Cultural diplomacy key to global peace and harmony

TDT | Manama

Cultural diplomacy is an indispensable empowerment tool for new generations to achieve peace and harmony worldwide. This was emphasized by King Hamad Global Centre for Peaceful Co-existence Board of Trustees chairman Dr Shaikh Khalid bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, who participated, through the Visual Communication Technology (VCT), in the Cultural Diplomacy Forum (CDF 2020).

It was held on the sidelines of a high-level part of the 75th session of the UN General Assembly. The forum seeks to show cultural diplomacy as an efficient means to establish friendly and peaceful regional and international relations by benefiting from diverse cultural means like music, fine arts, drawing and theatre.

The forum shed light this year on the concept of “cultural diplomacy” and the nature of tools that enable it to play a bigger role in promoting common understanding and building bridges of trust, credibility and transparency. Speaking on behalf of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Dr Khalid stressed that cultural diplomacy has a very important peculiarity for the youth in the region in order to enhance security and stability bonds.

He indicated that the King Hamad Global Center for Peaceful Coexistence seeks to promote the values of tolerance and peaceful coexistence and believes in the strength of cultural diversity and its positive impact on various peoples and societies. He noted that the Kingdom of Bahrain has for a long time been playing a pivotal role in linking the cultures of the East and West and creating common bridges between them which yielded a multicultural society consisting of many religions and ethnicities.

Shaikh Khalid stated that peaceful coexistence has been a characteristic feature of the Bahraini community for thousands of years. He added this rich mosaic of cultural diversity contributed to Bahrain’s development as a modern, thriving and peaceful country under the wise leadership of HM King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.

Dr Khalid also voiced keenness of the King Hamad Global Centre for Peaceful Co-existence to cooperate with the Cultural Diplomacy Forum in implementing a joint project in the near future. He called on the forum’s representatives and founders to visit Bahrain when the travel situation improves after the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

The Cultural Diplomacy Forum was set up as an initiative by the European Alliance for Israel to provide a platform for boosting integration of the State of Israel and the Jewish people in the international community.