On 1 July 1961, when the ministry was not of birth yet during Operation Vantage; the Kuwait Army was the de facto command leadership of the available armed forces since establishment and acted as official minister advising the Emir of Kuwait on course of action. The Kuwait Army redesignated in 1953 was founded 13 years before the enacting of the Kuwait ministry, mainly by Field Marshal Sheikh Abdullah Mubarak Al-Sabah (youngest son of Mubarak Al-Sabah) in 1949.
The major function of the ministry is to implement the government's defence policy and to govern all branches of the Kuwait Armed Forces.[13] It is also responsible for the production, transfer, use, storage, and coordination of mines; and for mine clearance.[13]
The ministry publishes a monthly magazine called Homat Al Watan.[14]