On March 22, 1971, China and Kuwait established diplomatic relations, making Kuwait the first GCC country to establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. In July 2018, Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah paid a state visit to China, during which President Xi Jinping and the Emir announced the establishment of the China-Kuwaiti strategic partnership. In December 2022, President Xi Jinping met with Crown Prince of Kuwait Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah on the sidelines of the first China-Arab States Summit and the first China-GCC Summit.

In addition to the above high-level exchanges, in recent years, visits from the Chinese side to Kuwait mainly include: Vice Premier of the State Council Zhang Gaoli (August 2017), Vice Chairperson of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) Chen Zhu (May 2019), Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs Yang Jiechi (April 2018, February 2021), and Special Envoy of President Xi Jinping and Vice Chairperson of the Standing Committee of the NPC Shohrat Zakir (December 2023), among others. In addition, visits from the Kuwaiti side to China mainly include Emir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (who came to China as Crown Prince in September 2023 for the opening ceremony of the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou), and Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya (May 2024), among others.

Bilateral economic and trade cooperation has been developing smoothly. In 2024, the trade volume between China and Kuwait reached USD 16.294 billion, of which China's exports amounted to USD 4.829 billion and imports totaled USD 11.465 billion. China mainly exports mechanical and electrical products, high-tech innovative products, textiles and other products, and mainly imports crude oil, and petrochemical products, among others. Kuwait is the ninth largest source of crude oil imports in China. In 2024, China imported 15.9701 million tons of crude oil from Kuwait.

The two countries have active people-to-people and cultural exchanges. In September 2023, the Chinese Cultural Center in Kuwait was put into trial operation, becoming the first of its kind in the Gulf region.