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News Summary Report Mon / Oct. 29, 2018
Domestic Affairs
“We will not Allow Corruption in Government Bodies”: Al-Mubarak
His Highness the Prime Minister, Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak affirmed that he will not allow any corruption in government bodies, and that he shall make the leaders of those bodies accountable in case of detecting any corruption.
This came in HH statement in the 1st government forum titled, “Enhancement of Transparency”, which was held yesterday at Seif Palace under the auspices and with the attendance of ministers and government leaders.
“I will not allow any corruption in our bodies, and you shall be accountable for it, and I hope that you are helpful with me in this regard”, said Al-Mubarak, adding, “dear leaders, you are our anonymous soldiers who are working in our bodies, and you are more knowledgeable than us of areas of corruption and how to eliminate it”.
“I shall assist you in combating corruption, however, I shall be against you if I don’t find any positive steps towards corruption fighting”, he further added – Al-Anbaa
The legislative Committee Declines Membership Termination of Al-Tabtabaei & Al- Harbash
The Parliament Legislative Committee refused with majority consensus membership termination of the two MPs, Dr. Waleed Al-Tabtabaei and Dr. Jamaad Al-Harbash.
Chairman of the Committee, MP Al-Humaidi Al-Subaiei said that discussion included two viewpoints, the first is the majority viewpoint, which sees that the parliament has full powers to vote on membership termination as per Article 16 and precedents of the Parliament.
He further clarified that the viewpoint of the minority of the Committee members including MP Ahmad Al-Fadhl and Khaled Al-Shatti sees that the Legislative Committee doesn’t have the right to vote on membership termination, and that membership termination is done directly by a court sentence. They base their viewpoints on the opinions of the consultants at the technical office of the Legislative Committee. This was followed by reactions on the issue.
“What happened in the Legislative Committee is unjustifiable and regrettable”, said MP Ahmad Al-Fadhl.
“The Legislative Committee has violated the Constitution by voting on non-termination”, said MP Khaled Al-Shatti.
On his part, MP Mohamed Al-Dallal said that there are precedents on differences between MPs on membership termination and the issue was settled by voting and enforcing Article 16.
MP Askar Al-Enzy called all MPs to stand as one man against membership termination of the
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two MPs, Al-Tabtabaei and Al-Harbash- Al-Anbaa
Meetings of His Highness the Amir and HH the Crown Prince
His Highness the Amir of the State of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad received at Seif Palace yesterday HH the Crown Prince, Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad.
HH the Amir also received Speaker of the National Assembly, Marzouq Al-Ghanim and HH the Prime Minister, Sheikh Jaber Al-Mubarak.
HH the Amir further received Minister of Finance, Dr. Nayef Al-Hajraf and Chairman of Kuwait Airways, Yousef Al-Jassem as they introduced to HH the CEO of the company, Kamel Al-Awadhi on the occasion of his appointment in his new position.
HH the Amir also received Sultan of Al-Bahraa, Dr. Mofadal Saif Al-Dein and his accompanying delegation on the occasion of visiting Kuwait.
The meetings were attended by Minister of Amiri Diwan Affairs, Shaikh Ali Al-Jarrah.
HH the Crown Prince received Minister of Finance Dr. Nayef Al-Hajraf, Jassem and Al- Awadhi
Chairman of Kuwait Airways, Yousef Al-Jassem extolled trust of the political leadership in Kuwait and its support to progress and develop, and he considers this trust as “a crown on our heads and our chests”.
“We enjoyed the noble instructions related to the conditions of Kuwait Airways, which we pride that it gained your precious trust”, said Al-Jassem – Al-Rai
15 Devices to Deliver Civil IDs to Residents of Al-Ahmadi Governorate: Al-Asousi The Public Authority for Civil Information (PACI) inaugurated its new center for delivering civil IDs in the building of Fahaheel Cooperation Society to serve the people of Al-Ahmadi Governorate, which includes nearly 49 regions with a population of more than 2 million people.
The new center has 15 devices to deliver Civil IDs.
“This step is adopted after the success of Al-Jahra office, which deliver civil IDs for Al-Jahra residents via PACI building there, and this facilitates the procedures on visitors and enables them to avoid traffic congestion and long distances”, said GM of PACI, Mosaed Al-Asousi.
Al-Asousi indicated that “the work of Al-Fahaheel office shall be during the morning period from 8 am till 1 pm to deliver ready civil IDs in the current period and within one month it shall receive transactions and issue immediate civil IDs for citizens.
Al-Asousi clarified that the office includes 15 devices, each one of them has 5000 civil IDs, and each device delivers smart IDs for citizens and article 18 expats. He declared that there is a tendency to inaugurate other branches.- Al-Rai
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A Time Limit of 6 Months without Fees for “Bedoun” to Renew Their Security Card Minister of Health, Sheikh Basel Al-Sabah issued instructions of giving a time limit of 6 months (starting from November 2018 till April 2019) for illegal residents or “Bedoun” whose security ID is terminated to issue it.
Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health addressed all health regions to enforce those instructions and to exempt those whose security IDs are terminated from paying fees till the end of April 2019 – Al-Rai
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Economy Kuwait property trades drop
Property trades in the end of August were valued at KD 136 million ($447 million) from 310 transactions, against KD 548 million ($1.8 billion) from 744 deals in July, according to Kuwait Finance House (KFH).
The KFH said in a realty report, released on Saturday, the real-estate in August witnessed noticeable decline in all of its sectors. Private housing trades were estimated at KD 65 million ($181 million) in August, falling by 55 percent as compared to KD 144 million ($ 473 million), with a monthly proportion reaching 73 percent, in July.
The level in August was the lowest in two years. These trades fell by eight percent in August, in contrast to the same month of 2017.- Arab Times
DGCA Launches the First Flights of Kuwait Airlines to London via T4
DGCA launched yesterday, in the attendance of His Excellency Ambassador of UK, its first operational flights to Heathrow Airport in London via T4, which is dedicated to Kuwait Airways.
“Launching the first flights to London is done as per the plan set by the administration to gradually transition from T1 to T4”, said GM of DGCA, engineer Yousef Al-Fawzan.
“ Operational processes of T4 shall be completed by the end of the current month”, he added, remarking that launching a flight to London came after launching flights to GCC states, Arab countries and European countries from T4.
He further emphasized that an integrated team has studied all requirements and services provided to passengers related to restaurants and cafes, and he remarked that he is about to sign contracts with investors.
As for T2, Al-Fawzan indicated that the project is presented to MPW and it is expected to be fully operational in 2021 – Al-Jareeda
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External Affairs
Al-Duaisan to Al-Rai: ‘We’re Waiting Attestation of British House of Commons on the Treaty of Delivery of Wanted Persons between Kuwait and UK
Dean of the diplomatic corps, Ambassador of Kuwait to UK, Khaled Al-Duaisan said that the treaty of delivering wanted persons between Kuwait and UK is concluded and it is now presented to the British House of Commons for attestation, signature and enforcement.
“ British House of Commons is currently preoccupied with the issue of Brexit, as it shall exit the European Union next March, therefore, attestation on the treaty is delayed”, said Al- Duaisan in a special statement to Al-Rai on the sidelines of his participation at the 54 Conference for the National Union of Kuwaiti Students.
In his speech at the conference, Al-Duaisan said that the increasing numbers of Kuwaiti students studying in UK is a positive indicator and an element of pride as knowledge and education are the basis of development and progress of communities.
Al-Duaisan indicated that the number of Kuwaiti students doubled during the last five years and reached more than 5500 male and female students, and he expressed his pride of Kuwaiti students and their responsible behaviors as they act as ambassadors for their country.
“There are very few issues or complaints that come to the Embassy and this indicates that our students have awareness of the importance of maintaining the reputation of their country outside”, said the Ambassador – Al-Rai
Suspension of Iraqi Oil Export to Iran Shall Have No Effect: Al-Rashidi
Minister of Electricity and Water, Minister of Oil, Bakheet Al-Rashidi said that Iraq’s declaration suspension of oil export to Iran to enforce US economic sanctions on Iran shall not have any effect on the oil market.
Al-Rashidi affirmed that oil production is sufficient to satisfy the needs of the markets, whether by oil exporting countries organization (OPEC) or from outside it.
“We’re able through OPEC and other companies outside OPEC to deal with such conditions by maximizing production in case of increasing need from the oil market in order to maintain stability of international markets”, said Al-Rashidi in a statement upon inaugurating the central control room of fire alarm signals in Sabhan yesterday morning.
Meanwhile, Al-Rashidi expressed his pride to inaugurate the control room that shall serve 28 locations of the ministry as a primary phase in preparation to connect all locations of the ministry, remarking that the “ control system could accommodate 200 locations of the ministry”.
He further stated that this project is one of the important project through which the ministry could maintain its buildings as it shall help in periodical maintenance for all equipment and monitoring of fire alarm signals – Al-Rai
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DGCA: All Kuwait Airways' flights to London depart from T4
Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) announced on Sunday that all Kuwait Airways' flights to Heathrow Airport, London would start departing from T4 building.
DGCA General Director Yousef Al-Fouzan said in statement that the first flight of Kuwait Airways to London has departed in the presence of the British Ambassador to Kuwait Michael Davenport.
All Kuwait Airways flights will commence their departure to all remaining destinations at the end of November.
The General Director expressed his gratitude towards the government for its support in operating the new T4 building.
Al-Fouzan also noted that the first operations of the T4 building was in departing flights to Dubai and other GCC cities, and the next phase would witness all destination of Kuwait Airways.
Kuwait Airways was established in 1953 by a group of businessmen. Initially, the government took 50 percent of the airway's shares and in 1962, the government possessed full shares in the corporation- KUNA
Kuwait’s NSA Chief UK Ambassador Discuss Bilateral Ties
The chief of the National Security Apparatus (NSA) Sheikh Thamer Al-Ali Al-Sabah United Kingdom Ambassador to Kuwait Michael Davenport on Sunday.
According to a press release, both sides discussed bolstering cooperation, bilateral relations and issues of common interest on regional and international levels.- KUNA
French Ambassador Praises Bilateral relations with Kuwait
France's Ambassador to Kuwait Marie Masdupuy hailed on Sunday the deep-rooted relations between France and Kuwait, described them as excellence in all fields.
Ambassador Masdupuy said in a press conference at the French embassy that the French- Kuwaiti relations are very solid and based on respect and mutual trust, noting that there are many joint meetings between the two nations on many fronts and topics.
She added that her country also has ongoing dialogues with the Kuwaiti authorities on many issues as both sides have their views and knowledge of what constitutes a fruitful and constructive cooperation between the sides.
Masdupuy added France has political consultations at the level of foreign ministries over regional, Middle Eastern and European affairs, noting the next consultations will be held in early 2019 in Paris.
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On the military and security fields, she said that there will be a joint military exercises between November 17 and 30 under the framework of military cooperation agreement between the two countries, which was signed in 1992.
"The French Defense Minister will pay a visit to Kuwait next December," Masdupuy said.
On the legislative level, the ambassador said that there are many parliamentary visits between the two countries as well as exchange of experiences since last June, where a delegation of Kuwaiti parliamentarians visited Paris, during which they toured the Senate and the Parliament.
Masdupuy added the French-Kuwaiti friendship delegation will also visit Kuwait in December, and the French Embassy is currently organizing a program for this visit, in addition to preparations for a visit by Kuwait National Assembly speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanim to France early next year.
On bilateral cooperation in the judicial arena, she pointed out that a cooperation agreement was signed to exchange expertise and training of judges in addition to an intensive program with the participation of embassies of the GCC countries. – KUNA
A Kuwaiti official has said increasing number of Kuwaiti visitors to Germany was a testament of the development of relations between the two countries.
Osama Al-Shaheen, Deputy Assistant Foreign Minister for Consular Affairs, said Germany was a favorite destinations for tourism, medical treatment or trade.
Kuwait and Germany are keen on addressing any obstacles facing citizens from both sides, said Al-Shaheen.
He was speaking at a news conference following the inauguration of Germany's visa office in Arraya Tower in downtown Kuwait City managed by VFS Global, a move he described as
"positive".
German Ambassador to Kuwait Karl Bergner said his country issued around 60,000 visas for Kuwaiti nationals last year.
"This number is really high compared with European countries that grant the Schengen visas, which actually shows how solid ties are between Germany and Kuwait." Bergner, who commended VFS for its expertise in handling visa services in the Arabian Gulf and Middle East countries, urged people wishing to spend summer holiday in Germany to apply for the visa before start of season, like in March and April, so they avoid crowded days.
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The Ambassador said it would take three days to issue the Schengen visa.
Marisa Kollenberg, Consul General at the German Embassy, said there might be a delay beyond the three-day period because of additional checks about the applicant or some technical difficulties.
She said the Embassy was keen on rapid issuance of visas for critical cases.
A visa application may be declined, added Kollenberg, because the application was incomplete.
She said it was difficult to grant visas for housemaids because "the German labor law has different requirements when compared to other countries." KUNA
Kuwaiti, Iraqi FMs Share Warm Sentiments Over Phone Call
Kuwait's Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah on Sunday congratulated his newly-appointed Iraqi counterpart Mohammad Ali Al-Hakim, wishing him well in his new position.
The Kuwaiti top diplomat expressed his well wishes in a phone conversation he had with the Iraqi official, where both looked forward to more progress in bilateral relations, a statement by the ministry of foreign affairs said.
The Iraqi foreign minister was thankful for the goodwill gesture, wishing the Gulf neighbor continued prosperity and development- KUNA
Sources
KUNA: http://www.kuna.net.kw/Default.aspx?language=en
Al Rai
: http://www.alraimedia.com/Kuwait Times: http://www.news.kuwaittimes.net/website/
Arab Times: http://www.arabtimesonline.com/news/
MEED: http://www.meed.com/
Al Anbaa: http://www.alanba.com.kw/newspaper
Al-Seyassa: http://al-seyassah.com/
Al-Anbaa: https://www.alanba.com.kw/newspaper/
Al-Jareeda: http://www.aljarida.com/
