PM Modi awarded Kuwait's highest civilian honour

Kuwait on Sunday conferred its highest honour The Order of Mubarak AlKabeer on Prime Minister PM Narendra Modi for his role in strengthening the bilateral relations between India and KuwaitPrime Minister Modi received the honour from Kuwaitrsquos Amir Sheikh Meshal AlAhmad AlJaber Al Sabah at the Bayan PalaceI am honoured to be conferred the Mubarak AlKabeer Order by His Highness the Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Meshal AlAhmad AlJaber Al Sabah I dedicate this honour to the people of India and to the strong friendship between India and Kuwait Modi said in a post on XThe Order of Mubarak AlKabeer is a knighthood order of Kuwait news agency PTI reportedExternal Affairs Minister S Jaishankar expressed that the conferment of this prestigious award on Prime Minister Modi is a proud moment for all IndiansldquoThe honour recognises the Prime Ministerrsquos steadfast commitment and leadership in strengthening linkages with the Gulf region It also showcases the depth of IndiaKuwaitrsquos historic ties and peopletopeople relationsrdquo he said in a post on XIn a release the Ministry of External Affairs stated that PM Modi dedicated the award to the longstanding friendship between India and Kuwait the Indian community in Kuwait and to the 14 billion people of IndiaThe conferment of the award on this historic visit of a Prime Minister of India to Kuwait after 43 years added a special meaning to the occasion the ministry saidMinistry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal described it in a post on X as ldquoa testament to the longstanding IndiaKuwait friendshiprdquoThe award was given to Prime Minister Modi for his efforts in strengthening relations between the two countries according to Kuwaits staterun news agency KUNAAccording to PTI the officials said this is the 20th international honour conferred on PM Modi by a foreign countryInstituted in 1974 Kuwaits highest civilian award has been conferred on select global leaders including former United States Presidents Bill Clinton and George Bush and British monarch Prince Charles PTI reportedPM Modi arrived in Kuwait on Saturday for a twoday visit This is the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the Gulf nation in 43 yearsUpon arrival PM Modi was accorded a ceremonial welcome and Guard of Honour at the Bayan PalaceEarlier Modi had received honours from other Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia the UAE and BahrainIn November Guyana and Dominica conferred their top awards on Prime Minister Modi for his contributions during the COVID19 pandemic and his exceptional work in strengthening bilateral ties with the two Caribbean nationsIn the same month Nigeria honoured him with the Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger for his statesmanship and significant contribution to fostering bilateral ties making him the second foreign dignitary to receive the distinctionWith PTI inputs