The UK hosted the 22nd UK–Kuwait Joint Steering Group in London on 23 October 2025, co‑chaired by Hamish Falconer MP, Under‑Secretary of State for the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and H.E. Sheikh Jarrah Jaber Al‑Ahmad Al‑Sabah, Kuwait’s Deputy Foreign Minister. The FCDO said the session reaffirmed ties and agreed actions to deepen cooperation on trade, investment, defence and regional security.
According to the government readout, ministers used the forum to review respective industrial strategies, joint military training and development partnerships in third countries. They also discussed regional priorities, including the situation in Palestine, reflecting the Group’s role in coordinating responses to fast‑moving regional issues.
Two memoranda of understanding were signed at the meeting. One covers healthcare cooperation, with collaboration in health systems and training. The second focuses on hydrographic surveying and is framed as enhancing maritime security for both sides.
The Joint Steering Group is a long‑running ministerial mechanism. The inaugural session in London on 28 November 2012 launched the process to strengthen ties across trade, investment, and defence and security, according to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
There is recent precedent for the forum delivering operational outcomes. On 4 September 2024, the FCDO announced £4.5 million in joint UK–Kuwait funding with UNICEF to support civilians in Gaza and Yemen, an agreement secured in the margins of the 21st Joint Steering Group in London.
Policy Wire analysis: The health MoU’s emphasis on systems and training indicates a focus on staff development and structured knowledge exchange rather than immediate regulatory change. UK guidance and parliamentary briefing note that memoranda of understanding record international commitments but are not legally binding, so any procurement, accreditation or service changes would need separate instruments.
Policy Wire analysis: Hydrographic surveying cooperation supports safer navigation and port operations through updated bathymetric data and charting, and contributes to maritime domain awareness for security agencies. As MoUs are political instruments rather than treaties, technical data‑sharing protocols, equipment purchases or survey commissioning would be set out in later arrangements.
By placing the situation in Palestine on the agenda, the Steering Group continues to serve as a channel for coordinating humanitarian and security priorities. The 2024 joint UNICEF package illustrates that, when priorities align, discussions can translate into funded programmes.
Policy Wire analysis: In comparable arrangements, officials typically convert MoUs into time‑bound workplans, naming departmental leads and delivery partners. For healthcare, watchers should look for announcements on clinical training, placements or management exchanges. For hydrography, the practical signals include planned survey activity or chart updates linked to port approaches and offshore infrastructure.
Oversight considerations remain distinct from formal treaties. Because non‑binding instruments sit outside the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010 scrutiny process, parliamentary visibility relies on voluntary updates from departments. The House of Lords International Agreements Committee has urged greater transparency around significant non‑binding agreements, a recommendation that is relevant to the UK–Kuwait commitments announced this week.