When Kuwait’s emir suspended parliament in May 2024, the move was billed as a way to break political deadlock and fast-track economic reforms. Some headway has been made, but the pace of efforts to reduce reliance on oil remains insufficient to meet diversification goals. On the foreign policy front, Kuwait has navigated intense regional turbulence, although unresolved frictions with Iraq and Iran continue to challenge its diplomatic footing.
The Kuwaiti emir's suspension of parliament last year was cast as a decisive step in breaking political gridlock and pushing through long-stalled economic reforms. More than a year later, the government can point to some progress; yet, diversification away from oil remains far short of what’s needed for long-term economic resilience. The Mideast Gulf’s rapid transformation into global commercial hubs has only highlighted Kuwait’s inertia, leaving it at risk of falling further behind its regional peers. Diplomatically, frictions with Iraq over maritime boundaries — and with Iran over the coveted offshore Arash-Dorra gas field — remain.
Pushing Progress
Emir Sheikh Mishal al-Ahmad al-Sabah's decision to dissolve parliament and suspend parts of the constitution for up to four years came at a critical juncture for Kuwait. The economy was in its second year of recession after real GDP shrank by 3.6% in 2023 and was set to contract by 2.9% in 2024, according to World Bank data. Since 2020, the Opec member had seen 10 cabinet resignations and four parliamentary elections, each failing to resolve a standoff between the executive and legislative branches. At the heart of the impasse were lawmakers’ repeated obstructions of fiscal and structural reform bills — which also stalled major infrastructure projects, including in the oil sector.
