UK military assistance and termination of military agreement

This file relates to the defence of Kuwait, and the termination of the Anglo-Kuwaiti Agreement of 1961. It contains correspondence concerning:

• Attitude of Major General Mubarak Al Abdulla Al Jabir Al Sabah to the news of the withdrawal of British military support; and the conversations the Officer Commanding Kuwait Liaison Team E R McM Wright had with him on the issue
• Negotiations between HM Ambassador in Kuwait G G Arthur and the Ruler of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al Salem Al Sabah over the amendment of the 1961 exchange of notes; the necessity of withdrawal from Kuwait because of HMG’s broader withdrawal from the Gulf; the Ruler’s questions as to why military support cannot continue to be offered from Cyprus; the Ruler’s anxiety about regional powers including Iraq and Iran; and the influence of the Prime Minister of Kuwait Sheikh Jabir Al Ahmad Al Sabah over the Ruler’s stance
• Eventual decision by the Kuwaitis to abrogate the entire agreement, not just the section on defence. It includes: the instructions from the Foreign Office over wording; the timeframe of withdrawal from Kuwait; and the efforts by HMG to ensure the exchange of letters with Kuwait over the termination of the agreement maintains the clauses on friendship, consultation and cooperation
• Question of the publicity of the abrogation of the agreement, with HMG’s concerns over the Kuwaitis possibly trying to portray it as freeing them from British imperialism. It includes reports on newspaper and wider public reaction to the announcement
• The Ministry of Defence’s input over forces in Kuwait and the wider Gulf in relation to its Force Structure Exercise paper
• Arthur’s report to the Foreign Secretary Michael Stewart over the abrogation and the defence implications for Kuwait