Kuwait is often a first stop for Marines on their way to locations inside Iraq and a last stop before leaving the Middle East once their deployment to Iraq ends. There may at times be a relatively small number of Marines who remain inside Kuwait during their entire deployment. Since the beginning of operations in Iraq in 2003, the United States and Kuwait have had a cooperative agreement in which the U.S. has been granted permission to use Kuwaiti territory for the movement of troops and equipment into and out of Iraq.
Marines located within Kuwait for the duration of their deployment will likely have access to many of the same amenities as found at their PDS bases. Living conditions are comparable to what your Marine had prior to deploying.
There are no combat operations conducted inside Kuwait. Nevertheless, to assure operations security (OpSEC), your Marine should not share his/her exact location with you and you should not ask. It will only make your Marine very uncomfortable to have you asking questions that s/he is forbidden from answering. Instead of asking the name of the camp or location, ask your Marine what amenities s/he has available. This will help you determine what types of items to send in care packages and what type of calling cards can be used. When you get a call, your Marine will most appreciate the chance to catch up on happenings at home.
Some basic information about the country follows:
Kuwait - Middle East
Capital - Kuwait City
Bordered by - Egypt, Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Yemen
Language - Arabic and English
Climate - Dry desert, intensely hot summers, short cool winters
Population - 3,399,637 (2008)
Religion - 85% Muslim, 15% Christian, Hindu Parsi and other
Government -Constitutional Hereditary Emirate
Independence - June 19, 1961 (from U.K.)
Constitution - Approved and promulgated November 11, 1962
Branches - Executive--Amir (Head of State); Prime Minister (Head of Government); Council of Ministers (Cabinet) appointed by Prime Minister and approved by the Amir *The most recent general election, held in May 2008, was considered free and fair. Women participated for the second time as voters and candidates. Women candidates fared well compared to the 2006 elections but failed to win any seats in the National Assembly. The 2008 parliamentary election was the first under a new five-constituency system.
Natural resources - Oil, natural gas, fish
Agriculture - (about 0.5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP)) - With the exception of fish, most food is imported. Cultivated land—1%
Currency - The Kuwaiti dinar is currently pegged to an undisclosed basket of currencies; prior to 2007 the currency was pegged to the U.S. dollar. As of December 31, 2008, one U.S. dollar was equivalent to 0.276 Kuwaiti dinar.
