Kuwait mandates Foreign Affairs coordination for diplomatic meetings

• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted that some officials held meetings and contacted diplomatic missions without consulting the ministry.

The Council of Ministers emphasized the importance of the ministries and government agencies directing all correspondence with foreign embassies through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It also stressed the need for prior coordination with the ministry regarding meetings or visits by country officials or ambassadors, according to Al Rai newspaper.

The council issued a decision requiring ministries and government agencies to comply with the provisions of two previous resolutions from 2007 and 2021 regarding communication with diplomatic missions accredited to Kuwait through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

This decision followed a report from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which noted that some officials in ministries and government agencies had directly addressed diplomatic missions and held official meetings with their representatives without referring to the ministry.

The Council of Ministers’ decision adopted in 2021 stipulates that ministries and government agencies must notify the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in advance about official meetings or visits involving country officials or ambassadors accredited to Kuwait, as well as technical delegations.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that it will provide government bodies with talking points covering topics of common interest and will represent them in all official meetings with foreign officials to ensure the state’s interests are properly followed up.

The 2007 decision mandates that all ministries and government agencies “refrain from addressing diplomatic missions directly and from responding to correspondence received from these missions. Instead, they must inform the ministry and ensure that all communication is routed through it.”