Israeli PM Naftali Bennett Makes Historic Visit to Bahrain To Promote Cooperation, Goodwill

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett made a historic visit to Bahrain on Monday evening in an attempt to promote cooperation and goodwill between the two nations.

Bennett's visit to the Western Asian country is scheduled to last 24 hours where he was greeted by Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid Al-Zayani and Industry, Commerce, and Tourism Minister Zayed Rashid Al-Zayani.

Historic Visit

Furthermore, the Israeli prime minister was set to personally meet King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, Bahrain's ruler, and Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa, the country's crown prince and prime minister. During an interview on the tarmac before departing for Bahrain, Bennett said his visit was an "exciting event."

The two leaders met in November last year on the sidelines of the COP26 climate conference held in Glasgow, Scotland. It was there that the crown prince invited Prime Minister Bennett to visit his country to talk.

According to the Times of Israel, Bennett's office said that the prime minister's meeting with Bahraini officials on Tuesday will revolve around deepening the bilateral relationship between Israel and Bahrain. The talks come after the signature of a normalization agreement in September 2020 that was part of the Abraham Accords.

The Israeli prime minister's administration released a statement that said Bennett will discuss additional ways to forge stronger ties with Bahrain, especially with the advancement of diplomatic and economic issues. Officials are looking to put an emphasis on technology and innovation.

Bennett's trip to Bahrain comes amid rising tensions after missile attacks targeting the neighboring United Arab Emirates by Yemen's Houthi rebels. The Israeli prime minister added that the visit was meant to be a message of goodwill and portray a shared stance against common threats.

Recently, Israel has increased its cooperation efforts with the Gulf states, with Manama, the capital of Bahrain, hosting Israel's defense minister on Feb. 2. Israeli officials said that a military officer from the country will be posted in Bahrain as part of the two nations' international coalition, as per Aljazeera.

International Relations

Bennett's visit underscores the continued shifting of geopolitical priorities of some Arab leaders who have growing concerns over Iran's nuclear program. They are more interested in addressing the issue instead of finding a conclusion to the longstanding Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Bahrain wields much less regional influence than the Emirates and is primarily an oil-producing island nation with roughly 1.5 million citizens. On the other hand, Saudi officials said that Saudi Arabia will not work on normalizing ties with Israel until peace is found between Israelis and Palestinians. But analysts said that Bahraini leaders would never act against Saudi officials' wishes.

Troops from Saudi Arabia helped the Bahraini royal family to defeat and stop an uprising during the Arab Spring in 2011. The incident threatened the power of the royal family and ended with the Saudi military's support still being a crucial system for the country.

When oil prices plummeted in 2018, Saudi Arabia joined the Emirates and Kuwait in bailing out the Bahraini economy. The Western Asian nation is also an ally of the United States and is home to the headquarters of the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet, the New York Times reported.