MILPLEX
Israel defence minister on first-ever visit to Bahrain
by AFP Staff Writers
Manama (AFP) Feb 2, 2022

Israeli Defence Minister Benny Gantz landed in Bahrain on Wednesday, the latest high-profile diplomatic trip since the countries normalised ties, the Gulf country said.

"The defence minister, Lieutenant General Abdullah bin Hassan al-Nuaimi, received Mr Benny Gantz, the minister of defence of the State of Israel, upon his arrival at Bahrain International Airport," the Bahraini Defence Ministry said.

Gantz, who is the first Israeli defence minister to ever officially visit the Gulf country, travelled with several top military and security officials, including navy chief Admiral David Saar Salama.

"The aircraft carrying the delegation is the first IAF (Israeli Air Force) plane to land in Bahrain," the Israeli defence ministry said in a statement.

"Throughout the visit, the minister is expected to conduct meetings with high ranking officials in the Bahraini defence establishment and with the Kingdom's leadership," it added.

The visit comes less than two years after the Gulf country forged diplomatic ties with Israel, becoming the fourth Arab nation to do so following close ally the United Arab Emirates, as well as Egypt and Jordan.

Last year Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid made the first ministerial visit to Bahrain, where he inaugurated an embassy in Manama.

The normalisation between Bahrain and Israel was one of a series of US-brokered agreements known as the Abraham Accords.

The deals angered the Palestinians, and broke with decades of Arab League consensus against recognising Israel until it signs a peace agreement establishing a Palestinian state with a capital in east Jerusalem.

The accords were negotiated by Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's predecessor, Benjamin Netanyahu, who said they would offer Israel new regional allies against Iran and bolster its diplomatic efforts to stop Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons.

It was not immediately clear if international talks on Iran's nuclear programme would be discussed during Gantz's visit.

Gantz travelled to Morocco late last year, after the North African kingdom agreed to establish full ties with Israel in another US-brokered pact.

During that visit, the countries signed an agreement that is set to make it easier for Morocco to purchase products from Israel's defence industry.


Related Links
The Military Industrial Complex at SpaceWar.com
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com

MILPLEX
UN expert to identify source of Myanmar junta weapons
Geneva (AFP) Feb 1, 2022
The UN expert on rights in Myanmar announced Tuesday he is preparing to release a report exposing where the country's "criminal" ruling junta have been getting their weapons from. Exactly one year on from the February 1, 2021 military coup, Tom Andrews said the junta was inflicting a widespread campaign of terror on the country's people - and seemed to be getting away with it. The United Nations special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar urged the international community to step up and cut o ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

MILPLEX
UAE intercepts Yemen rebel ballistic missile: defence ministry

UAE intercepts two ballistic missiles fired by Yemen rebels: defence ministry

ULA launches two new Space Force tracking satellites into orbit

L3Harris Completes Final US Missile Defense Agency Satellite Design Milestone

MILPLEX
Pentagon hopes to 'Light a Fire' for hypersonic development during high-level defense meeting

North Korea says Sunday test was Hwasong-12 missile

Israel Knocks out simulated Iranian missile using Arrow-3 Interceptor

IMDO, MDA complete flight tests for the Arrow Weapon System and Arrow 3 Interceptor

MILPLEX
UAE reports new drone attack as US to send warship, jets

Bristol scientists develop insect-sized flying robots with flapping wings

Engineers design a quieter future for drones and flying cars

Volcano-observing drone flights open door to routine hazard monitoring

MILPLEX
DARPA researchers use light on chip to drive next-generation RF Platforms

Teaming up to deliver a new Airborne ISR SATCOM capability for MilGov Operators

SES Government Solutions Launches On-Demand X-band Service Platform

Intelsat buys 2 Software-Defined Satellites from Thales Alenia Space to boost 5G solution

MILPLEX
AFRL'S PNT AgilePod achieves flight test objectives

Two Russian paratroopers die in Belarus drills jump

MILPLEX
UN expert to identify source of Myanmar junta weapons

Israel signs defence agreement with Bahrain in Gulf first

Israel defence minister on first-ever visit to Bahrain

Pentagon chief orders reforms to reduce civilian deaths

MILPLEX
Russia, China hit out at US influence in Europe and Asia

Russia takes lead at UN in crises around the world

Kremlin says China will back Russia on security at Games talks

Europe to fore in Ukraine crisis as US warns of Russian plot

MILPLEX
Discovery unravels how atomic vibrations emerge in nanomaterials

Simulations shed significant light on Janus particles