The IOC have suspended the national committee of Kuwait after the Gulf nation failed to address problems of political interference in the sporting movement.
The International Olympic Committee have long been unhappy with the situation in Kuwait, and came close to suspending the country in the summer.
Current legislation in Kuwait allows the government to interfere with the elections of sports federations.
A deadline of December 31 was set for the matter to be resolved, with the Kuwaiti parliament calling a special session for December 30 to consider the issue.
However, the IOC's executive board were not satisfied with the outcome, leading to today's announcement.
An IOC statement read: "The sports legislation currently in force in Kuwait reveals clear interference by the public authorities in the internal functioning of the country's sports organisations, which is contrary to the Olympic Movement's principle of autonomy and prevents the organisations which make up the Olympic Movement in Kuwait from respecting the principles and rules of the Olympic Charter and of the corresponding International Sports Federations.
"Despite the IOC's efforts since 2007 to help the Kuwaiti authorities resolve this situation, the planned changes to the national sports legislation to make it compatible with the principles and rules which govern the Olympic Movement were not finalised by the agreed deadline (December 31) in line with the undertakings given.
"The IOC EB will not be able to envisage lifting this suspension until the agreements signed are respected and put into effect, to ensure that the autonomy of the Olympic Movement in Kuwait is preserved in accordance with the principles and rules which govern the Olympic Movement."
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