Set to discuss bilateral ties and exchange views on regional and international issues
Additional Secretary for the Middle East Zahid Hussain receives Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah upon his arrival in Islamabad on Tuesday. Photo: FO
Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah arrived in Pakistan on Tuesday on a two-day official visit to hold bilateral talks.
According to a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Jarrah arrived in Islamabad at the invitation of Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar.
On his arrival at Islamabad International Airport, the Kuwaiti Foreign Minister was received by Zahid Hussain, Additional Secretary for the Middle East in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“During the visit, the two sides will hold talks covering the full spectrum of bilateral relations and exchange views on regional and international issues of common interest,” the statement said.
HE Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the State of Kuwait, arrived in Islamabad today on an official visit at the invitation of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar @MIshaqDar50.
On arrival in Islamabad… pic.twitter.com/7sOY6qtx22
— Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Pakistan (@ForeignOfficePk) July 28, 2026
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the visit reflected the long-standing brotherly relations between Pakistan and Kuwait, rooted in shared history, mutual trust and close cooperation.
The visit comes as Pakistan negotiates an expanded defense pact with Kuwait in return for energy cooperation and investment.
However, the talks remain at an early stage and could still be complicated by heightened tensions between the US and Iran, according to five sources familiar with the discussions.
Kuwait has had a limited defense agreement with Pakistan covering training and joint exercises since 2023. It is now seeking a broader arrangement similar to Pakistan’s defense pact with Saudi Arabia, including “thousands of Pakistani troops on the ground, fighter jets, drones, an air defense system and other defense-related facilities,” a Pakistani official said.
It remains unclear whether Pakistan is willing to go that far, given that its deal with Saudi Arabia was the result of a decades-old close alliance with Riyadh.
The visit comes at a particularly critical time, as Iran’s renewed attacks on Kuwait and other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states have heightened regional tensions.
Earlier, Kuwait came under sustained attacks, with the armed forces saying they had intercepted Iranian ballistic missiles and drones and that several firefighters and oil sector workers had been injured while responding to the attacks.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it had struck a US military support center in Kuwait’s Camp Arifjan and destroyed a radar installation at Ali Al Salem Air Base. Kuwait Petroleum Corporation later said one of its oil facilities had been hit in “repeated Iranian attacks,” causing significant damage and some injuries, according to the state news agency.
