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 Iraq Size: 432,162 square kilometers. Population: 22 million. |
A decade after the 1991 Gulf war, Iraq is ready to flex its muscles. Baghdad
has renewed threats against Kuwait and for the first time has posed the
prospect of an Iraqi nuclear bomb. President Saddam Hussein is pulling out
all the stops to deter the United States against an attack on his regime. A
key problem is a delivery system for any nonconventional weapon.A U.S. attack could destroy Saddam's hopes for a revival of his economy.
Russia plans to explore and develop huge oil and natural gas reserves in
southern Iraq. Baghdad's wealth has resulted in a reconciliation throughout
the Arab and Islamic world. Money does not appear to be a problem as Iraq
smuggles hundreds of thousands of barrels of oil a day through neighboring
Syria and Turkey.A key question is the future of northern Iraq, which, in effect, has been
under Kurdish rule for a decade. Saddam badly wants to restore control of
this oil-rich area and has even invited Osama Bin Laden to eliminate Kurdish
separatists.
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