Kuwaiti defense minister arrives in Qatar for talks

By Ahmed al-Masri and Mohamed Abdul Ghaffar

DOHA, Qatar

Kuwaiti Defense Minister Nasser Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah arrived in Doha on Wednesday evening for talks with Qatari officials, according to Doha-based broadcaster Al Jazeera.

Al-Jazeera broadcast live footage of the minister’s arrival to Doha, where he was received at the airport by his Qatari counterpart, Khalid bin Mohammed al-Attiyah.

It is the first visit to Qatar by the Kuwaiti defense minister (who also serves as first deputy PM and is also the son of the Kuwaiti emir) since his appointment last month in a wide-ranging cabinet reshuffle.

While in Doha, al-Sabah is slated to meet Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, Al Jazeera reported.

According to a statement released by Kuwait’s Defense Ministry, the minister is being accompanied on his visit by a sizeable delegation that also includes Army Chief-of-Staff Mohammed Khaled al-Khader and Defense Ministry Undersecretary Ahmad al-Mansour al-Sabah.

Qatar is the third leg of a wider regional tour that has also brought the Kuwaiti defense minister to Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.

Kuwait has continued to play the role of mediator in an ongoing inter-Arab political crisis that began last summer when Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt collectively cut diplomatic relations with Doha.