Kuwait’s First Deputy PM lauds security cooperation with Egypt

Kuwait: The First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense and Interior, Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousef Saud Al-Sabah, commended on Sunday the security collaboration between Egypt and Kuwait’s Ministries of Interior. During his first visit to Egypt, Sheikh Fahad discussed with his Egyptian counterpart Mahmoud Tawfiq the most important security issues and means of enhancing ties between the two sides, according to a statement received by Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) following a meeting between the two ministers.

Egypt has recently extradited a defendant to Kuwait, in line with security cooperation between the two sides. The two ministers discussed the latest security issues and common concerns, in addition to cooperation mechanisms and sharing expertise to benefit from training capacities in all security fields, the statement added. They further dealt with obstacles facing citizens and Kuwaiti students studying in Egypt, facilitating all measures as well as disclosing currencies at airports, it stated.

Furthermore, they covered the causes of delaying registering Kuwaiti citizens’ property in Egypt, in addition to reaching a deal to set a mechanism with the concerned bodies to regulate and accelerate ending the measures of security agreements, it noted. Meanwhile, the Egyptian minister extolled the meeting and what had been discussed, referring to security sharing and deep-rooted and historic relations between the two sister countries. The meeting featured Kuwait’s Ambassador to Egypt, Ghanim Al-Ghanim, and a high-level delegation accompanying Sheikh Fahad.

Cyber and Information Security

Meanwhile, Secretary-General Ahmad Abul-Gheit of the League of Arab States (LAS) stated on Monday that cybersecurity has become a fundamental pillar of national security for all states and economic entities. Abul-Gheit made the remark in a speech during the opening session of the 3rd International Conference on Information Security and Cybersecurity, titled “Cyber & Information Security Exhibition & Conference,” held under the patronage of Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and organized by the league’s Arab Information and Communication Technologies Organization.

Abul-Gheit said that cyber wars have become a reality and a weapon used by states and non-state actors, including groups with destructive criminal activities, adding that this was highly effective due to the reliance of modern systems on technology and networks, making them vulnerable to ransomware attacks. He pointed out that cybersecurity has become a concept that goes far beyond the issues of protecting messages, financial transactions, and administrative operations but also includes data security and storage. A lot can be extracted from the available data by analyzing an individual’s behavior and the content consumed through social media platforms.

Abul-Gheit noted that social media platforms can have dangerous consequences and impacts when misused, such as spreading false information, calls for violence and hatred, and speeches questioning the integrity of individuals and national institutions, which would give criminal and terrorist organizations exceptional capabilities and skills to carry out cyberattacks and misinformation campaigns.

Abul-Gheit emphasized the need to build new capabilities to strengthen the technological defense line with innovative approaches that are continuously updated to match the nature of emerging threats and called for launching awareness campaigns to alert Arab citizens and various Arab institutions about the importance of data protection from cybercrime risks.

He noted that the conference would witness the launch of the Arab Strategy for Cybersecurity prepared by the organization and approved by the Council of Arab Ministers for Communication and Information at its recent meeting in Abu Dhabi. He added that the last Arab summit approved the Saudi initiative to establish an Arab ministerial council for cybersecurity, supported by a permanent technical secretariat based in Riyadh, expressing his hope that it would be launched as soon as possible to undertake its assigned tasks.

On his part, the Secretary-General of the Arab Organization for Communication and Information Technologies, Mohammad bin Omar, stated that the Arab region was witnessing several challenges in the field of cybersecurity, including rapid technological development, a lack of awareness about cyber issues, the development and complexity of threats, and legal and regulatory challenges.

He noted that with the continued evolution of cyber threats in terms of complexity and frequency, implementing strong security measures was extremely important to protect individuals, companies, and government entities from harmful activities, and he pointed out the importance of proactive and comprehensive cybersecurity strategies to mitigate risks and maintain trust in digital ecosystems. The Arab Cybersecurity Strategy, prepared by the Arab Information Technology Organization, would be launched as a roadmap for countries to develop and improve their national cybersecurity strategies.