Kuwait - Attack on Marines won't affect ties with Washington

KUWAIT -- The fatal shooting of a U.S. Marine by two Kuwaitis last week won't affect Kuwait's "deep" ties with Washington, the Kuwaiti government said Sunday.

"Kuwait will not be lenient in the face of such acts that are rejected by all Kuwaitis and will firmly stop anyone who tries to undermine its security and interests," the Cabinet said in a statement following its first meeting since the Tuesday attack that left one Marine dead and another injured.

"This painful incident has not affected and will not affect the deep historic friendly relations between Kuwait and the United States," the statement said.

Kuwait, which is still trying to rebuild its tiny military from the 1990 Iraqi invasion, depends on the United States for protection from further Iraqi aggression. It is bracing for possible Iraqi retaliation if the United States targets Saddam Hussein.

President Bush has accused Saddam of stockpiling weapons of mass destruction and supporting terrorism, and wants to oust him.

A full-page ad taken out in Al-Qabas Daily on Sunday by 267 diwaniyas, traditional men-only evening gatherings, carried a similar message. Diwaniyas are considered public forums and a monitor of political and social trends and sentiments.

The ad said any attack on American forces in Kuwait is "a direct threat" to Kuwait's security and interests. It offered condolences to the family of the slain Marine, Lance Cpl. Antonio J. Sledd, 20, of Tampa, Fla.

, and wished the injured Marine, Lance Cpl. George R. Simpson, 21, of Dayton, Ohio, a speedy recovery.

Sledd was killed and Simpson wounded Tuesday when the two Kuwaitis, both veterans of Afghan wars, drove up in a rented pickup truck and opened fire on Marines taking a break from urban assault training on the island of Failaka, some 10 miles off Kuwait City. Other Marines shot the attackers dead.