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Sheikh Ahmed Abdullah Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah has been appointed to head Crown Prince Mishaal Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah’s diwan.

The controversial but leading Kuwaiti royal Sheikh Ahmed Al-Fahd Al-Sabah was found guilty in a fraud trial in Switzerland on 10 September; he was handed a 30-month jail sentence, half of it suspended. He continues to assert his innocence and has said he will appeal the verdict.

A series of scandals continue to influence the Kuwaiti political scene. Among recent developments, Ministry of Interior (MoI) undersecretary Lieutenant General Essam Al-Naham has been forced into retirement for his role in a visa trading scandal. His temporary replacement is assistant undersecretary of public security Lieutenant General Sheikh Faisal Nawaf Al-Ahmaed Al-Sabah.

There is growing speculation that a cabinet reshuffle is imminent, which would be the third change of senior government personnel since 2019. At least four portfolios are likely to change hands, including a new finance minister to take over from Khalifa Al-Hamadah, who tendered his resignation in August, apparently due to unhappiness at being marginalised in the selection of new board members at Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA). 

Kuwait has been at odds with the United States over some 5,000 refugees fleeing Afghanistan who passed through military bases in the emirate. The operation was approved by Emir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah in “recognition of [Kuwait-US] strategic relations”, an official statement said.

A GSN researcher in Kuwait sounded out local opinion and social media in the week after the Taliban took over in Afghanistan. She reported:

Risk grade - B↓2↓ Overview Politics: Governed by the Al-Sabah family since the 18th century, Kuwait gained independence from Britain in 1961, with a constitution confirming the hereditary monarchy but giving significant powers to an independent judiciary and elected assembly.

Emir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah remains in Germany where he is undergoing medical treatments and tests,  sources told GSN. Sheikh Nawaf, who was sworn in late last year, travelled to Germany on 24 June. He has suffered complications from stomach cancer for many years and continues to receive regular stem cell and other treatments to stay relatively healthy.

The Army Fund scandal continues to drag on in court, with little information of the trial’s proceedings reaching the public due to a ban on media coverage of the case. However, a document was leaked in July, purported to have come from the lawyers of former defence minister Sheikh Khaled Al-Jarrah Al-Sabah’s defence team.

Tunisian leaders have been reaching out to wealthy Gulf countries in search of support, as the country struggles with a surge in Covid-19 cases which has brought the healthcare system to the point of collapse. Prime minister Hichem Mechichi held talks with Qatar’s ambassador to Tunis Saad Bin Nasser Al-Humaidi on 8 July.

Crown princes Mohammed Bin Salman and Mohammed Bin Zayed were once close partners but appear now to be competing as much as co-operating. In contrast, Qatar and Oman have been moving closer to a Saudi leadership keen to develop a better international reputation. This feeds into Muscat’s approach to Yemen, where Sultan Haitham has sought to guard Omani security via direct talks with the Houthis.

The Kuwaiti government continues to crack down on dissenting voices, amid the political crisis in which Emir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah is absent and MPs continue to clash with the executive. The latest episode came when prominent Kuwaiti poet and businessman Jamal Al-Sayer was detained on 5 July over comments he had made on his widely-followed Twitter account.

The United States State Department on 1 July approved a request from Kuwait to buy $445m worth of heavy tactical vehicles, along with support, spare parts and related equipment. The order covers 517 vehicles including 100 fuel tanker trucks and 188 guided missile transporter trucks to perform resupply missions.

Emir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah departed for Germany on 24 June for what was described in official reports as a “private visit”. He was seen off from the airport by his brother Crown Prince Sheikh Mishaal, prime minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Sabah and other senior officials. 

Kuwait’s political, social and economic landscape has been irrevocably changed by the pandemic and the death of the late Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah in September 2020. These events have deepened and widened the struggles within a political and economic system already characterised by paralysis and stagnation. The medium-term outlook looks grim, with a political leadership seemingly unable or unwilling to make the tough policy decisions needed to create a more stable course.