‘Hamad 3’ vital to security

The joint Bahrain-Egyptian military exercise ‘Hamad 3’ will play a vital role in enhancing the capabilities of Bahraini and Egyptian forces in tackling various challenges, said BDF’s top commander yesterday. “Bahrain is always keen to boost its standards as well as help its affiliates in mastering advanced military techniques,” said Field Marshal Shaikh Khalifa bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, the BDF Commander-in-Chief. Shaikh Khalifa during a visit to the Royal Bahrain Navy Force also expressed Bahrain’s readiness in exchanging military expertise with brotherly forces.

The Commander-in-Chief praised the high standards set by Hamad 3 Joint Military Exercise which, he said, will open various horizons regarding war and combat techniques to build strong forces capable of highly-efficient performance. The exercises, described by the Egyptian  army  as “one of the Gulf region’s most important joint drills, are aimed at improving joint air and sea combat management with the use of advanced air and naval tactics.

The three-day exercise, jointly by Bahrain Defence Force (BDF) and Egyptian Armed Forces, was held at Salman Air Base and Isa Air Base on the shore of the southern Gulf. “The joint military exercises aim to further consolidate strong relations between the two countries and people,” the armed forces said in an earlier statement on its website. The exercise included various drills and classes to allow members of both armies to train on different combat methods.

Egyptian ministry in a statement said that the drills in “different disciplines of air, sea and land contribute to enhancing military cooperation and honing the skills of the participating forces of both countries.” Earlier, upon his arrival, the Commander-in-chief was received by Chief-of-Staff Lt-General Dhiab bin Saqr Al Nuaimi, Egyptian Naval Detachment Commander Major-General Yasser Ezzat AlAsi, Commander of Royal Bahrain Navy Force Commodore Mohammed Yousef Al-Asam, senior BDF officers and participating Egyptian officers.

The Commander-in- Chief was accompanied by Assistant Chief-of-Staff for Logistics and Catering Major-General Yousef Ahmed MalAllah, Major-General Ghanim Ibrahim Al-Fodhala. Recently, the Royal Bahrain Air Force (RBAF) - Air Defence Wing - successfully carried out a live-fire exercise with Hawk missiles at a Shooting Range at Al Macatra, Abu Dhabi.