Fuss over depth of new UK naval base in Bahrain

Mina Salman Port, which is intended to host the permanent British naval base in the region by next year, has been claimed to be too shallow for some of the British military vessels to dock in.

According to a report published by British daily Daily Express, “the British Ministry of Defence (MoD) has admitted the water there is not deep enough for the new Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers”.

Quoting British Armed Forces Minister Penny Mordaunt, the newspaper reported: “The Queen Elizabeth Class (QEC) carriers will be able to utilise the Mina Salman Support Facilities whilst at anchor in the vicinity of the port in Bahrain. However, due to draught constraints QEC carriers will not be able to berth directly alongside the Mina Salman Support Facility itself.”

It was also reported that few MPs criticised the ministry, describing building a new port facility that is not big enough for the new aircraft carriers to dock in as “nonsense”. As reported last October, the groundbreaking ceremony of the new British naval base in Mina Salman Port was held in the presence of both the Bahraini and British Foreign Ministers.

“This is the first permanent naval base for the Royal Navy in this part of the world since 1967,” British Foreign Secretary Phillip Hammond had stated back then, adding that it would be “a centre for the British military operations in the Gulf region and beyond.”

According to reports, the new facility will have a running cost of USD17million a year from 2017/18.