Taiwan and Kuwait: Brief Historical Comparisons

• Kuwait's Early History:
  

  Kuwait emerged as an independent trading port in the early 1700s.

  In response to Ottoman pressure, Kuwait entered into a treaty with Britain in 1899, giving Britain control over foreign affairs, and later became a British protectorate during WWI.
• Iraq's Claim:
  

  Starting in 1938, Iraq began asserting a historical claim to Kuwait, claiming it had always been part of Iraq—even though neither Iraq nor the Ottomans had ruled it.

  Iraq treated the matter as one of "internal affairs", similar to how the PRC describes Taiwan.

  This culminated in Iraq's military invasion of Kuwait in August 1990.

• Motivations Behind Iraq's Annexation of Kuwait:
  

  Iraq's motives included:

  • Seizing valuable natural resources (oil, metals, chemicals),
  • Gaining strategic coastline,
  • Advancing Pan-Arab leadership ambitions,
  • Boosting domestic support after the Iran–Iraq War.
• International Response:
  A UN-authorized multinational coalition led by the USA and Saudi Arabia launched air and ground assaults in early 1991.
  

  By late February 1991, Kuwait was liberated from Iraqi occupation.

• Legal Analysis:
  Iraq claimed that annexing Kuwait was a restoration of historical sovereignty.
  However, these claims lacked recognition under international law.
  International humanitarian law defined Iraq's control over Kuwait as nothing more than a military occupation.

Though Taiwan is not explicitly mentioned in these two parts, the structure and content imply the following comparison:

• Just as Iraq's historical and cultural claims over Kuwait did not justify sovereignty or annexation, the PRC's similar claims over Taiwan do not establish legal title.
• Both cases involve:
  • Occupation or attempted annexation based on contested historical narratives,
  • The use of "internal affairs" rhetoric to suppress international involvement,
  • A lack of legal justification under modern international law, particularly the laws of war and occupation.

The case of Kuwait's invasion and temporary annexation by Iraq in 1990–1991 offers a compelling legal and historical parallel to the People's Republic of China's (PRC) claim over Taiwan. In both cases, a powerful neighbor invoked vague historical or cultural connections to assert that a smaller, self-governing territory was part of its "internal affairs." Yet in the case of Kuwait, the international community firmly rejected Iraq's claims, recognizing the occupation for what it was: a violation of international law, unsupported by treaty, and constituting military aggression.

Similarly, the PRC's assertions of sovereignty over Taiwan lack any legal basis under modern international law. Taiwan was ceded to Japan in 1895, never retroceded by treaty to China, and remains under unresolved final "political status" following Japan's renunciation of sovereignty in the San Francisco Peace Treaty. As with Kuwait, the rhetorical framing of Taiwan as an "internal matter" cannot override the requirement for legal title, self-determination, and respect for established treaty processes.

The Kuwait precedent thus reinforces the principle that territorial sovereignty cannot be acquired or restored by force, nor legitimated by historical narrative alone.

• Taiwan: Approximately 13,976 square miles (or 36,191 square kilometers).
• Kuwait: Approximately 6,880 square miles (or 17,818 square kilometers).
• Comparison: Taiwan is significantly larger than Kuwait. In specific terms, Taiwan is about 2.03 times larger than Kuwait.