Khaled Abdulaziz Al-Duwaisan (born 15 August 1947) is a

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Ku ...

i diplomat and the previous ambassador to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

, a role he has held since 1993. He is Dean of the Diplomatic Corps in London.

Biography

Al-Duwaisan received his BA degree from

Cairo University Cairo University ( ar, جامعة القاهرة, Jāmi‘a al-Qāhira), also known as the Egyptian University from 1908 to 1940, and King Fuad I University and Fu'ād al-Awwal University from 1940 to 1952, is Egypt's premier public university ...

and his MBA in diplomacy from Kuwait University. Al-Duwaisan joined Kuwait's Foreign Ministry in 1970. Prior to his posting to London, he served as Kuwait's ambassador to the Netherlands and Romania before being posted to London in 1993. In London, Al-Duwaisan is Dean of the Diplomatic Corps as the longest-serving ambassador to the United Kingdom.

Honours and awards

In 1995, Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states durin ...

appointed Al-Duwaisan an

Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...

(GCVO). In 2012, he received an Honorary DCL degree from the

University of East Anglia The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and 26 schools of study. The annual income of the institution f ...

. In March 2015, he was awarded the

Grassroot Diplomat Grassroot Diplomat is a global non-profit, non-political, diplomatic consultancy established in 2013. The consultancy specialises in digital diplomacy and public diplomacy working with foreign governments and citizen diplomats to help build posi ...

Initiative Award under the Policy Driver category for his work on interfaith dialogue and counter-terrorism. On 19 July 2022, upon relinquishing his appointment as Ambassador from the

State of Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...

to the

Court of St James's The Court of St James's is the royal court for the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. All ambassadors to the United Kingdom are formally received by the court. All ambassadors from the United Kingdom are formally accredited from the court – ...

and upon retiring as Dean of the Diplomatic Corps, Al-Duwaisan was awarded as Honorary Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG).

Durham University

A doctoral fellowship named after Al-Duwaisan at

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills ( Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_cha ...

Ustinov College Ustinov College is the largest college of Durham University, located in Durham, North East England. Founded as the Graduate Society in 1965, it became a college in 2003 and was named after then-chancellor, Sir Peter Ustinov. Formerly at the Howla ...

is awarded annually to postgraduate students focused on international and regional politics and security.

References

1947 births Living people Ambassadors of Kuwait to the United Kingdom Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Honorary Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Cairo University alumni Kuwait University alumni {{Kuwait-stub