CHINA Kuwait relaunches the ‘made in China’ port in the race for the development of the Persian Gulf

After 10 years of stagnation, work on the megaproject resumes. A delegation from Beijing visited the country in recent days. A structure that competes with the route planned by the Emirates and Türkiye. The unresolved knot of maritime disputes with Iraq. At the weekend, the Emir signed the appointment of Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah as crown prince.

Kuwait City () – Kuwait, in cooperation with China, intends to relaunch – and complete – the project of a megaport destined to become an important commercial center for the entire northern area of ​​the Persian Gulf. A delegation of experts and senior officials from Beijing visited the emirate in recent days, meeting with local government representatives and construction managers to hold “in-depth technical and on-the-ground talks” about the construction of the Mubarak Al-Kabeer port. According to the state agency, other association and development projects between both countries are also being studied.

The resumption of the project some 10 years after it was frozen – when it was only partially completed – is also related to the ambitious plan of neighboring Iraq, which is studying an important road and rail trade route of 17 billion dollars. An “alternative to Suez” plan, which excludes Kuwait and aims to develop trade in the region, carried out in collaboration with Qatar, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Turkey, which did not hesitate to attack to the Kurds to do it. Hence the decision to resume development because, otherwise, there is a risk of “being left behind,” as pointed out by Kristin Smith Diwan, an expert at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington.

Kuwait is a key US ally in the Middle East and one of the richest countries in the world thanks to its abundant oil reserves. However, its development goals have long been compromised by political dysfunction, highlighted recently by the ruling emir’s suspension of parliament. The revival of the port plan could be a sign that the emir, Sheikh Mishaal Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah, intends to take advantage of the suspension to carry out projects blocked by disputes between legislators and ministers.

In this regard, the Emir of Kuwait, Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, signed over the weekend the appointment of Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah as crown prince. Born in 1953, he graduated in Political Science from Kuwait University in 1977. He joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1978 as a diplomatic attaché and has a long career in the country’s missions and internal institutions.

Meanwhile, on May 28, the Prime Minister confirmed the leadership’s intention to complete a “huge” number of development projects. However, many obstacles and difficulties remain: the Persian Gulf already has several important ports, including Dubai and Abu Dhabi. In addition, the economies of Syria and Iran – initially the main beneficiaries the facility would serve – have been hit by war and Western sanctions, limiting the benefits of any trade corridor.

Finally, Mubarak Al-Kabeer represents direct competition for the neighboring Iraqi port of Faw, hence Baghdad’s decision to cancel a maritime agreement that gave access to Kuwait through the Khor Abdullah waterway, which triggered a dispute between both countries. “Kuwait is focusing its strategic planning on the northern port and city project, which will encourage trade-led development and cement its leadership in the northern part of the Gulf, at least that is the expectation according to Diwan. But the objective will remain “impossible” to achieve, he concludes, if the maritime dispute with Iraq remains unresolved.