KUWAIT – Kuwaiti Crown Prince Sheikh Mishaal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah has made himself conspicuous with a statement in which he described Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as a “brave man in stances, words and deeds”. His position was considered by Kuwaiti analysts as an indication of major overtures from Kuwait to Turkey and a willingness to welcome Erdogan’s unbridled influence in the country.
“We are talking about the strength of relations between Kuwait and Turkey and we refer to all aspects of political, economic, commercial and security cooperation,” Sheikh Mishaal Al-Ahmad said when receiving Turkish Parliament Speaker Mustafa Şentop.
Kuwaiti analysts considered the crown prince’s statements regarding Erdogan’s character and the evolution of relations with Ankara as a reflection of Turkish influence in Kuwait, especially in the economic field, where Turkish companies control most of the major projects in the country.
However, Kuwaiti political analyst Abdullah Khaled al-Ghanim saw more than this in the developments. He said Sheikh Mishaal’s statements can only be understood in the context of the needed balances imposed by international shifts, rather than as an expression of personal admiration for anyone or a desire to open the wide door to Turkish influence in the country.
Ghanim told The Arab Weekly, “With the acceleration of the US withdrawal from the Middle East and the expectation that US President Joe Biden would soon conclude a new nuclear agreement that increases Iran’s influence in the region and with the Turks and Israelis entering the Gulf security equation, it has become necessary for the Gulf states to recalibrate their international approach in order to compensate for any strategic imbalances on the regional stage”.
He pointed out that the meeting of the Kuwaiti crown prince with the speaker of the Turkish parliament came within these regional and international contexts.
The speaker of the Turkish parliament was welcomed at the highest levels in Kuwait. After meeting the crown prince, he was received by Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah and he also met National Assembly Speaker Marzouq Al-Ghanim.
What the crown prince said surprised experts of Kuwaiti political affairs, considering that Sheikh Mishaal Al-Ahmad was perceived as being opposed to the Muslim Brotherhood’s influence. His praise for Erdogan is likely to give the Kuwaiti Brotherhood sympathisers who are deeply encroached in the state, an exceptional boost.
Kuwait, along with Qatar, was enthusiastic about Turkey’s return to the Gulf region after the Al-Ula summit and its attempts to bring about GCC reconciliation.
There was also public sympathy for Ankara during its tense relationship with Riyadh due to the repercussions of the Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi’s murder.
Also, when the Saudis were putting in place a nationwide popular boycott of Turkish products, there was a broad solidarity movement led by the Kuwaiti Brotherhood to support Erdogan.
The authorities did not move to curtail this movement, despite the fact that Kuwait was then mediating between Doha and Riyadh and needed to win Saudi Arabia’s backing to ensure the success of its effort.
During the period when Gulf relations with Turkey deteriorated, after Ankara sided with Qatar against the boycotting quartet, the activities of Kuwaitis in Turkey increased. Turkey became a magnet for Kuwaitis wishing to buy real estate, at a time when the real estate sector in Turkey was experiencing a major crisis due to a lack of foreign currency liquidity thanks to the collapse of the lira, which led to the suspension of many projects that were already under construction.
Source: Arab Weekly
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