US Secretary of State Antony Blinken affirmed that his country places “tremendous value” on the role that Kuwait plays as an “advancer of peace.”
Blinken was quoted by local media as saying, “Kuwait plays, an almost unique role that it plays as a facilitator, mediator, advancer of peace and leading the way to resolve conflicts.”
He said: “Kuwait has been an indispensable bridge to try to resolve challenges in the region and even beyond; the role that it played in healing the Gulf rift was critical and essential, the role that it plays as well in Yemen in trying to end the war there is vital.”
Blinken said that Kuwait has developed relationships with both Lebanon and Iraq, which is something “we place tremendous value in.”
On the Fifth US-Kuwait Strategic Dialogue, Blinken said each dialogue “is building on the previous one and demonstrating in concrete ways how we are both deepening, strengthening, but also expanding our ties and the work we are doing together.”
“I think I come away from this fifth Strategic Dialogue convinced that this partnership continues to deepen but in ways that I think, benefiting both our peoples but also beyond people, around the world,” he added.
He continued that the two nations are working to further boost collaboration and cooperation.
He shredded light on the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed between the two countries “to deal with the potential outbreak of dangerous diseases and to make sure that we are working together, sharing information to detect the spread of dangerous pathogens and to be able to prevent that and deal with that.”
“That’s exactly the kind of collaboration that is bringing us together not only to deal with traditional threats, but something that the entire world is facing,” he said.
He continued by saying that the strategic dialogue “even if it culminates or starts with a conversation between the (foreign) ministers, the critical work is done in the working groups, noting “that’s how we actually make sure that we’re driving concrete progress.”
He said that the work the working groups are doing “includes the work that they do in between the dialogues, the communication they have, the efforts to advance the different initiatives that we’re a testimony to’آs important.”
On the 18th anniversary of the designation of Kuwait as a major non-NATO ally of the US, Blinken said “the significant role that Kuwait plays, not only as a peacemaker, as a bridge, in the coalition to counter Daesh, where Kuwait has played an essential role and continues to play one.
“It in many ways, a unique role that Kuwait and our partnership plays both in trying to advance peace but also to deal with challenges to our common security,” he said.