Bahrain welcomes opening of Israeli embassy's permanent residence in Manama, calls for two-state solution
Bahraini Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani praised the opening of the Israeli embassy's permanent residence in the capital Manama as a “historic step” on Monday while hosting Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen in Bahrain, which normalized ties with Israel with the signing of the Abraham Accords in 2020.
Al Zayani described the inauguration as a “further important milestone in the relations between the two countries" and said it "reflects our support for the embassy’s diplomatic efforts to further develop bilateral relations.”
Cohen landed in Bahrain on Sunday met with Al Zayani and Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa.
During the visit, Israel's foreign minister stressed the benefits of bilateral and regional cooperation across the Middle East.
“This visit will be a further important staging post in the development of our cooperation across the widest range of fields, benefiting not just our two countries . . . but also the security, stability and prosperity of the wider Middle East region,” Cohen stated.
While Bahrain embraces its diplomatic relations with Israel, it has also called for a two-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict based on the Arab Peace Initiative which urges Israel to withdraw from the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
“In the meeting, his royal highness, the deputy King reiterated the importance of resolving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict through a two-state solution as outlined in the Arab Peace Initiative,” said Al Zayani.
Cohen optimistically envisioned that more Arab and Muslim states would eventually normalize their diplomatic ties with the Jewish state.
“There are (now) more Arab and Muslim countries that have shown interest in taking a step forward in joining the peace circle,” he said.
The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.
