“Nobody can feel finally secure as long as others are persistently insecure," argues Norman Myers in his book. Today, demarcations of the transboundary water resources is increasingly tied to national security. As resources become more contested, states that rely on these shared resources are prone to tensions. The Khor Abdullah waterway, which separates southern Iraq from northern Kuwait, is an important example of how a maritime border dispute is framed within the logic of security and shape both the security discourse and foreign policy of two states accordingly.   

            Historically, the maritime boundaries between Iraq and Kuwait have consistently been a source of dispute between two neighbors. Three years after Iraq under Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait in 1990, the UN determined the land and maritime borders between Iraq and Kuwait. While, the land border was established, the maritime borders, i.e. waters of the Khor Abdullah, remained open for dispute as Iraq only accepted land border determinations. Therefore, the dispute over Khor Abdullah was left for the two neighbors to resolve on their own.
            In 2012, two states signed a deal to ensure safety maritime navigation rights in narrow, but strategic, Khor Abdullah waterway. The deal was ratified by both parliaments a year after as an important step toward fostering peace and cooperation in the region. However, in September 2023, Iraq's top court ruled out the law passed by the Iraqi parliament regarding the deal signed between Kuwait and Iraq on Khor Abdullah waterway. The top court has stated that the 2012 deal was “unconstitutional" as it lacked the required approval from two-thirds of lawmakers, as mandated by Iraq's constitution. Iraq's unexpected reversal not only raised tensions between two neighbors but also posed uncertainty about the stability of resource management.
            For Iraq, which faces limited access to the sea, Khor Abdullah is the only waterway to the Gulf, through which the country exports most of its oil and imports goods. Therefore, it is a critical matter for the Iraqi policymakers. In the same vein, the Kuwaiti leadership, particularly after Sheikh Meshal came to power, places a great emphasis on the Khor Abdullah issue and strives to garner regional support for Kuwait's rights over the access to Khor Abdullah. At the GCC-US summit, GCC-EU summit, and GCC Ministerial summits, Kuwait successfully ensured that the issue was included in the final statements, transforming it from a bilateral issue to a broader regional and global issue. Iraq, whose relations with the GCC states have started to see improvement in recent years, faces pressures over the resolution of the Khor Abdullah dispute.
            Waters of the Khor Abdullah is highly critical because on the southern part of the channel Kuwait's Mubarak Al-Kabeer Port lies, while on the northern side Iraq's Grand Al-Faw Port lies. Mubarak Al-Kabeer port of Kuwait, a project long opposed by Baghdad, appears as a  direct competitor to Iraq's Al-Faw port. In 2020, Kuwait has complained to the UN that Iraq had never consulted Kuwait regarding the construction of Faw Port and it refused to provide Kuwait over the impact of the construction of this port. In the same vein, Baghdad has submitted complaints to the UN over Kuwait's construction of the Mubarak Al-Kabeer Port to obstruct the access of Iraq and its alleged violations of the maritime border. Access to Khor Abdullah is vital as it plays a crucial role in regional trade. Both Iraq and Kuwait aim to link Gulf to European markets through their own respective key ports. Thus, both states view the construction of each port as a threat to their economic strategies and national sovereignty, which is why the issue eventually becomes securitized.

Win-Win Situation or Zero-Sum Game?

Thus, both states view their own port projects forefront for their developmental and economic progress. However, the tension over the construction of ports on a shared waterway is not going to bind only two neighbors, but also other states in the region. Iraq signed a four-way preliminary agreement for joint collaboration on a “Development Road" with Turkey, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The Development Road  Project aims to run from Iraq's Grand Al-Faw Port to the Turkish border in the north of the country and connect the Gulf Arab states through Iraq to Turkey and Europe—sidestepping Kuwaiti territory entirely. While the project could improve Iraq's relations with involved states, it could also complicate the existing economic and political disputes between Kuwait and Iraq. For this reason, states involved in any of these projects need to build a secure architecture that can guarantee the gains of both sides.      
            In sum, maritime politics is not only a source of dispute but could also be a tool for cooperation on shared water resources. Mutual concerns over water sustainability can lead to dialogue (negotiations) between conflicting states and foster a cooperation for sustainable development, economic security, and regional stability. Iraq has clearly shown that it is keen to overcome this dispute. “The correct way to resolve the problems between the two countries is dialogue as we have no other option", said Iraqi Foreign Minister, Fuad Hussein, committing to dialogue and negotiation as a means of resolving the shared waterway issue.

The Khor Abdullah waterway issue is a double-edged sword. Its settlement depends on the political will of both states to either securitize the dispute or diplomatize it for mutual gains. On the one hand, securitizing the issue will be a constant tension multiplier between two neighbors that may also have greater regional dimensions. Kuwait may refer to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea for the resolution of the dispute. On the other hand, two states could diplomatize the issue by negotiating on a new maritime deal regarding governing maritime navigation of the waterway.

The two states are sharing similar economic and environmental challenges, such as growing water scarcity, and intense sand and dust storms. As a sign to combat common challenges, in 2023, Kuwait pledged to fund a project to tackle cross-border sand and dust storms originating from Southern Iraq. This shows that the two states, despite their ongoing disputes, can find a mutual ground for cooperation. A similar strategy could be applied to the Khor Abdullah waterway, turning it into a win-win situation that could foster cooperation and benefit both states and its peoples, instead of a zero-sum game, where one state's gain is the other's loss. Thus, cooperation and integration at the political level can serve the interests of both states if they prioritize economic gains to political ones.