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Turkey's proximity to Iraq makes it a key ally for the United States. Inci.rlikAir Base has served for much of the last decade as the operation center for patrols enforcing the "no-fly zone" over northern Iraq. The United States wants to base large numbers of ground troops in Turkey - possibly to secure the vast oil fields in the north of Iraq. Negotiations are on going with Turkey over its airspace and allowing U.S. soldiers onto its soil for combat situations.

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Conservative clerics wielded ~.:.i..~41 ultimate political control in the '70s and '80s. There followed an unstable and bloody period, including an eight-year war against Iraq, in which the country's.oil wealth plwnmeted from its previous high levels.

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In 1990 King Fahd invited US.led troops to enter the country following the invasion of Kuwait by Iraq. Saudi Arabia served as the base from which Kuwait was eventually liberated. Oil revenues make up about three-quarters of the national income.

The country has been characterized by authoritarian rule at home and a strong antiIsraeli policy abroad, particularly under former President Hafez alAssad. In 1967 Syria lost the Golan Heights to the Israelis, while civil war in neighboring Lebanon allowed it to extend its influence in the region.

In early 1991, the country was the scene of a massive U.S.-led international military campaign to oust Iraqi forces, which had invaded Kuwait the previous summer. The country is a major U.S. staging ground for war with Iraq.

The United States has a large headquarters for Centcom - the command body in charge of the U.S. military in the Middle East, Asia and North Africaat the As-Sayliyah base, where U.S. commanders direct military operations.

Jordan is a small country with limited natural resources, but for years it has played a pivotal role in the struggle for power in the Middle East. Jordan's significance results partly from its strategic location at the crossroads of what most Christians, Jews and Muslims call the Holy Land.

In 1990 King Fahd invited US.led troops to en r the country following the invasio of Kuwait by Iraq. Saudi Arabia ed as the base from which Ku twas eventually liberated. Oil ues make up about threequarters of the national income.

Site of the bombings of the USS Cole in 1999 and a French oil tanker in October, Yemen is said to have strong connections to AlQaida. The government opposes war with Iraq.