KUWAIT: A joint friendship group comprised of lawmakers from Kuwait and Azerbaijan convened for talks on Tuesday with Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov in attendance. The talks focused on bilateral ties. The group, chaired by Kuwaiti lawmaker Mohammad Al-Mutairi, agreed that there remains more room for progress in bilateral relations, citing sectors to be explored like, the energy, tourism and agricultural sectors.

Amid a sharp rise in the number of Kuwaiti tourists visiting the transcontinental nation, the talks also looked into a mutual visa exemption agreement that could be up and running in the near future, said the Kuwaiti lawmaker. Current developments around the wider Middle East region were among the topics discussed - chief among them the worsening wave of violence that has gripped the Gaza Strip. The group underlined the need to provide urgent aid to Palestinians there. — KUNA