{"id":58437,"date":"2025-11-04T19:42:12","date_gmt":"2025-11-04T14:12:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=58437"},"modified":"2025-11-06T12:16:59","modified_gmt":"2025-11-06T06:46:59","slug":"india-bahrain-bilateral-relations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/04-11-2025\/india-bahrain-bilateral-relations","title":{"rendered":"India and Bahrain\u2019s Bilateral Relations"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS2\/IR<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Bahrain\u2019s Foreign Minister and discussed <strong>cooperation in defence and security.<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>India and Bahrain have agreed to <strong>combat the threat of terrorism<\/strong> through <strong>enhanced bilateral and multilateral cooperation<\/strong>.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Brief on India Bahrain Ties<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Bilateral trade: <\/strong>USD 1.64 billion (FY 2024\u201325); India among Bahrain\u2019s top<strong> five trading partners.<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Emphasis on diversification into electronics, petroleum products, processed foods, base metals, gems &amp; jewellery.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Investment Cooperation: <\/strong>Two-way investments between the countries are growing, and have increased 40% since 2019.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>From the first quarter of 2023 to the first quarter of 2024, there was a 15% increase in investments taking total two-way investments to $1.56 billion.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Space Cooperation:<\/strong> Progress in collaboration between Bahrain Space Agency (BSA) and New Space India Limited (NSIL).\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Draft MoU under finalization to enhance cooperation in satellite and space applications.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Defence and Security: <\/strong>Both sides committed to enhancing defence and security cooperation, especially in regional maritime security.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Counter-Terrorism Cooperation: <\/strong>Strong condemnation of terrorism in all forms, including cross-border terrorism.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Agreement to boost collaboration through intelligence sharing, capacity building, and cybersecurity initiatives.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Tourism: <\/strong>The number of Indian tourists to Bahrain increased by 44% between 2022 and 2023 crossing 1 million tourist arrivals.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Indian e-visa for Bahraini nationals across 9 categories to boost tourism.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Cultural and People-to-People Ties:<\/strong> Plans to celebrate 55 years of diplomatic relations in 2026 with cultural exchanges.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Bahrain is home to 332,000 Indians, and both sides also welcomed the contributions of the Indian diaspora in Bahrain.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Significance of Bahrain for India&nbsp;<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Gateway to the Gulf: <\/strong>Bahrain, located near the western shores of the Gulf, serves as a strategic entry point for India into the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/25-11-2022\/india-and-the-gulf-cooperation-council-gcc\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/25-11-2022\/india-and-the-gulf-cooperation-council-gcc\">Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)<\/a> region.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img data-dominant-color=\"b9c7ca\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"849\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Significance-of-Bahrain-for-India--1024x849.webp\" alt=\"Significance of Bahrain for India\u00a0\" class=\"not-transparent wp-image-58475\" style=\"--dominant-color: #b9c7ca; width:562px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Significance-of-Bahrain-for-India--1024x849.webp 1024w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Significance-of-Bahrain-for-India--300x249.webp 300w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Significance-of-Bahrain-for-India--768x637.webp 768w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Significance-of-Bahrain-for-India--1536x1274.webp 1536w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Significance-of-Bahrain-for-India-.webp 1600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Maritime Security Partner: <\/strong>Its proximity to key sea lanes of communication (SLOCs) in the Arabian Gulf makes it crucial for ensuring the safety of energy supply routes and Indian shipping.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Energy Security: <\/strong>Bahrain, though a smaller oil producer compared to other GCC states, plays a role in India\u2019s energy diversification strategy and refined petroleum trade.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Cultural Diplomacy: <\/strong>Both sides are preparing to celebrate 55 years of diplomatic ties in 2026, showcasing long-standing friendship.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Way Ahead<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Bahrain fits into India\u2019s \u201cThink West\u201d policy, focusing on deeper engagement with the Gulf and Middle East.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The relationship complements India\u2019s strong ties with UAE and Saudi Arabia, contributing to a stable and multipolar Gulf order favorable to Indian interests.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/india\/india-and-bahrain-to-cooperate-on-fighting-terrorism-10344590\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>IE<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Context<\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Bahrain\u2019s Foreign Minister and discussed cooperation in defence and security.<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong>Brief on India Bahrain Ties<\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Bilateral trade: USD 1.64 billion (FY 2024\u201325); India among Bahrain\u2019s top five trading partners.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Emphasis on diversification into electronics, petroleum products, processed foods, base metals, gems &#038; jewellery.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Investment Cooperation: Two-way investments between the countries are growing, and have increased 40% since 2019.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">From the first quarter of 2023 to the first quarter of 2024, there was a 15% increase in investments taking total two-way investments to $1.56 billion.<\/li>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/04-11-2025\/india-bahrain-bilateral-relations\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read\u00a0More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-58437","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58437","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=58437"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58437\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":58496,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/58437\/revisions\/58496"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=58437"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=58437"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=58437"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}