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Why in the news?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Kuwait on December 21-22, 2024, marked a significant milestone as the first by an Indian Prime Minister in 43 years. 
At the invitation of His Highness the Amir of Kuwait, Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, this visit aimed to strengthen the longstanding ties between India and Kuwait across various sectors.
Key Highlights of the Visit:
Strategic Partnership: The leaders agreed to elevate bilateral relations to a 'Strategic Partnership,' reflecting a commitment to deepen cooperation in areas such as trade, investment, defense, security, energy, culture, education, technology, and people-to-people ties.
Defense Cooperation: A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on defense was signed, providing a framework for collaboration, including joint military exercises, training, coastal defense, maritime safety, and joint development and production of defense equipment.
Energy Collaboration: Discussions focused on transforming the buyer-seller relationship in the energy sector into a comprehensive partnership, with greater collaboration in upstream and downstream activities. Both sides expressed interest in Kuwait's participation in India's Strategic Petroleum Reserve Programme. 
Cultural and Sports Exchanges: Agreements were signed to enhance cooperation in culture and sports, including a Cultural Exchange Programme for 2025-2029 and an Executive Programme on Sports for 2025-2028.
Indian Community Engagement: Prime Minister Modi addressed the Indian diaspora at the 'Hala Modi' event, acknowledging their contributions to Kuwait's development and emphasizing the strong people-to-people ties between the two nations.
Arabian Gulf Cup Participation: As the Guest of Honour, Prime Minister Modi attended the opening ceremony of the 26th Arabian Gulf Cup, symbolizing the cultural and diplomatic bonds between India and Kuwait.
This historic visit not only revitalized bilateral relations but also set the stage for future collaboration in various domains, reinforcing the shared values and mutual interests of India and Kuwait.
Kuwait conferred its highest honour to Modi:
Kuwait conferred its highest honour — ‘The Order of Mubarak Al-Kabeer’ — on Modi for his role in strengthening the relations between the two countries.