Ministry of Foreign affairs Kingdom of Bahrain : Minister of Foreign Affairs opens The First Ministerial Meeting of the Arab-India Cooperation Forum

Minister of Foreign Affairs opens The First Ministerial Meeting of the Arab-India Cooperation Forum

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Mohammed Al Khalifa, opened The first Session of the Ministerial Meeting of the Arab-India Cooperation Forum, which was held in Manama and where the Foreign Minister welcomed the participants in the forum, praising the efforts made by the General Secretariat of the Arab League and senior officials from the Arab and Indian sides in preparation for this important meeting.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs affirmed the strong, historical ties between the Arab countries and India, adding that the present confirms the excellence of cooperation between the two sides and that the future will enhance these relations and expand them in view of the enormous material and human potential of both sides, and in light of the significant advances these relations witnessed especially after the establishment of the Indian Arab Cooperation Forum in 2008.

The Foreign Minister also noted that economic cooperation between Arab countries and India has witnessed a remarkable development during the past few years, where the bilateral trade volume reached about $ 200 billion in 2014.

He also added that the Indian community in Bahrain is the largest of the foreign nationals communities residing in the Kingdom and contribute greatly in the process of development and construction where they live in safety and security and practice their rituals in temples in an atmosphere of freedom that Bahrain is keen to promote.

Shaikh Khalid urged on making greater efforts to improve trade and economic relations between the Arab and Indian sides and pay more attention to investment opportunities. The Foreign Minister said Bahrain was keen to host The First Session of the Ministerial Meeting of the Arab-India Cooperation Forum to boost cooperation between the two sides and upgrade them toward broader horizons at all levels to achieve further progress and prosperity.

For her part, HE External Affairs Minister of India, Mrs. Sushma Swaraj, expressed sincere thanks to the Kingdom of Bahrain for hosting the Forum, stressing that this meeting will be a turning point in relations between the Arab countries and the Republic of India in light of the historical, cultural and social ties between the two sides.

The Indian Foreign Minister pointed that this meeting reflects the strategic commitment of the Republic of India towards the Arab world and the need for concerted efforts to confront terrorism and extremism, which aims to destabilize the world and expressed eagerness to promote Arab-Indian cooperation in all fields.

The Secretary-General of the Arab League, Dr. Nabil Elaraby, also expressed his sincere appreciation to the Kingdom of Bahrain for its initiative to host the first session of the Forum, affirming the keenness of the Arab League to promote relations with the Republic of India and lay solid foundations for shared visions and a dialogue on collective cooperation between Arab countries and the India.

He pointed that the first session of the Forum will be a new phase in the historical relations between the Arab world and India that confirms the strength and stability of these relations and its importance in meeting the challenges of grave risks facing the region and the entire world, considering that the Arab countries and India constitute an important part of international political and economic relations.

The representative of the Informal Expert Group, Dr. Abdullah Al Madani, reviewed the history of relations between the Arab countries and the Republic of India and its special importance to both sides, adding that it was built on a strong, sustained and sophisticated foundations, stressing that the first session reflects the common interest to develop relations and explore ways to strengthen coordination between the two sides on regional and international issues.

The closed session of the forum discussed relations between Arab countries and the Republic of India, where foreign ministers and heads of participating delegations gave statements and discussed and later adopted 'Manama Declaration' that included shared attitudes and understandings between the Arab and Indian sides over bilateral cooperation issues and Regional and international issues of mutual interest, including the Palestinian issue, developments in the Arab region and in South Asia and relations with Iran, as well as the fight against terrorism and the reform of the Security Council and nuclear disarmament.

The Declaration emphasized the importance of cooperation between the Arab and Indian sides in order to promote confidence between countries and strengthen conflict resolution to achieve security and stability in the region.

During the closed session, the executive program which outlines the work mechanism of the for the years 2016- 2017, was also adopted, in order to promote cooperation in fields such as political, economic, trade, energy, environmental protection, agriculture and food security, human resource development, culture, education, media, social development and health.