Bahrain, ASEAN cooperation hailed

Manama, Apr.21 (BNA): Foreign Minister Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmed bin Mohammed Al-Khalifa affirmed Bahrain's adopted policy of consolidating relations with countries that share common denominators and goals. He underlined the importance of constant cooperation with the 10-member Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), being one of the most important economic and trading blocs in the world. He was addressing a ceremony hosted by the Foreign Ministry marking the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the Kingdom of Bahrain and Singapore. The ceremony was attended by Masagos Zulkifli bin Masagos Mohamad, Minister, Prime Minister’s Office, Second Minister for Home Affairs and Second Minister for Foreign Affairs, of the Republic of Singapore, currently on visit to Bahrain. The minister delivered the following speech on this occasion: "I am delighted to be here at this celebration of the thirtieth anniversary of diplomatic relations between the Kingdom of Bahrain and the Republic of Singapore, and I want to start by once again welcoming His Excellency Mr. Masagos Zulkifli, Second Minister of Foreign Affairs and Home Affairs of Singapore, underlining my confidence that the friendly and constructive meetings held during your time in Bahrain will help to further strengthen and develop this longstanding bilateral friendship." "I also want to thank His Excellency Ambassador Lawrence Anderson for his kind invitation to join you here tonight for this wonderful celebration. "Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen, Over the past three decades, our two countries have developed a close and deep friendship which, in many ways, has grown out of the many similarities between us. "We share a long tradition of enterprise and commerce, and we have both sought to overcome our relatively limited size and resources through an openness to the world as we extend the hand of friendship and mutual respect to our neighbours and beyond". "We share a conviction of the need to uphold international law and legitimacy, and to protect fundamental rights and freedoms and perhaps most importantly, we both recognize the value of our people as our most important asset and resource, and have committed ourselves to providing high quality education, training and employment to our citizens". "I would like to say a few words on the passing of one of the great visionary leaders of the 20th century, Mr. Lee Kuan Yew. Not only did Mr. Lee Kuan Yew build a nation, he gave all of us hope of brighter futures and showed the world how tolerance, inclusivity, meritocracy, and justice can transform a society into one of the world’s most important nation states. We will never forget Mr. Lee Kuan Yew’s visits to Bahrain in 1978 and again in 2008, and all his efforts in developing the strong ties between our two nations. He will be sorely missed." "As Minister of Foreign Affairs, it has been my pleasure to observe and be part of our growing bilateral cooperation in these and many other fields. Singapore and Bahrain jointly developed the idea to form the ASEAN-GCC partnership through which we know hold annual high-level ministerial meetings and workshops. During my visit to Singapore last June, I was delighted to open the ASEAN-GCC Workshop jointly with my dear colleague Mr. K Shanmugam the Minister of Foreign Affairs, to address your prestigious Middle East Institute, and to sign a Memorandum on bilateral consultations between the two Ministries of Foreign Affairs. Moreover, I was able to witness for myself your country’s tremendous development and achievements, and to understand the outstanding potential that exists to build upon our existing sharing of expertise and experience in areas of common interest." "I have no doubt that this deep and strong friendship will endure for many decades to come, and I look forward to working with you, Excellencies, as we promote and develop these ties in the years ahead. So in congratulating both countries, their governments and people on this historic anniversary, may I once again express my thanks for your kind hospitality, and underline my confidence that Bahrain-Singapore relations are in fine shape, forming the basis for ever-stronger cooperation and friendship in the future".