After the investiture of the Emir … Who are the candidates for the position of Crown Prince of Kuwait?

Since Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah (83) was sworn in before the National Assembly on Wednesday, he became Emir of Kuwait, and questions have revolved around the identity of the new crown prince of the Gulf Emirate.

The Kuwaiti constitution provides for the nomination of the Emir of the state for the name of the crown prince, provided that the parliament accepts or rejects it, but the National Assembly has never rejected any candidate for the mandate of the crown.

The Kuwaiti cabinet called Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, the Emir of the country after the death of his brother Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah (91 years old) in the United States of America, after health problems.

On Wednesday, the late Emir was held at a funeral that was limited to family members, a precedent that occurs for the first time in Kuwait, in the context of the repercussions of the new Corona virus.

The speculation revolves around a series of names that could be trusted by the new emir to be crown prince, since the constitution gives the emir the authority to elect for up to a full year since he assumed the reins of power.

It took about a week for the late prince to appoint his brother, Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad, crown prince in 2006 after he ascended to the throne to succeed Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Al-Salem, who was enslaved from power by health reasons days after he took office.

Named after Sheikh Meshaal Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, half brother of the new emir, to assume the functions of the mandate of the Pact, where he has held the position of Deputy Chief of the National Guard with ministerial rank for 17 years.

Mishaal Al-Ahmad is the seventh son of Sheikh Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah, who ruled Kuwait from 1921 to 1951, and the half-brother of Sheikh Jaber, who ruled Kuwait for 28 years.

Meshaal Al-Ahmad, 80, who is characterized by his strict personality, is considered the favorite in the list of candidates for the mandate of the Pact, although he was far from the political circles of the country.

Meshaal Al-Ahmad was a constant companion of the late Prince during his recent medical trip to the United States of America.

The name of Sheikh Muhammad Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah will not depart from the circle of nominations for the position of the Covenant mandate in Kuwait, especially since he is the most prominent candidate for the “Al-Salem” branch.

Muhammad Al-Salem is the fourth son of Sheikh Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah, the twelfth Emir of Kuwait, who ruled the country from 1965 to 1977.

The emirate in the Gulf state, ruled by the Al Sabah family, relied on the principle of rotation between the Al-Ahmad and Al-Salem branches during the past era, but the late Emir deviated from this custom by naming Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad as Crown Prince.

Al-Sawalem hopes to reestablish himself in the ruling house of Kuwait through its prominent candidate, Sheikh Muhammad Sabah Al-Salem, who turns 65 in a few days. However, his fortune, despite being high, is still less than that of Sheikh Meshaal.

An informed Kuwaiti source confirms to the Al-Hurra website, which preferred to remain anonymous, that Saudi monarch Salman bin Abdulaziz accepts Sheikh Muhammad Al-Salem, as their relationship dates back to the Saudi king being the prince of the Riyadh region.

However, the source ruled out intervention by Saudi Arabia to pressure the appointment of Muhammad Al-Salem as Crown Prince in Kuwait.

And Muhammad Sabah al-Salem served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs, before resigning from both positions in 2011.

Although his chances are less than those of the first two candidates, Sheikh Nasser Al-Sabah, son of the late Emir, is also a candidate for the Pact mandate.

Nasser Al-Sabah, 72, the eldest son of Sheikh Sabah, who ruled Kuwait from 2006 to 2020, holds the position of First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense.

But Sheikh Nasser Al-Sabah’s health conditions may make his chances of filling the post relatively lower, as he suffers from a lung tumor that was successfully removed by surgery in Germany two years ago.

Sheikh Nasser Al-Sabah received a high honor from the President of the United States, Donald Trump, on behalf of his ailing father, as Trump awarded the Order of Military Merit with the rank of Commander-in-Chief to the former Emir of Kuwait, for his role in conflict resolution and overcoming divisions in the Middle East.

The names of other candidates are circulating in Kuwaiti circles, but their chances remain slim to obtain the position that qualifies their occupant to ascend the throne.

Among these names is former Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Muhammad Al-Sabah, who moved out of the political center 9 years ago after he resigned from office after facing growing opposition in his country.

Nasser al-Muhammad, 79, is the second son of Sheikh Muhammad al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah, and the current Emir’s nephew.

Likewise, Sheikh Ahmad Al-Fahad Al-Sabah, a man of great influence in sports, aspires to achieve power in Kuwait.

Al-Fahd, 57, has held many political and sports positions in the country, including Deputy Prime Minister for the Economy, Minister of State for Housing, Minister of State for Development Affairs, Minister of Information, Minister of Energy, President of the Football Association and President of the International Olympic Committee, while he currently holds the position of President. The Asian Olympic Council and the president of the Federation of National Olympic Committees “ANOC”.

Al-Fahd has moved away from Kuwait in recent years due to disagreements with the late Emir, according to a Kuwaiti source.

Options remain open for the new Emir of Kuwait, whose succession has yet to be determined.