Belgium-Kuwait ties ‘flourishing’

BRUSSELS: Ambassador Walid AlKhubaizi, Kuwaiti Assistant Foreign Minister for European Affairs has praised the level of relations between Kuwait and Belgium and the remarkable development witnessed during the recent past period. This came in a statement made by Khubaizi last night after a meeting with Ambassador Anick van Calster, Director General of Bilateral Relations at the Belgian Foreign Ministry and Ambassador Raoul Delcorde, Director Middle East and North Africa Department at the Belgian Foreign Ministry in the presence Kuwait’s Ambassador to Belgium Jassim Al-Budaiwi. He said the meeting provided an opportunity for both parties to discuss a number of topics of mutual interest related to bilateral relations and regional and international issues.

Khubaizi noted that both sides discussed the topics to be raised during the first meeting of the KuwaitiBelgian Joint Economic and Technical Committee, to be held in November 2019, in Brussels. He pointed out that Kuwaiti delegations, represented by Kuwaiti ministries and institutions, will meet with their Belgian counterparts to discuss ways of enhancing economic cooperation, as well as on all levels. Furthermore, he said a set of draft agreements and memoranda of understanding were tabled for discussion, urging the Belgian side to seek to approve these projects and show flexibility on them, and pointing out that among these projects is a draft protocol amending the double taxation agreement; an MoU in the field of renewable energy, and activating the air services agreement signed between the two sides.

Khubaizi praised the level of cooperation in the health sector between the two countries, pointing out that the number of Kuwaiti patients sent by the Ministry of Health is increasing, which reflects Kuwait’s confidence in Belgian health institutions and advanced services. Also during the meeting, Khubaizi said that he encouraged the Belgian side to urge its public and private institutions to consider the possibility of entering into projects related to the State of Kuwait’s 2035 development plan, particularly with regard to drilling and deepening of waterways in the new Kuwaiti ports and in the field of cooperation between Kuwait Port Authority and various Belgian ports, especially Antwerp.

The Ambassador concluded by stressing that the two sides also discussed issues related to joint political coordination, praising its level, which is carried out through the capitals of the two countries and in the United Nations, as well as through the membership of both countries in the Security Council. He pointed out that both countries share political visions and principles that serve to promote the concept of international security and stability. The last high-level meeting between Belgium and Kuwait was held in November 2018, and was cochaired by Kuwaiti Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Al-Jarallah and by the Secretary General of the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bruno van der Pluijm.