News

9 April 2003 20:28

RUSSIAN MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS IGOR IVANOV MEETS WITH MINISTER OF STATE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF KUWAIT SHEIKH MUHAMMAD AL-SABAH

867-09-04-2003

Unofficial translation from Russian

PRESS RELEASE

On April 9, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Igor Ivanov received the visiting Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of the State of Kuwait, Sheikh Muhammad Al-Sabah, who handed over a personal message from First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sabah al-Ahmed.

During the talk, the sides paid primary attention to discussing the situation in Iraq. Igor Ivanov stressed that the speediest termination of hostilities and return of Iraqi settlement onto the politico-legal field in strict accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions corresponds to the interests of ensuring security and stability in the region. The Russian minister particularly singled out the growing acuteness of the humanitarian problem in Iraq, noting that its solution is now becoming an immediate task of the world community. The sides declared the need for observance of the principle of respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states in accordance with the provisions of the UN Charter.

Expressing concern over the continuing Palestinian-Israeli confrontation, the ministers spoke in favor of further active efforts by the Quartet of international mediators - Russia, the US, EU and UN - as well as by other concerned parties, aimed at overcoming the protracted standoff and restarting the negotiating process. It was pointed out that the path to achieving this objective is indicated by the Road Map, drafted by the Quartet.

The sides reiterated their mutual desire to further develop the political dialogue and other areas of Russian-Kuwaiti cooperation.

April 9, 2003

Bilateral relations

Russia-Kuwait relations

The Soviet Union and the Kuwait established diplomatic relations on March 11, 1963. In November 1991, Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah IV Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, the current Emir of Kuwait, visited Moscow as part of the delegation of Emir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah. On December, 28 1991, Kuwait declared its official recognition of the Russian Federation as the legal successor of the Soviet Union.

Russia and Kuwait maintain stable political dialogue. Kuwait usually supports Russia’s initiatives and nominations to posts at the UN and other international organisations. The two countries hold regular political consultations and exchange delegations at different levels.

In October 2013, Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah, First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kuwait, visited Moscow, where he had a meeting with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

Between February 18 and 20, 2014, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov visited Kuwait for the third round of strategic dialogue between Russia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Sergey Lavrov had meetings with Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah IV Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah.

On March 25−26, 2014, Deputy Foreign Minister and Special Presidential Representative for the Middle East and Africa Mikhail Bogdanov attended the 25th summit of the Arab League in Kuwait City. On the sidelines of that summit, Mikhail Bogdanov had a meeting with First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah.

On May 19, 2015, Deputy Foreign Minister and Special Presidential Representative for the Middle East and Africa Mikhail Bogdanov held consultations with Deputy Foreign Minister of Kuwait Khaled Al-Jarallah in Moscow.

On November 9−10, 2015, Sheikh Sabah IV Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah became the first Emir of Kuwait to visit Russia. On November 10, Sheikh Sabah IV Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah held talks with President of Russia Vladimir Putin in Sochi.

On April 5, 2016, Deputy Foreign Minister and Special Presidential Representative for the Middle East and Africa Mikhail Bogdanov visited Kuwait City, where had a meeting with Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah and held talks with Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled al-Jarallah.

On May 25−26, 2016, First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah was in Moscow for the fourth ministerial meeting within the framework of the Russia-GCC strategic dialogue. The Kuwaiti minister had a bilateral meeting with Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the Russia-GCC event.

On March 29, 2017, Deputy Foreign Minister and Special Presidential Representative for the Middle East and Africa Mikhail Bogdanov and Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Al-Jarallah met on the sidelines of the Arab League summit in Jordan.

On April 18, 2017, Mikhail Bogdanov and Khaled al-Jarallah met in Moscow for a regular round of Russian-Kuwaiti political consultations.

On August 27−28, 2017, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov visited Kuwait as part of a regional tour. He had a meeting with Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah IV Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and held talks with First Deputy Prime Minister as well as Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah.

The parliaments of Russia and Kuwait maintain regular ties. In June 2007, a delegation of the Kuwaiti National Assembly led by Deputy Speaker Mohammed Al-Busairy visited Russia. In June 2010, three Kuwaiti MPs and several members of the National Assembly staff came to Moscow for a meeting of the Asian Parliamentary Assembly. In March 2011, a delegation of the Federation Council Committee on Economic Policy, Entrepreneurship and Property visited Kuwait.

Russia and Kuwait have signed and ratified the Agreement on Mutual Promotion and Protection of Investment (1994) and the Agreement on Double Taxation (1999). The Agreement on Air Communications came into effect back in 1978.

Several bilateral documents were signed during the Emir of Kuwait’s visit to Russia in November 2015, including an intergovernmental agreement on visa-free travel by the holders of diplomatic, official/service and special passports; a memorandum of understanding between the Russian Ministry of Culture and the Kuwaiti National Council for Culture, Arts and Literature on cooperation in culture and arts; a memorandum on cooperation between the Russian Ministry of Transport and the Kuwaiti Ministry of Communications; a memorandum of intent on military and technical cooperation between Rosoboronexport and the Kuwaiti Ministry of Defence; a memorandum of understanding between Gazprom and Kuwait Oil Company; as well as an agreement between the Russia Direct Investment Fund and Kuwait Investment Authority on increasing joint investment in Russia.

Russian-Kuwaiti trade and economic relations are regulated by the 1985 agreement, which has a most favoured nation clause.

According to Russia’s Federal Customs Service, bilateral trade equalled $480 million in 2016, an increase of 18 percent from $406 million in 2015. Russian exports to Kuwait were worth $479.9 million and imports from Kuwait $0.1 million.

In the first six months of 2017, bilateral trade reached $339 million, largely due to a 43 percent increase in Russian metal deliveries to Kuwait.

The Intergovernmental Russian-Kuwaiti Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation was established in November 1994.

The commission convened for the first time in Moscow on August 19, 2002. It was decided to create three subcommissions: on cooperation in energy, trade and economy, and in science and technology. The second meeting of the commission was held in Kuwait City in early November 2006 and the third meeting in Moscow on August 2−3, 2010. The commission’s subcommissions convened in Kuwait City in September 2011. On May 15, 2014, the commission’s co-chairs met in Moscow on the sidelines of the 14th International Energy Forum. The fourth meeting of the Russian-Kuwaiti commission was held in Kuwait City between March 17 and 19, 2015. The fifth meeting was held in Moscow on April 22, 2016.

The commission is co-chaired by Far East Development Minister Alexander Galushka (from December 2013) and Kuwaiti Oil Minister and Minister of Water and Electricity Essam Al-Marzooq (from December 2016).

In April 2007, a delegation from the Russian-Arab Business Council led by the Russian co-chair, Vladimir Yevtushenkov, visited Kuwait. The delegates signed a protocol on cooperation between the Russian and Kuwaiti chambers of commerce and industry and reached an agreement in principle to establish the Russian-Kuwaiti Business Council. The council is co-chaired by Yury Sharov, Head of Engineering Division at Inter RAO UES, and prominent Kuwaiti businessman Fouad Al-Ghanim.

In September 2010, Russia and Kuwait signed a memorandum of understanding and cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy on the sidelines of the IAEA’s 54th General Conference in Vienna.

Between September 10 and 13, 2015, Special Presidential Representative for cooperation with Gas Exporting Countries Forum and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Gazprom Viktor Zubkov visited Kuwait at the invitation of Ali Al-Omair, the Oil Minister and Minister of State for the National Assembly of Kuwait. Viktor Zubkov also attended the opening of the second SPE Kuwait Oil & Gas Show and Conference.

On January 22, 2017, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak and Kuwaiti Oil Minister and Minister of Water and Electricity Essam Al-Marzooq met in Vienna on the sidelines of the first meeting of the Joint OPEC-Non-OPEC Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC), which was established to monitor compliance with voluntary commitments to rebalance the global oil market through an adjustment in combined production.

On March 25−26, 2017, Alexander Novak was in Kuwait City, where he and Essam Al-Marzooq co-chaired the second JMMC meeting. The committee members led by Essam Al-Marzooq paid a courtesy call on the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah. Alexander Novak and his Kuwaiti counterpart also held bilateral talks on the sidelines of the second JMMC meeting. Preparations for Novak’s visit to Kuwait included a business mission led by Vadim Marshavin, Director of the Energy Ministry’s Department of International Cooperation. The delegation included representatives from Gazprom, Rosatom and GIRS Service.

On July 24, 2017, Essam Al-Marzooq attended the fourth JMMC meeting held in St Petersburg. He and Alexander Novak held a regular round of talks on the sidelines of the meeting.

In 2012, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA) established a partnership under which KIA can take part in the RDIF’s automatic co-investment mechanism. In keeping with the agreement that was signed during the Kuwaiti Emir’s visit to Russia in November 2015, KIA decided to double its financial contribution to its partnership with the RDIF from $500 million to $1 billion for financing projects in Russia.

Kuwait has expressed willingness to build up investment in the oil and gas and other Russian industries, including in infrastructure projects such as the construction of roads and railways, airports, logistics hubs, power stations and other utilities, as well as oil production and processing facilities.

Russian-Kuwaiti cooperation in culture, science and education is rather limited, including in connection with the specific spiritual and cultural life and the lack of a Russian cultural centre in Kuwait.

Kuwait is one of the countries that can send its young people to Russia to receive higher education on federal budget scholarships in accordance with a 1996 government resolution. Since Kuwait did not use up its quota for the past years, the allocation of scholarships to it was suspended from the 2014/2015 academic year. Russian citizens receive education in Kuwait where they go at the invitation of the foreign languages centre at Kuwait University.

In 2001, the Institute of Asian and African Countries at Moscow State University and Kuwait University’s philology department signed an agreement on academic cooperation, which provides for exchanging students and members of the faculty. In late September until early October 2013, a delegation from Kuwait University visited several Russian universities, including the Diplomatic Academy of the Russian Foreign Ministry and St Petersburg State University.

The Treasures of the World: Jewellery of India under the Grand Moguls exhibition from the National Museum of Kuwait was on display in the Moscow Kremlin Museum in February 2009 and in the St Petersburg Hermitage in August 2009. The exhibition comprised over 400 jewellery items dating back to the age of the Great Moguls from the personal collection of Sheikh Nasser, Minister of the Ruler’s Court Diwan Amiri and the eldest son of the Emir of Kuwait, and his wife. The opening ceremony in Moscow was attended by the Kuwaiti Minister of Information.

In February 2014, Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, President of the Kuwait Olympic Committee, the Olympic Council of Asia and the Association of National Olympic Committees, attended the 126th session of the International Olympic Committee and the opening ceremony of the Sochi Winter Olympics. The Sheikh was accompanied by a large Kuwaiti delegation.

Kuwait City hosted concerts by the Russkaya Volya (Russian Will) Cossack song and dance ensemble in December 2013 and May 2015, as well as exhibitions of works by members of the Russian Artists Union in April 2014 and March 2015. In December 2014, Kuwaitis enjoyed performances by the Moskvich (Muscovite) children’s dance company. Russian folk instruments quartet Parafraz (Paraphrase) gave concerts in Kuwait in May 2015. The same month, Soviet and Russian war films were screened in Kuwait City during the Russian Cinema Week, which was held as part of the celebrations of the 70th anniversary of Victory Day. The Igor Moiseyev Sate Academic Folk Dance Ensemble gave performances in Kuwait in November 2015.

In December 2015, Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Homoud Al-Sabah, Kuwait Minister of Information and Minister of State for Youth Affairs, attended the 4th St Petersburg International Cultural Forum, during which he invited Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky to visit Kuwait City.

Vladimir Medinsky visited Kuwait on March 27−28, 2016. He had talks with Emir Sheikh Sabah IV Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Prime Minister Jaber Mubarak Al-Sabah and First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah. Vladimir Medinsky also held talks with Minister of Information and Minister of State for Youth Affairs Sheikh Salman Sabah Al-Salem Al-Homoud Al-Sabah, and attended the opening ceremony of Visit Russia, a branch of the national tourism office in the Middle East headquartered in Dubai, as well as Russian Film Week.

The Russian-Kuwaiti Friendship Society, which was established in August 2014, is co-chaired by diplomat and academic Oleg Peresypkin.

In October 2014, Kuwait reaffirmed its participation in the Russia – Islamic World Strategic Vision Group, which was established in 2006 and suspended its activities during the Arab Spring. Dr Adel Al Falah, Deputy Minister of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs, attended the group’s meeting in Moscow on June 11−12, 2015, as well as its international conference Islamic Religion Against Extremism, which was held on October 5−6, 2015.

the State of Kuwait

The State of Kuwait

Kuwait is located in the northeast of the Arabian Peninsula. It borders Saudi Arabia and Iraq and has a 290 kilometre long shoreline.

Area: 17,818 square kilometres. The Arabian Desert covers most of Kuwait, which also owns nine islands in the Persian Gulf: Bubiyan (836 square kilometres), Failaka, Warbah, Qaruh, Umm al Maradim, Kubbar, Umm an Namil, Miskan and Auhah. In 1965, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia signed an agreement to partition the Divided Zone, also known as the Neutral Zone, adjoining their respective territories.

Population: 4.13 million, including 1.24 million Kuwaitis.

Official languages: Arabic, although English is widely used as well.

Religion: Most of the Kuwaiti people are Sunni Muslims, some 30 percent are Shia Muslims, and about 15 percent of the population are Christian, Hindu and people from other religious communities.

Administrative division: Kuwait is divided into six governorates, the leaders of which hold the rank of minister: Al Kuwayt or Capital Governorate, Ahmadi, Farwaniya, Jahra, Hawalli and Mubarak Al-Kabeer.

Capital: Kuwait City.

History: The area of Kuwait City was settled in the 17th century by Arabic tribes from the inner part of the Arabian Peninsula. By the early 20th century, Kuwait was an obscure sheikhdom and a British protectorate with a tribal system of government. Its revenue came from the transit of goods and the pearl industry.

In 1946, the Anglo-American Kuwait Oil Company Limited launched the commercial production of oil in Kuwait. This led to a construction boom in the 1950s, when GDP was growing by 11 percent, and attracted foreign labour on a large scale.

The rise of national liberation movements in the developing countries also influenced the Kuwaiti society. British protection as set out in the Anglo-Kuwaiti agreement of 1899 was officially withdrawn on June 19, 1961, making Kuwait a sovereign state.

On August 2, 1990, Iraq invaded and annexed Kuwait. On January 17, 1991, a coalition of 29 countries launched a military operation, also known as the Gulf War, which ended with the liberation of Kuwait on February 26, 1991. The results of this were summed up in UN Security Council Resolution 687, which formalised the cessation of hostilities and set out the main parameters of the post-war settlement. On November 10, 1994, Iraq officially recognised the sovereignty and borders of Kuwait.

The emirate assisted the United States and its allies in preparing and implementing the operation to overthrow Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein between March and April 2003. In particular, Kuwait provided its territory for the deployment of the coalition forces’ strike group.

Political system: Kuwait is a unitary constitutional monarchy led by the Emir. Under the November 11, 1962 Constitution, legislative power in the country belongs to the Emir and the National Assembly (parliament), while executive power belongs to the Emir and the Council of Ministers.

National holiday: National Day, marked on February 25, the day when Kuwait’s history as a British protectorate came to an end in 1961 and when Sheikh Abdullah Al-Salem Al-Sabah was declared the Emir of Kuwait in 1950.

The Emir of Kuwait: Sheikh Sabah IV Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (since January 29, 2006), Crown Prince: Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (since February 20, 2006).

Jaber Mubarak Al-Sabah has been the Prime Minister of Kuwait since December 2011 and was last re-appointed on November 30, 2016. The House of Sabah is the ruling family of Kuwait and its members hold the key positions in the country. The current Cabinet of Ministers was formed on December 10, 2016.

Sheikh Sabah Al-Khalid Al-Sabah is First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kuwait.

The unicameral National Assembly (parliament) is made up of 50 members, who are elected for four years by direct pubic vote, as well as up to 15 appointed government ministers who are ex officio members.

The National Assembly of the 15th convocation was elected at early elections on November 26, 2016, after the Emir dissolved the parliament on October 16, 2016. Over 60 percent of new members were elected in November. The new parliament is profoundly influenced by the opposition (represented by 24 of the 50 deputies), tribes and business communities.

Speaker of the National Assembly: Marzouq Ali Mohammad Al-Ghanim.

Economy: Kuwaiti GDP in FY 2016−2017 equalled some $108.6 billion, a decrease of 16 percent from the previous fiscal year. Inflation was 3.2 percent.

The Kuwaiti economy rests on oil and petrochemicals, which account for some 94 percent of budget revenue and are fully state-controlled.

The public sector accounts for some 80 percent of the national economy. The government’s declared priorities are privatisation, diversification of revenues plus the reduction of expenses.

Kuwait has no foreign debt.

Only 1 percent of the Kuwaiti territory is suited for agriculture. Therefore, over 80 percent of food products are imported.

The key types of transportation are pipelines (oil pipelines between oilfields, refineries and oil terminals) and sea routes. The country’s main ports are Shuwaikh (Al-Kuwait), Mina Al-Zour and Mina Al-Ahmadi (oil terminal). Motorway transportation is also very important. Kuwait has 5,507 kilometres of asphalted roads. The country’s airlines include Kuwait Airways (national carrier) and the country’s first private air carrier, Jazeera Airways, which was established in 2004 and has a fleet of seven aircraft.

Currency: The Kuwaiti dinar (KWD). 1 KWD = $3.27. The exchange regime is free. There are six commercial and five Islamic banks (the latter also observe Sharia norms). Foreign banks are not allowed to serve individuals; they can only work with large companies.

Kuwait reports a trade surplus: exports exceed imports almost twofold. Oil and petrochemicals account for 87 percent of Kuwaiti exports (of these, petrochemicals make up more than 40 percent). Kuwait also exports chemical products, such as ethylene, polyethylene, propylene, urea and sulphur, and also re-exports a number of industrial goods (mostly to Iraq). Imports are comprised of machinery and equipment (24 percent of the total), all types of vehicles (14 percent), base metals and metalware (12 percent), chemicals and by-products (9 percent), food (6 percent), rolled metal (8.9 percent), textiles (6.2 percent), construction materials and cement (2.7 percent), as well as sawn timber and the like.

Kuwait’s main trading partners are South Korea, China, the United States, Saudi Arabia, Japan and India.

The internal political situation is largely stable. However, the country has adopted a policy of strengthening security and preventing the proliferation of the extremist ideology.

Although political parties are prohibited in Kuwait, the establishment of the country’s first political party, the Umma Party (Hizb al-Umma), was announced in January 2006. The political movements that exist in Kuwait are actually parties in terms of structure and organisation.

Foreign policy: Kuwait is a member of the UN, Arab League, OIC, WTO, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), OPEC and the Organisation of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC). Kuwait is also active in the Non-Alignment Movement.

National security is the emirate’s top foreign policy priority. Kuwait believes that this can be done through closer cooperation with the United States, which designated Kuwait as a major non-NATO ally (MNNA) in April 2004. In December 2004, Kuwait joined the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative (ICI), which was created to strengthen NATO’s presence in the Middle East and the Persian Gulf. In January 2017, a NATO-ICI Regional Centre opened in Kuwait. The ceremony was attended by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

At the same time, Kuwait seeks to maintain a balance in its relations with the other leading countries, namely Russia, France and China.

Much attention is given in Kuwait to the further development of traditional integration ties within the framework of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and to the maintenance of close relations with the member states of the Arab League.

Kuwait wholeheartedly supports the Arab approach to the Middle East settlement. It has pointed out that the achievement of this goal, primarily on the Palestinian track, would greatly facilitate the settlement of all conflicts in the region and would also weaken the positions of the extremist forces.

One of Kuwait’s current priorities is the normalisation of the situation in Iraq. Kuwait has joined the international anti-ISIS coalition, has allowed the coalition members to deploy their military contingents on its territory and also provides financial assistance to the coalition. Kuwait positively responded to Iraq’s request for yet another deferment of the $4.6 billion final reparations to Kuwait for the 1990−1991 Gulf War.

Kuwait has a balanced view on the situation in Syria, saying that the future of Bashar al-Assad must be decided by the Syrian people themselves. Kuwaitis are focused on the humanitarian aspects of the crisis in Syria and provide financial and humanitarian aid to Syrian refugees and internally displaced persons.

At the initiative of the UN Secretary-General, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah was honoured in 2014 as the Humanitarian Leader and Kuwait as the centre of humanitarian leadership.

The Kuwaiti government is promoting the development of science, research achievements and new technology. The leading part in this area is played by the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research, which was established in 1967. The institute has a powerful resource base and a network of laboratories that conduct research in oil, desert agriculture, marine biology and power generation. The institute’s researchers are also looking for new methods of prospecting for mineral resources and water. Considerable attention is being given to economics and sociology.

Culture: Kuwait has numerous architecturally impressive museums with collections of exhibits related to history, archaeology and ethnography. The government encourages the preservation of inimitable traditions, including song and dance groups, Arabic poetry and prose, paintings and the like. Other elements of local cultural heritage are camel racing, falconry as well as desert camping in winter.

The Kuwaiti authorities are promoting education. In 2015, the adult literacy rate in Kuwait was 96.3 percent. Kuwait holds 55th place in the world in terms of literacy.

Kuwait University opened in 1966 and is one of the largest universities in the Gulf region. Hundreds of Kuwaitis receive education abroad. Higher education for Kuwaiti citizens is fully financed by the government.

Media: The operation of the Kuwaiti media outlets is guided by the Information Ministry and the 2006 Law on the Press and amendments thereof.

There are over 30 print media outlets in Kuwait and five state television channels. Equipment for satellite channels is freely available.

Diplomatic relations between Russia and Kuwait were established on March 11, 1963. On December 28, 1991, Kuwait recognised the Russian Federation as the legal successor of the Soviet Union.

The first visit by the Emir of Kuwait to Russia was made on November 9−10, 2015. On November 10, Sheikh Sabah IV Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah held talks with President of Russia Vladimir Putin in Sochi.