The Kuwaiti government asked parliament to approve a supplementary budget of KD6.2 billion ($20.4 billion) to fund weapons purchases for the military over 10 years, Al-Rai newspaper reported.
Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah Al-Sabah, Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs, confirmed on the sidelines of a conference that the government sent a request for a special budget, but declined to specify the amount requested.
Al-Rai said the government asked that the money be drawn from the country’s general reserves.
The Military of Kuwait consists of several joint defense forces. The governing bodies are the Kuwait Ministry of Defense, the Kuwait Ministry of Interior, the Kuwait National Guard and the Kuwait Fire Service Directorate. The Emir of Kuwait is the Commander-in-Chief of all defense forces and the Crown Prince is the Deputy Commander.
The Kuwait Ministry of Defense is the governing body of the Kuwait Armed Forces, which includes the Kuwait Army, the Kuwait 25th Commando Brigade, the Kuwaiti Navy, the Kuwaiti Air Force, the Kuwait Military Fire Service Directorate, the Kuwait Emiri Guard Brigade and the Kuwait Military Police Brigade. Each armed force has its own combat Commander who reports to Chief of General Staff of the Kuwait Armed Forces who later reports to the Minister of Defense.
The Kuwait National Guard however is an independent combat institution from the Ministry of Defense and Interior and acts independently at the discretion of its own leadership supporting the Military of Kuwait as needed and required.
The Kuwait Fire Service Directorate is also an independent combat body part of the Military of Kuwait.
The United States has provided military and defense technical assistance to Kuwait from both Foreign Military Sales (FMS) and commercial sources, with all transactions made by direct cash sale. The US Office of Military Cooperation in Kuwait is attached to the American Embassy and manages the FMS program. US military sales to Kuwait total US$5.5 billion since 2004. Principal US military systems purchased by the Kuwait Defense Forces as of 2014 are the Patriot missile system, F-18 Hornet fighters, and the M1A2 Main Battle Tank.
