to attack civilian vessels and violate the cease-fire." He warned, "Hostile acts will be met with an immediate and resolute response."
Bahrain, where the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet is based, also said it came under Iranian missile and drone attacks the same day. Iran claims the Kuwaiti and Bahraini governments bear responsibility for supporting U.S. military action.
Gulf states pushed back strongly. Anwar Gargash, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) presidential adviser on foreign policy, said, "Gulf countries must mount a united response to Iran's repeated attacks," adding, "This attack targets not a specific country but the entire Gulf region."
Kuwait's geopolitical burden is growing heavier. A member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Kuwait relies on the Strait of Hormuz for a significant share of its crude exports. But with transit through the strait effectively paralyzed, imports of essential goods have little choice but to rely on air transport. As a result, analysts say that if the airport is attacked, the shock to the economy and logistics will inevitably grow.
Bader Al-Saif, a professor at Kuwait University and a researcher at Chatham House in the United Kingdom, told Bloomberg, "Kuwait is unfairly shouldering the expense of the Iran-U.S. conflict," adding, "Kuwait's burden, caught between the two, is growing by the day."