Kuwait and Iraq seek to defuse Iran crisis

The states depend of the Strait of Hormuz for their oil exports and vital oil revenue

Sometimes it takes a shared crisis for neighbours who have been at loggerheads for years to put aside their differences. A one-day visit to Iraq by the Emir of Kuwait, Shaikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, reflects a gradual thaw in relations over recent years after the trauma of Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990. But, much more, it is an indication that the two states are alarmed by the rising tension in the Gulf over the Iran crisis. They have good reason to be. Both export their crude oil through the Strait of Hormuz and into the Gulf of Oman—where two tankers were recently damaged in attacks blamed on Iran. All Kuwait's exports (around 2mn bl/d) and almost all Iraq's (3.5mn bl/d, with only 100