Washington, Sept. 13 (BNA): His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, today met with U.S. Secretary of State, Antony J. Blinken, at the State Department, as part of his official visit to the United States.
During the meeting, HRH Prince Salman bin Hamad and Secretary Blinken signed a historic bilateral agreement, the Comprehensive Security Integration and Prosperity Agreement, which forms a cornerstone for cooperation not only for Bahrain and the U.S., but also globally as it represents a new architecture for bilateral and multilateral cooperation.
The Comprehensive Security Integration and Prosperity Agreement will enhance Bahrain-U.S. cooperation across a range of areas, from defence and security to emerging technology, trade, and investment.
Secretary Blinken welcomed Bahrain’s role as one of the U.S.’ longest standing and closest partners in the Middle East, as both a non-NATO ally and a Major Security Partner, noting that the agreement will strengthen coordination between both nations’ armed forces and further integrate intelligence capacity to deter and respond to threats as they arise.
The Secretary of State emphasised the agreement’s role in identifying new bilateral investment opportunities, which build on the two nations’ 2006 Free Trade Agreement, which has more than tripled trade and investment to $3 billion per year.
Secretary Blinken noted that the agreement further enhances scientific and technical cooperation and information exchange in areas such as health security and digital technology, adding that the agreement is also the first binding U.S. international agreement of its kind in developing and deploying trusted technologies.
Looking to the future, the Secretary of State also noted that the U.S. and Bahrain look forward to using this agreement as a framework for additional countries that wish to join the U.S. and Bahrain in strengthening regional stability, economic cooperation, and technological innovation.
HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister praised the critical importance of the historic bilateral agreement, noting the profound global challenges and choices that are faced between the rise of authoritarianism and libertarianism and the international rules-based order that manifested itself in the early 19th century.
His Royal Highness said this rules-based order was the foundation of freedom of trade, the movement of ideas, and the movement of people all over the world, and that Bahrain and the U.S. are beneficiaries of those common values.
HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister welcomed the agreement’s role in focusing not only on security and defence, but also on economic and technological cooperation, and that the signing will be the foundation for a new global architecture given the open-ended nature of the agreement.
His Royal Highness reaffirmed Bahrain’s commitment to further deepening Bahrain-U.S. relations and steadfastly implementing the new Comprehensive Security Integration and Prosperity Agreement.
Source: Bahrain News Agency
