KUWAITI-EMIRATI BONDS STRONG, ROOTED IN RESPECT

09/11/2024

KUWAITI-EMIRATI BONDS STRONG, ROOTED IN RESPECT

The UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan

KUWAIT CITY, Nov 9: The President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan and his accompanying delegation will arrive in Kuwait, Sunday on a state visit. During the visit, UAE president will hold official talks with His Highness the Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. Meanwhile, Kuwaiti Ambassador to the UAE Jamal Al-Ghunaim touted the upcoming visit by the President of the Emirates Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan to the State of Kuwait, which would bolster the strong ties. Speaking to KUNA, the Ambassador affirmed that the visit would further explore venues for cooperation and strengthen relations between the two GCC countries. The visit would come at a critical time in the region namely in occupied Palestine and Lebanon, he added, saying that the leaders would touch on that during their meeting. The historic visit of the UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Sunday, is part of the strong Kuwaiti-Emirati ties, said UAE Ambassador to Kuwait Dr Matar Al-Neyadi. In a statement to KUNA on Saturday,

Al- Neyadi said the visit comes by an invitation from His Highness the Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. The Ambassador added that Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed described the Kuwaiti-Emirati ties as “historic and deep, based on mutual understanding and respect.” Sheikh Mohammed also affirmed that the UAE and Kuwait are eager to develop relations and cooperation, as well as support joint GCC work. The ambassador said that Kuwait has a special place in the hearts of Emirati people, noting the statement of the UAE’s Vice President, Prime Minister and Dubai Ruler Sheikh Mohamed bin Rashid Al Maktoum that “Kuwait’s love is engraved in our land, our hearts and our history.”

The visit comes two months after the conclusion of the fifth meeting of the joint Kuwaiti- Emirati supreme committee, where the two countries signed several agreements and memorandums of understanding on double taxation, defense, infrastructure, cyber security, environment and information technology. The two sides exchanged significant visits in 2024, starting with the visit of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, followed by visits of Dubai Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Hamdan bin Mohamed Al Maktoum and Kuwait’s First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Minister of Interior Sheikh Fahad Yousef Saud Al-Sabah in September and October, said Al-Neyadi. The ambassador noted that trade exchange between the two countries in Q3 2024 reached AED 36 billion (KD three billion), adding that the UAE is Kuwait’s second biggest commercial parter on a global level, while Kuwait is the 12th top commercial partner of the Emirates.

The UAE represents 55 percent of Kuwait’s trade exchange with the Gulf states, according to 2023 statistics, he added. Kuwait and the UAE also share up to 162 weekly flights, boosting tourism between the two sides, said the UAE official. Kuwait General Consul in Dubai and Northern Emirates Ambassador Ali Al-Thaidi stressed the importance of the upcoming visit by the UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan to Kuwait, saying that would add strength to the long illustrious ties. Speaking to KUNA, Ambassador Al-Thaidi said that the visit, which would see the President meet with His Highness the Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, would address issues about venues that would bolster bilateral ties and also touch on the latest regional and international developments.

The Kuwaiti diplomat deemed relations between the UAE and Kuwait as exemplary, saying that people in both countries shared similar views when it came to boosting relations on all possible domains. The leaderships of both countries would be exploring recent developments in the Middle East in addition to regional challenges that would require coordination to overcome, he affirmed. The President of the United Arab Emirates Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan visit to Kuwait represents an integral part in strengthening the solid relations between the two brotherly countries, who have always been keen on developing these relations.

The visit is a continuation of wise leadership over the past decades of exchanging periodic visits to strengthen the ties between the two countries and to consolidate bilateral relations, common destiny and strategic partnership between them. The six-decade-long history of diplomatic relations between the two countries has witnessed mutual visits by senior officials in both countries aimed at developing bilateral relations and enhancing cooperation on issues of common interest regionally and globally. This relationship has become more solid under the leadership of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, who visited the UAE March 5, where he discussed bilateral relations and ways to develop them in all fields with Sheikh Al-Nahyan. A joint statement was issued following that visit in which the political, consular, diplomatic, economic, commercial, financial, investment, private sector, energy, cybersecurity, communications and technology cooperation between them was praised.

Additionally, the two sides stressed their keenness to enhance defense cooperation and develop strategic partnerships to protect the security and stability of the two countries and the region, and to enhance cooperation in the field of combating crimes in all their forms. Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Abdullah Al- Yahya visited the UAE on September 2, where he met with Sheikh Al-Nahyan and discussed the solid brotherly relations and ways to enhance them in various fields that serve both countries. On October 8, His Highness the Amir of Kuwait received the Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister of the UAE, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohamed Al-Maktoum, during his official visit to Kuwait. Kuwait recalls with appreciation the official position of the UAE during the Iraqi invasion

of Kuwait in August 1990, when the UAE hosted tens of thousands of Kuwaiti families on its land, and the UAE Armed Forces participated in the war to liberate Kuwait.

In 1952, the late Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salem Al-Sabah, visited Sharjah and dispatched a Kuwaiti educational mission to the Emirates, which arrived in 1955 and began establishing, equipping and supporting many schools with books and school supplies for students. A medical mission was sent to the Emirates in the year 1962, establishing many centers and hospitals, and a television transmission station called “Kuwait TV from Dubai” was established in Dubai, which began operating in 1969.

The path of relations between the two countries is getting stronger under the directives of wise leadership, in a way that contributes to serving common interests and achieving security, safety, development, and prosperity in their regions. The State of Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, over the years, have inked a large number of agreements and memorandums of understanding (MoUs) aimed at beefing up further the strategic partnership and the close relations.

These accords have covered political, economic and social sectors, in line with the two countries’ long-term development visions. As these relations have been evolving in all fields, the two countries have signed several agreements during era of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and the UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, out of Their Highness’ keenness on rendering the bilateral relations an example to follow.

The two GCC countries have been on the path of enhancing ties and working out cooperation agreements at diverse levels since 1972, when they inaugurated embassies in Kuwait City and Abu Dhabi. Since then until late 2020, they had inked up to 33 accords, in addition to several MoUs, designed to boost cooperation and stimulate development. At the political-diplomatic level, the two sagacious leaderships share identical visions and perspectives toward regional and international issues; such the necessity to reach a comprehensive and just settlement to the Palestinian cause according to the two-state principle. As to regional issues, Kuwait City and Abu Dhabi have affirmed support for the Gulf security and stability, favoring dialogue and diplomatic solutions to resolve disputes and strife, boosting solidarity, tolerance and peaceful co-existence among countries of the region.

The fifth session of the joint supreme commission, held in Abu Dhabi on September 2, was capped with the signing of several agreements within the framework of executive memos and programs. Some of the inked memos during the session tackled product standardization, the infrastructural environment, communication, information technology, education, sports and culture. The two sides had also inked MoUs for cooperation in cyber security and defense procurement.

At the environmental level, Kuwait Environment Public Authority and Abu Dhabi Emirates signed in November 2021 a MoU for enriching bio-diversity, advancing expertise swap and cooperating in specialties such as fish farming. In February 2023, Kuwait City and Abu Dhabi inaugurated the first project for pooling traffic violation data. And, in April 2023, they opened a marine route for tankers from Khalifa port to Al-Shuwaikh port.

In February 2024, they signed an agreement for averting double taxation. Moreover, the Kuwait Cultural Office in Dubai and the Gulf Medical University in Ajman signed in March 2024 a MoU to allocate seats for the human medicine expeditions. In June 2024, the two countries signed a memo for deploying guards on board of civil planes.

Non-oil commodities exchanges between the two countries reached USD 12.2 billion last year, growing by two percent per annum. The UAE is Kuwait’s second top trade partner after China. Abu Dhabi draws 22 percent of the Kuwaiti exports. And, the UAE is the third top investor in Kuwait -- six percent of the foreign investments until the end of 2022. (KUNA)