Kuwait chides Iran over threat to shut Hormuz

KUWAIT CITY (Thomson Financial) – Kuwait’s foreign minister said on Wednesday that an Iranian threat to close the Strait of Hormuz, the crucial Gulf oil supply route, amounted to a ‘punishment’ of its Arab neighbours.

‘By making such remarks, the Iranian officials are hinting at punishing the Gulf Cooperation Council countries,’ Sheikh Mohammed Sabah al-Salem al-Sabah was quoted as saying by leading Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Qabas.


Kuwait is one of the six members of the GCC monarchies, which also include oil powerhouse Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

Iran has warned it could close the strategic Strait of Hormuz, which separates Iran and Oman, if it became the target of a military attack over its controversial nuclear programme.

Thomson Financial