The Times Kuwait Report
Britain’s relationship with Kuwait has taken on a new urgency amid the changing regional security environment, with the UK stepping up practical cooperation with Kuwait on missile and drone threats while continuing to deepen ties in education, trade, healthcare and technology.
British Ambassador to Kuwait H.E. Qudsi Rasheed said Britain’s commitment to Kuwait had become one of the defining priorities of his first year in the country, following the outbreak of the regional conflict and attacks that affected Kuwait.Rasheed, who arrived in Kuwait on October 1 last year, said he had not expected the country to come under attack.
The experience, he added, brought back memories of Kuwait’s 1990 invasion and changed the priorities of his mission. His focus shifted towards demonstrating Britain’s political, diplomatic and military support for Kuwait, including through visits by British ministers and senior military officials and the deployment of British personnel and equipment. “Today, we’re here as an ally and partner of Kuwait that will stand with Kuwait to help Kuwait and its military protect itself,” Rasheed said.
He described the deployment of a British counter-drone system and its first successful interception of a drone as one of the most significant moments of his first year as ambassador. The UK is now discussing with Kuwait how their joint defence capabilities can be strengthened over the next three to five years. Rasheed said British companies are in discussions with the Kuwaiti military over modern defence and counter-drone technologies. Britain has also deployed a counter-drone capability in Kuwait combining radar, cameras, detection equipment and interception technology.
The ambassador explained that the system is part of a wider network rather than a single nationwide shield, with different systems operated by Kuwait, the United States, Britain and Jordan covering different areas of Kuwaiti airspace. He said cooperation also extends to satellite imagery, although radar remains particularly important for detecting incoming missiles and drones.
Rasheed noted that ballistic missiles and drones present different challenges. While missiles can be detected and tracked by radar, the time between launch and impact can be measured in minutes. Drones, meanwhile, can be deployed in large numbers and are often more difficult to detect and intercept.
Beyond airspace security, Britain is also closely watching developments around the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for regional trade and energy flows.Rasheed said Britain continues to call for freedom of navigation and has urged Iran to reopen the waterway. At the same time, he stressed that the wider regional crisis cannot be resolved through military action alone.
“There has to be a diplomatic solution,” he said, calling on all sides to return to negotiations.The ambassador acknowledged that disruption to shipping through the Strait was creating economic difficulties for both Kuwait and the UK, underlining the importance of keeping international waterways open.
From agreements to business opportunities
The security relationship is only one part of a broader UK-Kuwait partnership.Rasheed said the eventual conclusion and implementation of a UK-GCC free trade agreement could further strengthen economic relations between Britain, Kuwait and the wider Gulf by reducing trade barriers, removing tariffs and facilitating the movement of goods and services.
He identified financial services, education, healthcare, advanced manufacturing, technology and data as areas with significant potential for increased trade and investment.Importantly, he urged British and Kuwaiti businesses not to wait for the agreement to come into force before exploring opportunities.Instead, companies should already be identifying areas where the two markets can work together.
Education connects the two countries
Education remains another major bridge between Kuwait and Britain.Rasheed estimated that between 12,000 and 14,000 Kuwaiti students are currently studying in the UK, although he stressed that the figure was approximate. Britain, he said, remains a major destination for Kuwaiti students, while there is scope to expand university partnerships and scholarship opportunities.
Engineering, data, artificial intelligence and technology could receive greater attention as Kuwait seeks to align education and scholarship programmes with its future economic requirements.He also pointed to existing partnerships, including cooperation involving King’s College London and a Kuwaiti institution on medical training.Many of these relationships, he noted, develop directly between educational institutions rather than being driven solely by governments.
‘Not new agreements, but implementation’
For Rasheed, however, the immediate priority in the UK-Kuwait relationship is not producing more agreements, but making existing cooperation deliver results. “My priority, to be honest, is not new agreements. It’s to implement what we’re doing already, to continue it and to deepen it,” he said.
He identified education, healthcare, security, cybersecurity and investment as areas where existing cooperation could be strengthened, adding that new agreements should be pursued where they provide genuine added value. That approach reflects the changing nature of the UK-Kuwait relationship one increasingly defined not simply by diplomatic commitments, but by what the two countries can deliver together on the ground.
From protecting Kuwait against emerging drone and missile threats to supporting Kuwaiti students in British universities, opening new avenues for trade and investment and working together on regional diplomacy, Rasheed’s message was that the partnership is entering a more practical phase.
For Kuwait, a country once again confronting an uncertain regional security environment, the significance of that partnership is perhaps best captured in the ambassador’s own description: Britain is here not simply as a friend, but as an ally and partner prepared to stand with Kuwait.
Britain changes its approach to Israel and Palestine
Against the backdrop of the wider regional crisis, Rasheed also outlined a significant change in Britain’s approach to Israel and the Palestinian issue. He said the UK government had changed its policy, tone and actions, particularly in response to the threat that Israeli settlement expansion poses to the viability of a two-state solution.
Rasheed said Britain’s position had moved beyond its previous focus on the illegality of Israeli settlements to also recognise the Israeli occupation of the West Bank as unlawful under international law. He said Britain was publicly criticising what Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband has described as ethnic cleansing and settler violence in the West Bank, while supporting independent investigations into allegations of war crimes in Gaza.
Britain has also expanded sanctions and other restrictions relating to Israeli settlements, including restrictions on trade involving illegal settlements and measures aimed at preventing British companies from providing services supporting settlement activity.
Rasheed cited advertising property in Israeli settlements as an example of activity that could be affected, while stressing that Britain continues to support trade with Israel within its internationally recognised borders. He also said restrictions on British arms exports had been extended to cover equipment that could contribute to furthering the occupation in the West Bank.
At the same time, Rasheed stressed that the policy change should not be interpreted as opposition to Israel or the Israeli people. Britain continues to recognise Israel and support its right to self-defence, while maintaining that the October 7, 2023 attacks were unacceptable and that Hamas could have no future in Gaza. The UK continues to support a negotiated two-state solution as the route to lasting peace and security for both Israelis and Palestinians.
