Bahrain : Foreign Affairs Minister Dr. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani held a press briefing on the sidelines of President Isaac Herzog of Israel’s visit to Bahrain.The minister welcomed the historic visit, which is the first made by an Israeli President to the Kingdom.He outlined that it resembled an important milestone in bilateral relations and will deepen cooperation to promote mutual interests, and strengthen the security, stability and prosperity of the countries and peoples of the region.During the press briefing, the Minister of Foreign Affairs affirmed the following:”His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa received President Herzog and his delegation, in the presence of His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, for discussions which underlined their sincere desire to further develop cooperation in all fields.””His Majesty the King expressed confidence that this visit will make a key contribution to strengthening bilateral relations and advancing shared hopes for regional and international peace, security, and sustainable development.””The visit also provides the opportunity for President Herzog to experience first-hand our religious and cultural diversity, and the friendship, tolerance and peaceful coexistence among Bahrainis of all religions, races and sects.””His Majesty welcomed developments in bilateral relations since the signing of the Abraham Accords, underlining the need to spread a culture of peace, security and stability in the region, and reaffirming Bahrain’s conviction that dialogue and a peaceful, civilized approach are vital to settling disputes in a way which guarantees lasting security, development, and prosperity.””His Majesty also reaffirmed Bahrain’s unwavering support for a just, comprehensive, and sustainable peace that guarantees the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people, with the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital, in accordance with the two-state solution, the Arab Peace Initiative, and relevant resolutions of international legitimacy, to ensure stability, development, and prosperity not only for the Palestinian and Israeli peoples, but for all peoples of the region.””His Majesty the King and the Israeli President look forward to further developing cooperation in fields including science, health, education, youth, tourism and culture, as well as expanding bilateral trade and implementing the numerous Agreements and MOUs signed between the two countries.””The two sides underlined the need for further efforts to promote lasting peace and coexistence based on trust and mutual respect, reaffirming the importance of the principles of the Charter of the United Nations and international law, including non-interference in internal affairs, respecting for sovereignty, and refraining from the use of force.” “On the conflict in Ukraine, His Majesty the King restated Bahrain’s call for dialogue and direct negotiations between the parties, as previously set out in His Majesty’s talks with His Holiness Pope Francis and His Eminence Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb, Sheikh of Al-Azhar, during their participation in last month’s Bahrain Dialogue Forum (East and West for Human Coexistence)”.”The Israeli President expressed appreciation for His Majesty’s efforts to consolidate peace, tolerance and coexistence among faiths and peoples, noting that the historic visit to Bahrain by His Holiness Pope Francis clearly demonstrated the Kingdom’s international standing on such issues.” In concluding, Minister Al Zayani stressed the importance of the principles contained in the “Joint Warm Peace Strategy”, and the need to support the Negev Forum process in building multilateral cooperation towards peace, stability and prosperity for the countries and peoples of the region.He also congratulated the new Israeli government on the success of the elections, expressing that Bahrain is looking forward to work with the new Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, one of the architects of the Abraham Accords, which was signed in the White House in September 2020 in Washington D.C., to build on what was achieved in terms of positive results within the framework of the Abraham Accords which calls for peace, stability and prosperity for all peoples of the region.He also reaffirmed that these Accords represents an important and positive message to all the people of the region, to bring hope for a comprehensive peace that prevails in the region and achieves prosperity for all, expressing his thanks to the previous Government headed by Naftali Bennet and Yair Lapid for the efforts undertaken to implement the Abraham Accords and the Declaration in Support of Peace, and to achieve concrete results in strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries.
BNA051222