Kuwait City

IN THE MID-1990s, the renowned political scientist Samuel Huntington provoked a worldwide debate with his thesis that foreign affairs would no longer be defined by war between nations but by the clash of civilizations. The experience of Kuwait, our small but indispensable ally in the Persian Gulf, suggests that we must stay attuned as well to the clash of civilizations within nations. What grabs your attention as a newcomer and nonspecialist are the cultural contradictions of Kuwait. You encounter them in the airport corridors, the luxury hotel lobbies, the rundown beachfront amusement parks, the corporate headquarters, and the truly extravagant shopping malls.

The culture of the Arabian desert and the culture of the West constantly come into contact in Kuwait, and discover ways to peacefully coexist. Sultry young women sashaying in designer jeans and high, high heels pass by, without missing a beat, while women covered from head to foot in dark robes drift along the same streets like ghostly apparitions. Men in traditional garb–flowing white gowns, white headdresses, and leather sandals–confer with male colleagues who could pass for casual-Friday corporate lawyers. And perhaps most startling, since women in Kuwait lack the right to vote, men and women mingle freely on the street, at the mall, and in the workplace.