Effective and sustainable relations between Kingdom, NATO stressed

The Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for International Affairs, Dr Shaikh Abdulla bin Ahmed Al Khalifa, yesterday received the Head of the NATO Middle East and North Africa Section of the Political Affairs and Security Policy Division at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Giovanni Romani, on the sidelines of the Manama Dialogue Conference.

During the meeting, they reviewed ways to develop aspects of joint cooperation, in addition to discussing regional and international issues of common concern.  Dr Shaikh Abdulla bin Ahmed Al Khalifa stressed the keenness of the Kingdom of Bahrain to strengthen its relations with NATO within the framework of the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative, which the Kingdom had joined in 2004, praising the great efforts made by NATO in maintaining international peace and security and combating traditional and new threats.

The Undersecretary for International Affairs reviewed the efforts and initiatives of the Kingdom of Bahrain for reform, development and combating terrorism, its permanent bias in favour of peace and prosperity, and its commitment to ensuring maritime security in cooperation with allies and partners.

He added that the ongoing consultations will contribute to a better understanding of the basic strategic needs, help in building capacity and skills and present new paths and visions to address challenges in the context of an effective and sustainable security partnership.

Dr Shaikh Abdulla pointed out that the second edition of the Individual Partnership and Cooperation Programme between the Kingdom of Bahrain and NATO for the period 2018-2020 is achieving fruitful and constructive results, especially in the fields of political and diplomatic co-operation, exchange of defence and security expertise and cooperation to confront emerging security challenges.

The Undersecretary for International Affairs, expressed the Kingdom of Bahrain’s aspiration to participate in the celebration of the fifteenth anniversary of the Partnership Initiative, and the meeting of the North Atlantic Council with the countries of the Istanbul Initiative, to be held next month in the brotherly State of Kuwait, stressing that the Kingdom is a reliable international partner, and an active member of alliances and regional and international partnerships.

Dr Shaikh Abdulla condemned the terrorist attacks on the civilian commercial carriers and oil installations in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, stressing the importance of protecting the maritime security and freedom of trade, and keeping abreast of the successive technological breakthroughs in electronic software, artificial intelligence and technical development.

In this regard, he noted that the Kingdom of Bahrain recently hosted the second Bahrain International Defence Exhibition and Conference (BIDEC 2019) and the accompanying Middle East Military Technology Conference to ensure regional and international security.

NATO official, Giovanni Romani, hailed the efforts of the Kingdom of Bahrain to establish security and peace, and its firm commitment to the strategic cooperation with the partners to combat the threat of terrorism. He also stressed the readiness of NATO to cooperate with Bahrain in various security and defence fields, wishing the Kingdom further development.