KUWAIT — Kuwait Crown Prince Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah starts on Tuesday an official visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, his first official overseas visit since his assumption to post in October 2020.

The choice of Saudi Arabia to be the first country to visit while in office, once again mirrors the uniqueness of relations between the two neighboring Arabian Gulf allies.

Through 130 years of relations, leaders of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia were reciprocating visits to keep in touch, coordinate stances of all issues and give impetus to efforts to ameliorate relations and mutual cooperation in all domains.

In 1910, late Saudi king and founder of the Saudi Kingdom Abdulaziz Bin Abdulrahman Al-Saud visited Kuwait and held his milestone talks with the then Emir Sheikh Mubarak Al-Sabah. Since then, visits of leaders and officials of the two countries did not stop.

Last January, Emir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah visited the Saudi Kingdom to partake in the 41st Gulf Cooperation Council summit. Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman made an official visit to Kuwait in December 2016.

Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman, deputy premier and minister of defense, also paid two visits to Kuwait in May 2015 and September 2018.

Since the creation of the GCC in 1981, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia have been working hand in hand to strengthen unity among Arabian Gulf nations and achieve political, economic, security and development goals of the pan-Gulf organization.

For more than three years from 2017 to 2020, Kuwait exerted strenuous diplomatic efforts, which proved successful to heal the Gulf rift. Kuwait's mediation had been admired and appreciated by the whole world.

Saudi Arabia's reception of Kuwaiti leaders and many of its people following the Iraqi occupation of the country in August 1990 has been lauded. Saudi Arabia's political and military role in the war to liberate the country will always be remembered by all Kuwaitis.

The Saudi stance in this delicate time reflected the strong bonds linking the two countries and their peoples. Kuwait also has never spared any effort or chance to defend and stand by the Kingdom in all the circumstances.

The latest in this aspect is Kuwait's active participation in the Saudi-led Coalition to support the legitimate Yemeni government against the Iran-backed Houthi militia, and its firm condemnations of the Houthi attacks on the Saudi territories. Kuwait has also reiterated its backing to the Saudi measures to stop these assaults in line with the international law.

Bilateral cooperation have been steadily improving thanks to a slew of agreements and memoranda of understanding for cooperation in a wide array of realms including, energy, media, culture, economy, transport, education and religious affairs.

Several agreements were also inked to facilitate the movement of people and cargo between the two countries. The Kingdom was the top importer of Kuwaiti products in the fourth quarter of 2020, after growing by 11.3 percent. — KUNA