Documentary : Kuwait’s 60 years Independence & prosperity

0:00 [Music]

1:09 in a festive atmosphere kuwait commemorates the 60th anniversary of its independence in light of the developmental leaps and achievements the country is witnessing in various fields the anniversary of kuwait's independence which coincides with today is a pivotal turning point that is renewed annually especially as the country has become a major player and plays a vital role in the region and has clear imprints on the global level in various fields on behalf of the british embassy in kuwait i would like to congratulate his highness the amir sheikh nawaz ahmed jabal and of course his highness the crown prince and the ruling family and the entire kuwaiti

1:54 people on these very important national days marking the 60th anniversary of independence and of course the 30th anniversary of liberation from occupation we have a very close relationship between britain and kuwait and we therefore share very much in these very important auspicious days and celebrations kuwait gains its independence on june 19th 1961 during the reign of sheikh abdullah and the anniversary of that date witnessed the first kuwaiti celebration of independence day which was held on june 19 1962.

2:40 kuwaitis continued to hold the kuwaiti independence day on june 19th of each year between the years of 1962 and 1964 until an amiri decree was issued on may 18 1964 in which independence day was merged with the day the late emir abdullah salem assumed the reigns of power corresponding with february 25th of each year starting from 1965. since then kuwait celebrates its independence on this date naming it its national day well a lot of people say that it is if they wanted to have a really good relation you look at the kuwaiti united kingdom relation

3:26 we share a lot of values we work with each other we cooperate with each other we have constant contact with the united kingdom and united kingdom has constant contact with kuwait towards a lot of issues well of course the relation between kuwait and united kingdom goes back to a more than two centuries and when they started their ships you know to kuwait kuwaiti ships you know that to india to africa and 1899

4:12 that it is you know the relation became an officially solid relation between united kingdom and kuwait that the royal family had a good relation between two each others we've had two uh state visits of our late both late sheikh jaber and sheikh sabha and they were very successful visits and the united kingdom and other world you know they admired the way that united kingdoms and kuwait cooperate with each other and

4:59 we established a lot of cooperation between our two countries we've been having this relation for a long time since the 50s you know that the kuwaiti graduated from united king from united kingdom and different universities and and this is a cooperation that helping us a lot you know to patch up you know that the excellent relation between our two countries the 19th day of june 1961 the late emir sheikh abdullah swah announced the end of the british protectorate treaty by signing the country's independence document with the

5:44 british high commissioner in the arabian gulf sir george middleton on behalf of the british government is considered a pivotal day in the life and purpose of the state in achieving comprehensive development at various fields [Music] britain is very proud of having played a part in the u.s led coalition which liberated kuwait in 1991 30 years ago and of course this does reflect the very close relationship between britain and kuwait on all sorts of levels we have continuing very close defense cooperation between our two

6:30 countries but we have developed very extensive cooperation and continue to deepen and broaden our cooperation across a very wide range of subjects in the security sphere especially now in working together to tackle the threat of cyber attack strengthening cyber security education is a very important area i'm pleased to say that at the moment more kuwaitis are studying at uk universities than ever before more than six thousand and that despite the challenges of course of

7:16 the pandemic and kovid 19. we're working together with our kuwaiti friends and partners also in the areas of scientific cooperation science and research and innovation in areas such as the development of technology for renewable energy last year we had a very extensive visit by representatives of the kuwait institute for scientific research and the kuwait foundation for the advancement of science to visit a whole range of british universities with a leading role cutting edge in research in areas that are of great interest also to kuwait especially in the area of

8:03 protecting the environment the speech delivered by sheikh abdullah salem to the kuwaiti people after signing the document of independence had a great impact on the souls of kuwaitis towards building a brighter future and fulfilling high ambitions he said my dear people my brothers and children on this most dear day of our beloved country on this day in which we move from one stage to another in these stages of history and with the dawn of the morning we turn a page from the past with all that it bears and what it entailed to open a new page that is represented in this agreement by which kuwait gained its complete independence and full sovereignty the independence document represented a decisive turning point in the contemporary history of kuwait

8:49 as the protection agreement signed by shaykh barakal swah the seventh ruler of kuwait with britain in 1899 was cancelled to protect the country from foreign ambitions [Music] well as you know the united kingdom has always stood by kuwait over many many years we two years ago we marked the 120th anniversary of the 1899 treaty of friendship between britain and kuwait britain throughout this period has always stood by kuwait including by helping kuwait to deter aggression from outside and standing by

9:36 to defend kuwait's sovereignty and territorial integrity so when kuwait was occupied in 1990 the united kingdom felt this very keenly and our leadership at the time our prime minister at the time was instrumental in securing the mandate in the united nations at the end of november 1990 during the uk presidency of the security council which effectively paved the way for the coalition to which was already being assembled for the coalition forces then to launch the air campaign and the ground campaign

10:21 which led to liberation and corrected this wrong for future generations and liberated kuwait the signing of the independence document was preceded by deliberate steps by sheikh abdullah since he assumed the reigns of power in 1950 as he worked to achieve independence and declare the constitution especially since the country at that time was ready for development and renaissance in various fields the year of independence witnessed the issuance of an amiri decree regarding the kuwaiti flag its shape and its colors it was the first flag raised after independence the independence of kuwait caused a

11:07 great resonance in all circles especially at the arab level and many statements and cables supported and blessed this great event for kuwait and its people arab reactions followed supporting and blessing this important step in the history of kuwait and its return to its normal position in the arab ranks a free independent and national sovereign on the diplomatic level the first step was to establish the ministry of foreign affairs by issuing an amiri decree on august 19 1961 to establish a department of foreign affairs exclusively concerned with carrying out the state's foreign affairs the decree stipulated in its second article to merge the kuwaiti government secretariat with the ministry of foreign affairs which was transformed in the first ministerial formation

11:52 to the ministry of foreign affairs in 1962 was appointed minister of foreign affairs in the first ministerial formation and was followed by the late emir and the second ministerial formation in 1963 [Music] decided to establish a democratic system in which the people would participate in government his desire was to drop a permanent

12:37 constitution for kuwait written by the people [Music] on august 26 ameri decree number 22 of 1961 was issued regarding conducting elections for the constituent assembly in fulfillment of shir abdullah salem's desire to establish a system of government based on clear and solid foundations and to issue a constitution based on democratic principles elections were held on december 30th of the same year to select representatives from the kuwaiti people as the members of the constitutional assembly in charge of drafting the constitution of kuwait with these elections kuwait was divided into 10 electoral districts and each district elected two members

13:23 bringing the total number of seats to the council to 20 in addition to ministers the elections resulted in the victory of 19 new members in addition to one member of the second legislative council in 1938 abdullah mohammed nayan khalid abdul aziz sagar and muhammad yusuf and were elected for the council and for taking charge at the ministry sheikh abdullah inaugurated the first session of the council on january 20 1962 and abdullah from mohammed nayan was nominated as chairman of the council with dr ahmed mohammed al-khatib as vice chairman a constitutional drafting committee was formed consisting of five members and delayed sheikh saad abdullah salma

14:09 swah who was chosen as the committee's chairman sheikh abdullah ordered the members of the ruling family who are members of the constituent assembly as a result of their presence as ministers to refrain from voting on any article of the constitution and leave that to the elected members of the council drafted within 9 months the constitution was drawn up in five chapters and consists of 183 articles on november 11 1962 the members of the constituent committee presented to his highness the emir of kuwait at siv palace the draft constitution approved by the council the late emir abdullah salem delivered a speech on this occasion in which he said we praise god almighty who has allowed

14:55 us in this historic stage of the life of our dear people to achieve our wish to establish a constitution for the country based on sound democratic foundations that conforms to our traditions and responds to the hopes of our nation the constitution of kuwait delineated an integrated organization towards a future in which the country enjoyed more prosperity and international status providing citizens with more political freedom equality and social justice ratified the constitution three days after the date it was submitted to him by the constituent assembly and the kuwaiti constitution was issued on november 11 1962 upon ratifying the constitution

15:42 the emir wrote the following introduction [Music] in the name of allah the merciful we abdullah salam of the state of kuwait the desire to complete the causes of democratic rule for our dear homeland and faith in the role of this country in the ranks of arab nationalism and the service of world peace and human civilization and in pursuit of a better future in which the country enjoys more prosperity and international status and gives citizens more political freedom equality and social justice as well as lays the foundation for what they are put on the arab soul is one of pride and the dignity of the

16:28 individual keenness on the good of the group and a consultation in government while preserving the unity and stability of the homeland and after reviewing law number one of 1962 concerning the basic law of governance in the transition period and based on what the constituent assembly decided we ratified this constitution and issued it and with the approval by the constitutional committee it was published in the official gazette the next day the constitution was a huge step psychologically we had been under pretty british

17:14 protectorate for many years and this was a real taking over of the reigns uh it showed that we were taking independence seriously uh that is um that that this was really our time as a kuwaitis to take control of our own leadership that we were strong politically and ready it was a powerful symbol to bring to bring us all together as one to show we had to come together united the constitution gives all kuwaitis equal rights the rules of the constitutions of the constitution are fair and progressive and written in a very

17:59 clear and simple language they were obviously written for the people for the citizens of kuwait not only for judges not only for lawyers it was an important step to show that we were all in together all valuable all all what we need is to be united to make it work a few months after the constitution was approved the first comprehensive elections were held in kuwait to elect members of the first parliament it officially signaled the start of political practice under the provisions of the new constitution and was the entry through which the limits of the country's main legislative executive and judicial powers were implemented as well

18:46 [Music] the provisions of the constitution came in their entirety to consolidate the foundations and constant that kuwait has followed since its inception and flowed through its people's veins in terms of relying on their lives and their actions on the foundations of shura democracy and popular participation that the constitution decided and codified for kuwait and its development and modern parliamentary democracy the 1962 constitution is the natural result of a number of historical demands and consultations and it is the effort of the people that preceded us which is the agreement of the ruler and the ruled which was embodied in the most sophisticated form of the social

19:32 contract and was clearly translated into a moderate constitution that preserved the entity of the state the kuwaiti constitution stipulates that the number of ministers in kuwait may not exceed one-third of the number of members of the national assembly this means that the number of kuwaiti ministers should not exceed 16 ministers only and members of the national assembly can join the council of ministers as well the kuwaiti national assembly consists of 50 members elected by citizens in the state of kuwait and the council of ministers can choose members of the national assembly to position of minister as well and these members are known as legislators the constituent assembly continued in currency until january 20 1963 before it

20:18 dissolved itself to hold the first parliamentary elections to choose the members of the first parliament also during sheikh abdullah salem's rule the first elections of the national assembly were held in january 1963 and continued up until the 2020 council the reign of sheikh abdullah salem which spanned 15 years was one of the most prominent in the history of kuwait and he was called the father of independence and the father of the constitution due to his strenuous efforts sacrifices and wisdom to achieve this independence kuwait began in that era to develop laws and regulations such as the nationality law the kuwaiti currency law the passport law and the organization of government departments all of which are steps on the road to

21:03 complete independence and about 43 civil and criminal laws and legislations have been completed an amiri decree was also issued to organize the judiciary and make it comprehensive for all jurisdictions and disputes that take place in the country the next step after kuwait's independence came with a membership request to the arab league accepted on july 16 1961. following that the u.n security council began considering kuwait's application to join the united nations after its independence ultimately granting membership on may 14 1963. kuwait proceeded steadily towards the

21:50 new world order and international legitimacy by rejecting aggression protecting human rights preserving the privacy of states and not interfering in the affairs of others it also believed in the role of the united nations and maintaining international peace and security kuwait hosted a number of international conferences to support refugees and the afflicted and participated in several conferences to support the palestinian cause and diffuse crises in the region which is clear evidence of the continuation of the old approach upon which the state was founded kuwait was a member of many international institutions including the maritime consultative organization and the international union of wire and wireless transportation it then became a member of the universal postal union

22:35 the world health organization and the food and agriculture organization kuwait also joined the united nations educational scientific research and cultural organization or unesco as well as the organization of petroleum exporting countries known as opec at that time kuwait was not far from interacting and participating in many arab social and cultural activities the country was equipped with many well-organized departments and prepared at the structural level for further expansion and development such as departments of public works public health publications and publishing state financial assets in addition to knowledge municipality post telegraph telephone electricity water gas social affairs public endowments radio and television

23:24 the years following independence witnessed many achievements kuwait was and will remain the jewel of the gulf through the development plan that new kuwait 2035 seeks to achieve by attracting foreign investments and achieving a comprehensive renaissance in all the projects included in the plan we have excellent steering committee and zaid was a member of that you know that the steering committee talking about everything's a relation between kuwait and united kingdom and they have two meetings one in united kingdom's and the others in kuwait so we have our cooperation

24:12 deeply you know that deeply uh intensify in in our history in our on 2035 part of it they are proposing a lot of issues and we are accepting them and we wanted to cooperate with them a lot of uh media as you know politically economically military and students also culturally you can't believe that we

24:57 have hundred students uh kuwaiti students uh here in the united kingdom two years ago when british embassy you know that it gave the visa and issue ev visa it's more than 300 000 visits for kuwaitis to come to united kingdom so that it shows how the relation between the two countries and we are cooperating with them in 2035. since the dawn of independence until today kuwait has accomplished much on the road to comprehensive renaissance whether in terms of foreign or domestic

25:44 policy perhaps these accomplishments come in realization of its vision new kuwait 2035 aimed at transforming the country into a regional and international financial and commercial center accelerating the economy and strengthening the role of the private sector in supporting economic development among the most recent of these achievements is the opening of the al-salam palace museum on april 29th 2019 which is considered one of the most important historical and architectural monuments in kuwait dating back to the beginning of the 60s of the last century [Music] another grand accomplishment was the opening of the shaykh al-ahmadu subha bridge which is the fourth longest seabridge in the world and the opening of the late selwa

26:30 swahilich stem cell center in 2018 which is the first in the gulf region kuwait has taken important steps in economic social and human development while focusing its attention largely on the environment and maintaining a firm commitment to global partnership and international solidarity in terms of economic achievement kuwait entered the list of the 10 most improved countries and the ease of doing business index for 2020 according to the 17th annual report of the world bank group on business environment 2020. the importance of this improvement is not limited to just the business environment but also to achieving higher efficiency in the performance of services provided to citizens in general in a way that contributes to enhancing the performance of the economic cycle

27:15 and increasing investment flows leading to achieving sustainable growth economic diversification and the development goals of the state of kuwait in order to achieve kuwait's 2035 vision kuwait is taking confident strides towards a bright future with the promising new kuwait 2035 aimed at bolstering the country's financial status to include a variety of income resources other than oil revenues the plan considered as a gateway to the future also helped kuwait recently jump in the world bank group's ease of doing business index kuwait was amongst the 10 best improvers reaching the 66 position on the list which included 190 countries it also improved its position in the middle east region by developing its competitive standards a matter

28:01 acknowledged by the world economic forum's global index which saw the gcc country jumping eight positions to rank 46 out of 141 countries according to ernst and young borsa kuwait will attract around 10 billion us dollars in investments as a result of various promotions by international entities such as morgan stanley britain's fritzi russell snp's dow jones and so on kuwait is well aware of the importance of diversifying income away from oil which represents 90 percent of the country's national production oil has been the elixir of life for many economies in the arabian gulf and kuwait is no exception that is where kuwait vision 2035 laid the road map for transforming kuwait into a regional financial and commercial hub the

28:46 geographical location of the country aided in its economic growth and development of a national character as it connects two important natural resources the desert and the sea since then kuwait launched various projects within division 2035 in coordination with the public and private sectors with the opening of the jabra causeway project which links kuwait city with sebia and the northern part of the country the development plan saw a boost paving the way for the future silk city project kuwait seeks to put the private sector on the forefront of its efforts to reshape the economy especially with the imf indicating that the sector is able to assimilate one hundred thousand kuwaiti citizens in its workforce within the upcoming five years

29:33 kuwait relies on the oil sector for about 90 percent of its revenues and has sought to diversify its economy as part of its 2035 vision due to diversifying its economy borsa kuwait completed the kuwaiti capital market's inclusion into the msci emerging markets indices with the successful implementation of the first tranche of index inclusion a total of seven listed companies the national bank of kuwait kuwait finance house zain agility bobian bank mabani and gulf bank were included the inclusion brought in huge inflows to the market as the total traded value during the inclusion was over 961.6 million kuwaiti dnrs this stands as proof of the kuwaiti capital market apparatus success in absorbing these unprecedented foreign

30:19 inflows kuwait's inclusion in the msci emerging market index represents an important milestone in advancing the kuwaiti capital market and putting kuwait on the worldwide investment map as well as a recognition of warsaw kuwait's instrumental role in improving market access and efficiency enhancing transparency and governance increasing liquidity and strengthening investor confidence even throughout the covet 19 pandemic porsche kuwait continued to engage with its partners in the local and international investment community to ensure a successful inclusion which wouldn't have been made possible without the unlimited support of the kuwaiti capital market apparatus and the rest of the government institutions vorso kuwait introduced a series of measures for the day of inclusion including an extension of the closing

31:06 auction and the trade at last session in cooperation with the capital market apparatus borsa kuwait conducted a series of stress tests to enable the kuwait trading system to absorb the number of orders and trades conducted during the inclusion the landmark development comes as global recognition of the sweeping market development efforts undertaken by borsa kuwait the capital markets authority and the kuwait clearing company the reclassification announcement occurred as a result of the successful completion of the implementation of msci's recommendations including the introduction of omnibus account structures and same national investor number cross trades by the end of october 2019 a month ahead of the stated deadline

31:53 [Music] this year's national and liberation day celebration slogan represents kuwait's effort to achieve and protect peace around the world initiated by his highness the late emir and carried on by his highness the emir sheikh nawaz swahili our best examples are given i believe by our late emir who was well known and respected for his endeavors for peace he was known as the dean of arab diplomacy the sheikh convened the first conference of solidarity to raise funds for the refugees of the syrian civil war

32:39 initiating a large donation that other countries felt they had to match he was instrumental in establishing the gcc and worked hard to foster a resolution to the qatar conflict and the gcc conflict you know despite the former war in iraq he supported and he supported very deeply the rebuilt of iraq following isis attacks um showing that peace forgiveness and discussion are the way forward and this is the way that kuwait always been operating kuwait hosted negotiations

33:25 between wiring palestinians and israeli to try to broker peace kuwait parliament is one of the oldest in the region and is one of the parliaments that that has the greatest power in the region simply because kuwait believes in the value of honest value of communication diplomacy and democracy this i believe earns kuwait the respect in international arena on september 9 2014 then secretary general of the united nations ban ki-moon held a special function at the un headquarters in new york to express the un's and the international community's appreciation for kuwait's generosity and kindness this move came as kuwait has shown exemplary leadership in supporting

34:12 global humanitarian and relief operations the conferences and gatherings hosted by kuwait over the past years have contributed into etching kuwait's name in history as a humanitarian center kuwait hosted three donors conferences for the syrian people in 2013 and 2014 where 3.6 billion us dollars was pledged of which kuwait contributed an amount of 800 million kuwait does not hesitate to provide support and humanitarian assistance to people in need and to help mobilize international response to humanitarian crises around the world the country has intensified its humanitarian action to cope with the surge in regional conflicts and numbers of displaced people worldwide

34:57 [Music] its contributions to the united nations high commissioner for refugees since 2013 amounted to approximately 400 million u.s dollars which helped provide emergency humanitarian aid and protection services to millions of conflict-affected men women and children in syria yemen and iraq the u.n designation of kuwait as a humanitarian hub in 2014 was a well-deserved move due to kuwait's unprecedented initiatives and generous donations to people in distress assuming the leading role in regional and international philanthropy kuwait also co-chaired the fourth international donor conference held in london in february 2016 as well as the fifth international dorner conference held in brussels in april 2017 which raised aid pledges amounting to

35:43 335 million us dollars the world witnessed the commitment of kuwait through its active engagement with u.n agencies and its huge donations to relevant humanitarian and charitable initiatives and also that we share the same values we want the area to live in peace no conflict and helping the others as you know kuwait with the creative and and united kingdom with seven point percent of their gp they are helping uh the world helping the less fortunate uh people in the world and this is you know that the values they share with each other and we

36:30 are proud of it kuwait has become a pioneer country in international humanitarian philanthropy and humanitarian initiatives hosting many related activities in line with this humanitarian vision the state of kuwait has worked to alleviate the suffering of people in major crises by providing assistance to more than one country as well as raising the volume of donations in countries affected by natural disasters the united nations honoring of the state of kuwait has received an unprecedented international regional and local praise by senior leaders and officials of international organizations and personalities who pay tribute to kuwait's outstanding efforts in international humanitarian action [Music]

37:19 more broadly and despite the disruption caused to global commerce and travel kovit 19 has provided kuwait with an opportunity to further strengthen international ties in mid-march 2020 kuwait provided financial assistance to regional neighbors iraq and palestine in their responses to the virus parallel to this kuwait donated 40 million us dollars to the world health organization to support its efforts to combat the pandemic furthermore the kuwait fund has contributed 4 million us dollars to unicef's covet 19 response in syria supporting the most vulnerable children and families [Music] on the international front kuwait has sought since its independence to pursue a moderate and balanced foreign policy

38:04 taking openness and communication as principle since its independence kuwait has been keen to provide humanitarian aid and lift oppression from those in need resulting in humanitarian work becoming an important characteristic of the country's image as such kuwaiti diplomacy spent two years in the halls of the united nations security council actively tackling various issues and putting its weight behind arab islamic and humanitarian causes it used its membership in the security council to shed light on various important issues such as the syrian crisis the palestinian cause and yemen as the only arab member of the security council at that time kuwait worked to represent the voice of the arabs throughout this membership within the context of the outcomes and resolutions of the gcc

38:49 arab league and the organization of islamic cooperation through its non-permanent membership in the security council kuwait succeeded in enforcing its distinguished diplomatic mark and presents solutions to many complex issues facing the world and coordinate with member countries to suggest and adopt many important projects resolutions and statements on january 1 2018 kuwait began its membership at the security council as a non-permanent member succeeding egypt to represent arab countries although it was faced by many challenges kuwait tackled some of the most important global tasks most significantly maintaining peace and security and improving work methods at the security council during its tenure on the security council kuwait presented a number of draft resolutions concerning significant

39:36 global issues and released statements on many vital issues concerning arab and islamic countries on february 2018 kuwait assumed presidency of the security council and during that month many important sessions were held with discussions on three major issues palestine iraq and the purposes of the united nations charter in maintaining international peace and security on may 31 2019 kuwait chaired the security council for the month of june for the third time in its history the first was in february 1979 during its first non-permanent c term at the security council and the second was on february 2018. chairing the u.n security council is considered a historical moment for kuwaiti diplomacy whose foreign policy is based on balance and moderation

40:22 respecting principles of the u.n charter and international laws and seeking to actively contribute to maintain international peace and security on june 11 the u.n security council unanimously adopted a kuwaiti draft resolution on missing persons and armed conflicts the resolution aims to support and promote frameworks to protect civilians in armed conflicts and is the first to deal with the matter of missing persons at times of conflict forming an aspect of the precautions aimed at protecting civilians due to the state of kuwait's passion this was the first time at least they acknowledged the importance of the issue and urged working to resolve it from the start of the conflict there were measures proposed in the resolution that urged the international community and un member states to take

41:08 action to uncover the fate of missing persons and cooperate with relevant bodies such as the international committee of the red cross these actions included responding to queries from families of those missing and taking certain measures aimed at determining their fate the draft was adopted unanimously by the 15-member security council after receiving much praise and adulation reflecting the status of kuwaiti diplomacy on the humanitarian level on june 13 2019 kuwait released a presidential statement at the u.n security council on the cooperation between the council and the arab league during a session which included representatives of both bodies to discuss cooperation between the united nations regional and sub-regional organizations

41:53 in maintaining international peace and security the statement affirmed that the u.n security council is responsible for maintaining international peace and security and that resolutions and presidential statements which assert the need for establishing an effective partnership between the un and regional organizations according to the un charter and relevant regulations applied in regional and sub-regional organizations as part of its more recent endeavors and as reaffirmation of kuwait's stance in achieving a peaceful world kuwait on behalf of the arab countries called for a permanent arab representation with full powers in the security council in the event of any future expansion of it such a call by the arab group came based on objective criteria represented by the air population density and the number of arab countries

42:40 in the united nations in addition to the fact that a large part of the council's work and issues on its agenda relate to the arab region which requires fair and proportionate arab representation in the expanded council kuwait iterated that the arab group adheres to the realization of real and comprehensive reform of the security council especially as it is the main body entrusted with maintaining international peace and security under the united nations charter so that it becomes more capable and effective to face and overcome the relevant challenges within a more representative transparent neutral and credible framework kuwait has called for working towards reaching a solution to achieve interests of everyone including the arab group instead of focusing efforts on

43:25 disagreements over the drafting of documents [Music] we share values and it shows to us and shows the united kingdom that when kuwait became part of the security council in united and new york uh and and well the cooperation between kuwait and united kingdom is unique by itself we cooperate in every field in every level and i would like to conclude with this united kingdom

44:11 appoints a special envoy to the gulf and the gulf i'm not talking just about kuwait but the rest of the gcc to help the to build the relation between united kingdom and the gulf and we are proud as kuwaiti to play a part of it kuwait's mediation efforts to iron out gulf differences enabled the signing of the alula declaration during the 41st gulf summit in saudi arabia's capital rial i think last month's success reaching peace amongst the gcc is a great example and a wonderful positive start of the year we all need this kind of positive news

44:58 at the moment and also the uk foreign secretary mr dominic rapp paid a statement to kuwait mediation efforts and urge the parties to continue building this positive dialogue also the eu mentions mentioned the importance of kuwait mediation role personally on a personal level i'm very proud of kuwait's reputation for diplomat for diplomacy and negotiation and i'm confident we will continue to foster this belief in working together as a global whole current emergencies such as climate change covert 19 only show the importance of nation

45:44 coming together to support one another to find global solutions the signing of the alula declaration and the summit's final communique signaled the start of a new chapter in pan gulf relations and a full restoration of diplomatic ties between qatar saudi arabia the united arab emirates bahrain and egypt to serve the country's interests and support the region's stability the summit was important as it prioritized supreme interests of the gcc system and arab national security as it delivered a message to the world that whatever the differences are the wisdom of gcc leaders was able to overcome all these differences and steer the region its states and peoples to safety

46:30 since the dawn of independence and over the past 60 years kuwait has accomplished much on the road to a comprehensive renaissance with the cooperation of its people leading to the wise leadership of his highness the amir and his highness the crown prince the renaissance and advancement of kuwait is linked to its ability and its people to preserve its identity and to rally towards its leadership and each of us must work in a way that protects and consecrates the security pride and sovereignty and independence of this country may allah protect kuwait its emir and its people and perpetuate the blessings of security stability and prosperity [Music]

48:08 you