Saudi crown prince receives letter from Kuwaiti emir following Qatar leader visit

A Saudi crown prince has received a letter from the Kuwait emir, which follows a high-profile visit to Kuwait by Qatar's leader.
2 min read
06 February, 2019
Kuwait's emir sent a letter to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed [AFP]
Saudi Arabia's powerful crown prince received a letter from Kuwait's leader Tuesday, which follows a high-profile visit to Kuwait by Qatar's Emir Tamim al-Thani earlier in the week.

A letter from Kuwait Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah was delivered by hand to controversial Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh by his envoy, according to Kuwaiti and Saudi media.

The details of the letter were not revealed but said to discuss "regional issues", which some analysts believe refer to the Gulf crisis, brought on by the Saudi-UAE blockade of Qatar in June 2017.

"During the meeting, the crown prince and the Kuwaiti deputy minister of amiri Diwan affairs shared views on regional developments and relations between the kingdom and Kuwait," Saudi media reported.

Kuwait state news said that the contents of the letter deal with "solid ties between the two brotherly countries, regional and international issues and topics of common interest".

It follows a publicised visit to Kuwait Emir Tamim al-Shani this week on Monday, with speculation that it could be connected to the Gulf crisis.

It followed the historic Asian Cup victory by Qatar last week in the UAE.

Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt launched a blockade on Qatar in June 2017 with few signs of a breakthrough between the two sides.

Kuwait and Oman were the only Gulf states to remain neutral in the crisis.

Although the meeting between the Kuwaiti and Qatari emirs could have discussed the Gulf crisis, analysts say that international pressure on Riyadh and Abu Dhabi is needed to end the blockade on Doha.

"The two leaders will discuss bilateral relations and might talk about the GCC crisis but personally I don't think this is about it directly," said Ali Bakeer, an analyst and researcher. 

"The attitude of the anti-Doha quarter reflected by the UAE in the Asian Cup proves once again that without applying pressure - particularly from the US - on the UAE and Saudi Arabia, there will be no reconciliation.