Manama (TDI): Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif met with Prime Minister and Crown Prince of Bahrain Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa in Manama, where he was warmly received with a guard of honor at Al-Qudaibiya Palace.
During the meeting, the Prime Minister thanked the Crown Prince for Bahrain’s hospitality and praised the country’s efforts in strengthening bilateral relations. He also congratulated Bahrain on securing a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for 2026-2027 and expressed Pakistan’s readiness for close coordination during its tenure.
Economic cooperation was a central topic of discussion. PM Shehbaz highlighted the potential to increase bilateral trade from the current $550 million to $1 billion within three years, facilitated by the Pakistan–GCC Free Trade Agreement, now in its final stages, and recently eased visa policies. He invited Bahraini investors to explore opportunities in sectors including food security, information technology, construction, mining, healthcare, renewable energy, and tourism. The Prime Minister also proposed enhanced port-to-port connectivity between Karachi/Gwadar and Khalifa Bin Salman Port.
The Prime Minister acknowledged Bahrain’s support for the over 150,000-strong Pakistani community and reaffirmed Pakistan’s readiness to provide more skilled manpower. He welcomed further collaboration in higher education, technical training, and digital governance, building on the King Hamad University initiative, and thanked Bahrain for facilitating the release and repatriation of Pakistani nationals.
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Defense and security cooperation were also discussed, with both sides agreeing to further expand collaboration in training, cybersecurity, defense production, and information sharing.
Both leaders discussed the recent developments in Gaza, and agreed that the establishment of peace and stability was long overdue for the people of Gaza who have suffered for decades.
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The meeting concluded with confidence that the discussions will translate into tangible outcomes and further elevate Pakistan–Bahrain relations across strategic, economic, security and people-to-people domains.
Sohail Majeed
Sohail Majeed is a Special Correspondent at The Diplomatic Insight. He has twelve plus years of experience in journalism & reporting. He covers International Affairs, Diplomacy, UN, Sports, Climate Change, Economy, Technology, and Health.
