KUWAIT: The Grandson of UK's Queen Elizabeth II, Duke of Cambridge Prince William is set to visit Kuwait today as part of a regional tour, which will also include Oman. The visit to Kuwait comes to honor the 200 years of longstanding and historic relations between the two countries. In the last decades, Queen Elizabeth II and members of the British Royal Family visited Kuwait on several occasions.

On February 12, 1979, the Queen and her spouse Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, arrived to Kuwait on a three-day visit upon an official invitation by then Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. The visit focused on ways to bolster ties. It also allowed the Queen to visit various landmarks in the country. The Queen's daughter Princess Anne visited Kuwait on three occasions on February 17, 1987, on September 5, 1991 and on November 15, 1995. Charles, Prince of Wales, visited Kuwait on March 12, 1989 accompanied by late Princess Diana. The visit included official rounds of talks with late Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.

On November 9, 1993, Prince Charles visited Kuwait where Sheikh Jaber honored him with the Order of Mubarak Al-Kabeer in recognition of his stance with Kuwaiti during the Iraqi invasion of 1990 and subsequent liberation in 1991. The Order was also in recognition of Prince Charles efforts in boosting ties between the friendly nations. On February 21, 1997, Prince Charles visited Kuwait for the third time, holding talks on bilateral relations and issues of common grounds. On January 17, 2006, Prince Charles arrived to Kuwait to pay his respects to late Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah.

Prince Charles - accompanied spouse by Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall - visited Kuwait where official rounds of talks were held with His Highness the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. In 2011 and 2015, Prince Charles visited Kuwait, holding meetings with several senior officials. Similar to Prince Charles, Prince Andrew - Duke of York - visited Kuwait on several occasions. The first visit was on November 27, 1998, when the Duke of York spent three days in Kuwait, meeting with senior officials including the late Amir Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad.

On November 7, 1999, Prince Andrew visited Kuwait, expressing his admiration to the strong level of bilateral relations. The Royal Family member opened a photographic gallery celebrating the centennial of the Kuwaiti-British friendship accord. Prince Andrew visited Kuwait in 2000, 2003, and 2007 in various capacities and attending numerous functions. On March 31, 2008, Prince Andrew visited Kuwait, holding talks with the leadership of the country and attending an exhibition. The last visit for Prince Andrew was on May 18, 2014. - KUNA