Kuwait: Application for Schengen visa exemptions moving forward

Kuwait’s negotiations with the EU to have its citizens exempt from the Schengen visa are moving forward and is a high priority for the European body, a senior Kuwaiti official said yesterday.

The Kuwaiti Foreign Minister’s Assistant for European Affairs Waleed Al-Khubaizi said the EU is now facing a sensitive struggle with security and counter-terrorism, prompting European interior ministers to take precautionary measures which could potentially defer the final decision of the agreement.

Kuwait began negotiating the visa status of Kuwaiti citizens in the EU over a year ago when it applied for a visa agreement with Schengen Zone countries. In February 2015, Al-Khubaizi expressed optimism on the agreement, yet, apart from the continuation of discussions, nothing tangible has been achieved to ratify the agreement.