Bahrain denies Kuwait will mediate in its domestic crisis

Bahrain has denied media reports that Kuwait will mediate to find a resolution to its domestic political crisis.

Sheikh Khaled bin Ahmed bin Mohammed al-Khalifa, Bahrain foreign affairs ministry said there were no plans for to involve Kuwaiti in any talks.

Any talk about Kuwaiti mediation in Bahrain is completely untrue, there were previous efforts that were not answered, but these were ended by the act of National Safety [martial law]. He wrote on his twitter page.

On Sunday, the leasing Shia opposition group, Wefaq, said it had accepted an offer from the Kuwaiti emir, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, to mediate between Bahrain's ruling Sunni al-Khalifa family and the opposition (which are dominated by Shias). The alleged measure was also welcomed and endorsed by The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which comprises Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Also, over the weekend, Al-Seyassah, a Kuwaiti newspaper, reported that a delegation of Wefaq members was slated to meet with Kuwaiti politicians including Jassem al-Kharafi, parliament speaker.

Kuwait has a Shia majority (by contrast, while Bahrain’s population is dominated by Shias, the kingdom is ruled by a Sunni elite).

The opposition in Bahrain has been eager to open new dialogue with the Khalifa family and according to media reports have dropped some of their demands, including the removal of the cabinet and a new constitution.

According to Al Jazeera, Jasim Husain, a member of Bahrain’s Wefaq party, said that Ali al-Matrook, a Kuwaiti Shia businessman, was supposed to be one of the mediators.

There is so much at stake now, the country's economy, the reputation, credit rating, safety and security [of people], there is no point in missing out on this rising opportunity from Kuwait [of mediation],” Husain said.

The opposition has always said that they need to make the environment conducive for talks - there are no conditions, we just have to agree on the agenda.

Alarmed by developments in the country, Bahrain earlier this month imposed martial law in the tiny country and invited troops primarily from Saudi Arabia to preserve order on the streets of Manama, the capitol (a move that was criticized by Shia power Iran).

In that crackdown at least seven demonstrators and four policemen were killed.