Kuwait Denies Its Waters Being Used for Iran Arms Smuggling

Officials Say They're in Full Control of Their Waters

Yesterday claim emerged from Reuters that Iran is using Kuwaiti waters as a route through which to smuggle arms to Yemen, That didn’t sit particularly well with Kuwait, who was quick to issue a statement denying the claim today.

Kuwaiti Coast Guard

The allegations were that Iran was smuggling weapons into Kuwaiti waters and then just sticking them on random smaller boats, figuring those boats wouldn’t get searched, mostly because Kuwait is literally nowhere near Yemen.

Kuwait, however, noted that they have a navy and a coast guard, and not a lot of territorial waters in the first place, saying they’re totally in control of marine movements in that area, and would clearly notice if a bunch of ships were suspiciously meandering around swapping arms.

Kuwaiti state media quoted officials as saying that international media outlets needed to check their sources more before making such wild allegations. Claims of Iran arming the Yemeni Houthis have been common, but there has been little concrete evidence of any such arms ever being transferred.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.