political activity in Iraq needs the sanction of the Baathist Party, of which he is central party leader. Most of the current problems in the nation can be traced directly to Hussein's regime. Yet, as Bahgat notes, since the British granted the nation its independence in 1932 "successive regimes in Baghdad have tried to overcome" the country's geopolitical disadvantages and this has produced seven decades of "an almost uninterrupted state of hostility with its neighbors, particularly Iran and Kuwait" (45).
The threats that figured most importantly in this situation were related to the nation's nearly landlocked status. Iraq shares 3,631 km of border with six nations but has only 58 km of coastline on the Gulf and the only significant waterway, the Shatt al Arab, had been illegally seized by Iran in 1963. The Iran-Iraq War began when Hussein took back this vital means of transport. The invasion of Kuwait was also motivated by the desire to gain greater unimpeded access to the Gulf. This had become increasingly important throughout the century because disputes with its neighbors had led to Iraq's loss of vital pipelines for its oil. In addition, although Iraq is, unlike many of its neighbors, untroubled by lack of water, its two principal sources--the Tigris and Euphrates rivers--begin in Turkey and pass through either Iran or Syria--all nations with whom Iraq has long been at odds over many points. Turke
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