‘Trade remains nucleus of Bahrain, Israel ties’

TDT | Manama  

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Staff Reporter

Trade and economic relations remain the nucleus of expanding bilateral ties between Israel and Bahrain, said Israeli Ambassador to the Kingdom.   In an exclusive interview with The Daily Tribune, Eitan Na’eh said diplomacy between nations has always been based on many pillars and out of them trade and commerce constitute the most important pillar.  “Economic relations include investments from both sides, joint ventures, exports and imports apart from widening the horizons in terms of cooperation across all major industrial sectors.  “We have begun importing thousands of tonnes of aluminium from the Kingdom.

And there are plans to import many more products including fibre glass and petrochemicals. From the Israeli side, there will be investments in the Bahraini economy in many areas including high-tech, fintech, logistics, oil and gas sector and I appreciate the role of the Bahraini ambassador in Israel in this regard.”  The envoy said an Israeli fintech firm is almost set to start its operations in the Kingdom and representatives of various industries in Israel are on the way to the Kingdom to forge partnerships as well as start operations here. 

“Healthcare is going to be another major area of cooperation. Israeli medical corporations are going to have joint ventures with Bahraini firms, be it developing vaccines to tackle communicable diseases in the future or manufacturing medicines or medical equipment.”  When asked about the volume of trade targeted between both nations in the coming years, Mr Na’eh said he is confident that in four years’ time it will reach hundreds of millions of US dollars.

“We are focusing on joint research, especially in the medical sector, which will have large commercial implications.”   He said agriculture, renewable energy and water security are other areas where both countries are cooperating to implement the latest strategies and technologies. “The Kingdom’s Minister of Industry, Commerce and Tourism has already visited Israel twice.

Exchange of visits of ministers, business delegations and government officials is vital in the path towards joint progress.”  Mr Na’eh said Israel and Bahrain are keen on working jointly towards achieving food security. “Food security is of great importance to any nation. As envisioned by His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, the bilateral ties must bring benefits to every Bahraini.”  Tourism is also going to play an important role in bilateral ties, said the envoy, adding that there is going to be an easing of visa procedures in Israel for cultural figures, business people and tourists from the Kingdom. “We are now working from a temporary office and once we move to a permanent office, I believe we will be able to process more visas without any delays.

We are now processing visas in a space of two weeks after submitting applications.”  Mr Na’eh said the immediate priorities in his diplomatic mission include building a permanent office, building local contacts and relations on governmental levels, fostering ties with the business community, media and the people as a whole.  “We are working on all fronts. Building bonds of friendship can’t happen overnight, it takes some time for both nations and peoples to know each other before pursuing the path of true friendship.”

He said the bilateral ties do have a special focus on the youth of both nations. “There will be many student exchange programmes, mainly in the healthcare sector, where the youths of both nations would get a platform to know each other through frequent interactions.”  Mr Na’eh said Iran can’t block Israel’s diplomatic ambitions in the region. “Iran has been trying to block our diplomatic endeavours, but they have consistently failed. Iranian regime can’t offer anything to the world other than missiles, terrorists, rockets, bombs and conflicts.

Iranian people can offer a lot to the world, for they belong to a great civilization with rich culture and history. They are pioneers in mathematics and science.  “However, all these accomplishments of the Iranian people have been turned upside down by the regime, which uses science and technology to ruin the lives of people instead of trying to improve them. From Syria to Yemen and Lebanon, there is no single place in the world where Iranian regime got involved and progress came.”  

Mr Na’eh said the diplomatic trajectory with all GCC and Arab nations is going up consistently. “Israel is confident about establishing diplomatic relations with all Arab and GCC countries including Saudi Arabia. We are in our best efforts to bring people and governments together as we choose peace over conflict.” In this context, the ambassador highlighted the significance of the Negev Summit, held last March, where the foreign ministers of the US, Israel, the UAE, Bahrain, Egypt and Morocco met and discussed a new security architecture for the region. “We have officially moved into the US Central Command (CENTCOM), which is another milestone in building this security architecture for the region.”  

Mr Na’eh said Israel is very much willing to share its expertise, knowledge and prosperity in many areas with Arab and GCC countries. “We have one of the best knowledge-based economies in the world. Nearly 87 per cent of our exports are high-tech; Our per capita GDP is one of the highest in the world and we are ready to share our knowledge and prosperity with all countries in the region.”     Mr Na’eh said he was overwhelmingly excited to interact with the local Jewish community of the Kingdom.

“It has been exciting to celebrate Jewish holidays across the Jewish homes of Bahrain. Jews have contributed towards the Kingdom’s economic development and we are really proud of that.”  The ambassador praised the Kingdom’s leadership for the nation’s great acceptance of different cultures and religions. “Bahrain is a great land on earth, where we could see a synagogue, church, mosque and Hindu temple, side by side. This tolerance, which is a social culture here, has made the Kingdom a role model of co-existence and understanding.”