Like his immediate predecessor, Kuwait’s new ruler is taking over in his 80s and will be confronted with the same economy-hobbling political dysfunction that has for years doomed reforms, Bloomberg reported on December 17.  It further noted that there are differences in this succession as well as similarities, and how they play out will help dictate whether 83-year-old Amir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah can break the OPEC member state free of its paralysis.

Media reports say Kuwait on December 16 announced the appointment of Sheikh Meshal Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah – formerly the crown prince – as the country's new emir, succeeding Sheikh Nawaf Al Ahmad Al Sabah, who just passed away at age 86.

In a statement, the Kuwaiti Cabinet officially proclaimed Sheikh Meshal, 83, the country’s new emir.  Under constitutional arrangements in Kuwait, the crown prince takes the reins of power when it is his turn.

The Kuwaiti government, in an official statement, also expressed condolences for the late emir, announcing a mourning period of 40 days and the closure of official departments for three days.

Turkish news agency Anadolu Agency (AA) says that according to the Kuwaiti Crown Prince's website, Sheikh Meshal Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah was born in 1940 and grew up in the ruling house “the seventh son of the ruler of Kuwait, Sheikh Nawaf Al Ahmad Al Sabah, and a brother to three late rulers" whose reigns took place from 1977 to this year, including Sheikh Nawaf Al Ahmad Al Sabah, his half-brother.

Sheikh Meshal reportedly took the position of crown prince on October 8, 2020, with the endorsement of then-Amir Sheikh Nawaf, and the allegiance of the National Assembly.

His Highness the then-Amir of Kuwait Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah issued an Amiri decree on October 8, 2020 nominating Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber as crown prince.  

According to some sources, Sheikh Meshal Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah spent most of his career in Kuwait's security and intelligence apparatus. Prior to ascending to the emirship, he was the oldest crown prince in the world.

Sheikh Meshal Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah became the Amir of Kuwait following the death of the previous emir, his half-brother Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, on December 16, 2023 at the age of 86, following hospitalization in November for a medical emergency.

Sheikh Meshal Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah has two wives: Nuria Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah and Munira Badah Al-Mutairi.  He has 12 children: five sons and seven daughters.