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Kuwait Times
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Kuwait Times
Iranian ambassador slams US and Zionist strikes as violation of international law
Envoy meets Kuwait Times Editor-in-Chief on visit to newspaper KUWAIT: Iranian Ambassador to Kuwait Mohammad Toutounchi strongly condemned on Sunday what he described as a 'coordinated and armed aggression' carried out by the Zionist entity and the United States, calling the attacks a flagrant violation of international law and the principles of the United Nations Charter. During a meeting with Kuwait Times Editor-in-Chief Dr M Ziad Al-Alyan, the ambassador insisted that Iran's recent actions were legitimate acts of self-defense. He noted that the initial Zionist strikes on Iranian facilities had failed to meet their objectives, prompting direct US intervention. 'We were certain from the beginning that Israel would not act without coordination with the United States,' he stated. 'What happened last night confirmed our expectations.' Toutounchi also criticized the failure of international organizations to condemn or respond to the escalation. 'These international institutions took no initiative or action to halt this assault. This exposes the fragility of the international system in the face of political pressure, particularly that exerted by the Zionist lobby in the United States,' he said. The ambassador went on to accuse both the United States and the Zionist entity — nuclear-armed states — of launching an attack on a country that does not possess such weapons, calling it a blatant violation of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. 'This aggression clearly shows that the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty has lost its true meaning in the face of American political interests,' he said. Praising the response of some Gulf states, including Kuwait, Toutounchi noted that there had been coordination and high-level communication between foreign ministries, which ensured the safe evacuation of Kuwaiti nationals from Iranian cities affected by the strikes. He expressed particular concern over the targeting of nuclear facilities, calling it 'a reckless gamble that disregards international treaties and conventions'. 'What happened indicates that these two regimes (the US and the Zionist entity) place no value on human life. Their only concern is imposing dominance, even if the price is a nuclear disaster in the region,' he added. In response to recent statements by US President Donald Trump claiming success in dismantling Iran's nuclear program, the ambassador dismissed the remarks as 'full of contradictions and typical media propaganda'. 'They were aiming to overthrow the Islamic system, but they have returned empty-handed and are now trying to cover up their failures with such falsified statements, which in reality reflect their defeat,' he said. Toutounchi reaffirmed that Iran's nuclear program is 'entirely national in origin' and remains unaffected by attacks. He stressed that all of Iran's peaceful nuclear activities are under the supervision and monitoring of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). 'All of Iran's actions are declared and under international oversight. No political or military pressure will deter us from continuing to develop our defensive capabilities,' he added. In a press statement, the ambassador reiterated that the attack represents an unprecedented and egregious violation of the UN Charter and international law. He held the US government 'fully responsible for the extremely serious consequences of this major crime'. He urged the United Nations, the Security Council, the UN Secretary-General, the IAEA and other relevant international bodies to take urgent action against what he described as a criminal breach of international law. 'Iran reminds the world that silence in the face of such blatant aggression puts global peace and security at unprecedented risk. As a founding member of the United Nations, the Islamic Republic of Iran expects the organization and its responsible members to fulfill their duties at a time when the world is witnessing a clear violation of the law by the United States,' Toutounchi concluded.
Kuwait Times
09-05-2025
- Business
- Kuwait Times
Kuwait's fastest business credit growth in 3 years drives credit expansion in Q1
Private sector deposits drive overall growth in Q1 2025 KUWAIT: In continuation of the trend seen in late 2024, domestic credit growth was solid in Q1 (+1.6 percent), driving up the y/y increase to 4.4 percent. Growth was mostly driven by business credit, which expanded by 2.6 percent q/q, the fastest quarterly growth in three years while household credit growth was uninspiring. Given the Fed's wait-and-see approach, the high-for-longer interest rates remain a damper on credit growth, especially household, but a game changer will be the possible approval ofa housing finance law. Business credit can continue benefiting from the overall improving trend in project awards as seen in 2023-2024 and expected for 2025 despite a relatively soft Q1. However, if the weakness in oil prices (Brent down by around25 percent from a recent high) is sustained, that will be a headwind for credit growth going forward. Within business lending, YTD growth has been broad-based with 'trade' (+5 percent) and 'other services' (+2.9 percent) in the lead. The heavyweight real estate sector continued its solid recovery, growing by the fastest quarterly rate in three years while the oil/gas sector displayed some early signs of a recovery after three consecutive annual drops. On the other hand, 'construction', after surging by a CAGR of 16 percent over 2022-2024, has taken a breather in the last two quarters, with y/y growth falling to 5 percent. For project awards, while Q1 was much weaker sequentially, that followed two very strong quarters and is also partly due to seasonality with y/y growth very high, but from a low base. Meanwhile, household credit growth was lackluster, standing at 0.4 percent q/q. However, we note that in both 2023 and 2024, household credit was much stronger in the second half of the year than in the first half. For example, more than 70 percent of the 2024 growth occurred in the second half. The weakness has been more in loans for consumer durables, which have dropped for four straight months and are down 1.2 percent q/q while housing loans are up 0.6 percent q/q. Private-sector deposits solid Resident deposits inched up in Q1 with y/y growth at 2.9 percent. This was driven by private-sector deposits (78 percent of total deposits), which increased by 2 percent q/q (4.3 percent y/y). The weakness in government deposits continued, as they fell for the second straight quarter with y/y growth barely positive after being in double digits for most of the past three years. If the weakness in oil prices sustains, government deposits may come under further pressure. Within private-sector KD deposits, CASA trends continued to improve, and are up by 2.4 percent YTD, in line with growth in time deposits. We note that non-resident deposits (7 percent of total deposits), after falling for three straight years (down a sharp 22 percent in 2024), made a come-back surging by 22 percent (KD 728 million) q/q. Fed in a wait-and-see mode; high-for-longer interest rates delivers softer-than-hoped boost to credit growth The Central Bank of Kuwait, unsurprisingly, cut rates (25 bps) by less than the Fed (100 bps) since the start of the easing cycle in September. And while the futures market currently indicates a cumulative 75-100 basis points cut by the Fed by year-end, this looks aggressive to us. Given the high tariff-related uncertainty and the opposing forces on the Fed's dual mandate, the latter remains in a wait-and-see mode, indicating a high-for-longer outlook for interest rates, and consequently softer-than-hoped support to credit growth.
