WORLD : Tension in Persian Gulf Soars as Iraq-Kuwait Talks Collapse
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JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia — Talks on defusing an explosive crisis in the Persian Gulf collapsed today, with Iraq reported to have built up a 100,000-strong army on its disputed border with Kuwait.
“The talks have collapsed because Kuwait did not give in to Iraqi demands to write off . . . debts and to relinquish some of its territory,” a Kuwaiti official told Reuters in Jeddah.
The negotiations in this Red Sea port broke down less than 24 hours after opening, pitching the oil-rich region into its most dangerous crisis since the start of the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war.
A Western diplomat confirmed Western news reports that Iraq, despite assurances it will not invade Kuwait, had now moved about 100,000 troops, tanks and artillery to the border.
A Saudi source described the talks’ breakdown as “very bad news.”
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