MANAMA, Sept 4 (Reuters) – Israel on Monday moved to Bahrain as it presses Riyadh for a similar deal in what would be Israel’s biggest diplomatic victory in the region, three years after the two countries normalized relations. The embassy was officially opened.
During his visit to Bahrain, Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen attended an official ceremony to open the diplomatic mission, which was attended by a delegation of businessmen and government officials.
“The[Bahrain]foreign minister and I agreed that we should work together to increase the number of direct flights, tourism, trade volumes and investment,” Cohen said at the ceremony.
Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Abdullatif Al Zayani said the opening of the embassy “demonstrates our shared commitment to the security and prosperity of all peoples in the region.”
The normalization deal between Bahrain and Israel is part of a series of agreements known as the Abraham Accords, which were also signed with the United Arab Emirates, Morocco and Sudan.
Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, is a small island in the Gulf whose Shiite majority is ruled by the al-Khalifa royal family, allied with Saudi Arabia’s Sunnis.
Analysts said the rapprochement with Israel was built in part on a shared fear of Iran.
The opening of the Israeli embassy in Bahrain comes as the US pressures traditional ally Riyadh to sign a similar agreement with Saudi Arabia, a major Islamic power and home to Islam’s holiest shrine. It was held in the middle of the day.
But Riyadh has so far resisted US pressure, linking the move to the establishment of a Palestinian state as part of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and other demands.
Written by Aziz El Yaakobi.Editing: Christina Fincher
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