BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN

HIS Majesty Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu’izzaddin Waddaulah, the Sultan and Yang Di-Pertuan of Brunei Darussalam, will make an official two-day visit to Kuwait starting on Monday, the Kuwait ambassador here said. In an email interview with The Brunei Times, Dr Fahad Al-Thafiri said Kuwait would be looking to strengthen economic and trade cooperation as well as explore joint venture opportunities, especially in the oil and gas industry.

His Majesty’s previous visit to Kuwait was in 2012 to attend the first Asian Cooperation Dialogue Summit. Brunei was among the first countries to contribute to the fund proposed by the Amir of Kuwait to support development in Asia. “Brunei had put forward a proposal to establish a US$500 million joint investment fund. Thus, the upcoming visit of His Majesty would be an opportunity for the joint task groups to materialise the proposal,” he added.

The ambassador said the visit — on the invitation of Kuwait Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah — aims to further strengthen bilateral relations.

A high-level delegation consisting of three ministers and the state mufti will accompany the Sultan. Kuwait-Brunei ties have witnessed “remarkable developments” through exchange of high-level visits in recent years, he said.

“Moreover, the two sides discussed provisions for a Memorandum of Understanding on investment, and had agreed to encourage mutual visits so as to help increase the volume of bilateral trade,” he added. Dr Fahad said Kuwaiti finance minister and managing director of Kuwait Investment Authority are expected to visit Brunei later this year to explore prospects of joint investment and financial cooperation. In addition, His Royal Highness Prince Hj Al-Muhtadee Billah, the Crown Prince and Senior Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office, paid an official visit to Kuwait in March last year at the invitation of Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Crown Prince of Kuwait, the envoy said. He also noted that Brunei has reiterated its support to Kuwait’s nomination for non-permanent membership at the UN Security Council for the 2018-2019 term.

The Brunei Times