We hope that we will soon resolve our dispute with Saudi Arabia regarding the oil wells in the neutral zone

Deputy foreign minister Khalid al-Jarallah said on Tuesday that his country is working with Saudi Arabia to resolve a dispute between the two sides on common oil fields between the two countries in order to resume production.

"We hope that in the near future we will end this dispute with our brothers so that we can resume production," Jarallah told reporters after the 18th meeting of the GCC Ministerial Committee on further actions related to undertaking joint actions.

The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kuwait said that research and consultations with Saudi "brothers" in this matter are still ongoing.

Both countries stopped production from the fields of Khafji and Wafra, jointly managed in a divided area, three years ago, reducing by 500,000 barrels a day 0.5 percent of the world's oil supply.

The Khafji field produces 300,000 barrels a day of heavy Arab oil, compared to 200,000 in the Wafra field.

The production of crude oil in the neutral zone, which dates back to the agreements reached in the 1920s, establishes the territorial boundaries between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

The Wafra field is operated by the state-owned company Kuwait Oil Company and Chevron on behalf of Saudi Arabia. The Khafji field is run by the Saudi oil giant Saudi Aramco and the Kuwait Gulf Oil Company.

Tensions have been building up since the last decade, when Kuwait was angered by the Saudi decision to extend the Chevron license in the Wafer field until 2039. Without consulting Kuwait.

Saudi Arabia closed the Khafji field in 2014. Because of environmental problems In 2015, Chevron closed the Waffles field, citing difficulties in obtaining work permits and materials management.

The dispute between Kuwait and Saudi Arabia dates back to 1922, when the border was set and sovereignty over the bands overlooking the Persian Gulf was suspended.

This did not prevent the discovery, drilling and investment of oil wells in this common area with huge oil reserves. Both countries agreed to the division of the neutral zone by the beginning of 1970. And both sides signed an agreement regulating the exploitation of these oil regions.

Source: KUNA + agencies