Kuwait to reopen visas for Pakistanis, Sheikh Rashid

Addressing a press conference in Islamabad on Wednesday, Sheikh Rashid said, "I am going to give you a good news from Imran Khan's government that Kuwaiti visas are going to be opened again."

"Visas for Kuwait have been closed since 2011 and now will be reissued," he said.

He said that the day Kuwait unlocked its airports due to COVID-19, visas would also be opened.

According to him, "people had a problem with employment, including visas, which will be solved."

In an interview with a media outlet last month, Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed had said that his ministry was taking special measures to facilitate overseas Pakistanis in the Gulf countries so that their plight could be alleviated.

Mr Rashid said that he has been in charge of the Interior Ministry for a short time but he has initiated several pro-people initiatives.

“We have decided to extend the (expiry) period of Pakistani passport to ten years. Every day a helpless labourer is witnessed to renew his passport because he carries a five-year visa.”

Kuwaiti FM to arrive in Islamabad on Thursday

Kuwait’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Sheikh Dr Ahmed Nasser Al-Mohammed Al-Sabah will arrive here on a two-day visit Thursday.

The Kuwaiti foreign minister, who was visiting Pakistan on the invitation of Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi, would lead a delegation comprising senior officials from the ministries of Foreign Affairs, Health, Interior, and Trade and Industry, the Foreign Office said Wednesday.

The visit of the Kuwaiti foreign minister comes in the backdrop of bilateral meeting held with Foreign Minister Qureshi on the side-lines of 47th Session of OIC Council of Foreign Ministers in Niamey, Niger, in November 2020.

The two foreign ministers agreed to work closely towards further strengthening and expanding bilateral cooperation in diverse fields.

To follow-up on the two foreign ministers’ understanding, Kuwait’s Assistant Foreign Minister for Asian Affairs visited Pakistan in January 2021 and held consultations in the ministries of Foreign Affairs, Interior, Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development and Economic Affairs Division, as well as the Board of Investment.

During the visit, besides having wide-ranging talks with Foreign Minister Qureshi, the Kuwaiti foreign minister will call on other dignitaries.

“Pakistan accords high importance to its fraternal ties with Kuwait, which are firmly rooted in shared faith and values. The bilateral relationship is marked by high-level visits and growing cooperation across myriad fields.

During the global pandemic, the two countries collaborated closely in the health sector and food security,” the FO said.

The visit of the Kuwaiti foreign minister would provide further impetus to the positive momentum in bilateral exchanges and deepening mutual cooperation, the FO said.