Belgium backs Gulf efforts

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Envoy backs Amir’s mediation

BRUSSELS, Jan 30, (KUNA): Belgium Ambassador to Kuwait Piet Heirbaut praised on Wednesday the Kuwaiti mediation efforts directed by His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al- Jaber Al-Sabah to resolve the Gulf conflict. In an interview with Kuwait News Agency, Ambassador Heirbaut said Belgium and the European Union are supporting Kuwait’s role of mediation in the region. “We believe Kuwait is the best mediator due to its good relations with its neighbors”, Ambassador Heirbaut, who participated last night in a luncheon held for Belgium ambassadors working in Arab countries and Arab ambassadors in Belgium, organized by the Belguim-Luxumburg Arab House of Commerce in Brussels, said. He described His Highness the Amir as “One of the architects of the Gulf Cooperation Council who knows the value of this organization, expressing appreciation for the efforts of His Highness to resolve the Gulf dispute.

“Kuwait is one of our best partners and friends in the region. Belgium and Kuwait are so close in having the same commitment to multilateral diplomacy,” he said. “Kuwait and Belgium are members of the UN Security Council, we work together on different issues, we want to work through compromise and peaceful solutions to the important humanitarian file on Syria”, he noted. The bilateral relations between the two countries are growing and expanding day after day, he said, pointing out that the two sides are constantly exchanging views and positions on regional and international issues.

“The past 18 months witnessed significant developments in the relations between the two countries, as there have been high-level visits from both sides,” he said, referring to the visit of the President of the Belgian Senate Christine Defraigne to Kuwait, while many Kuwaiti dignitaries visited Belgium, including officials from the Direct Investment Promotion Authority.

The Ambassador said the “Economic relations are growing stronger. Kuwait has shown interest in the oil and gas sectors in Belgium, while Belgian companies have shown increasing interest in Kuwait’s manufacturing and food industries”.

On other hands, Director of the Middle East and North Africa division at the Belgian Foreign Ministry, Raul Delcord said “We have strong and stable relationship with all the GCC countries, and we appreciate these relations”.
For his part, Secretary General of the Arab-Belgian Chamber of Commerce – Luxembourg, Caesar Hijazin said that this event coincides with the tenth anniversary of the launch of the first edition of the Arab-Belgian diplomatic working Loncheon. He stressed that the Chamber works in close cooperation with the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to promote economic and trade relations with the Arab world.

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