The king of Bahrain visited Moscow on May 23, where he articulated his country’s desire to restore diplomatic ties with Tehran following an eight-year hiatus.
According to Bahrain’s official news agency, King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa told Russian President Vladimir Putin that his country “looks forward to improving relations with Iran.”
“There is no reason to delay the resumption of relations between the two countries,” the news agency quoted the monarch as saying.
Manama, Bahrain’s capital, has not had diplomatic relations with Tehran since 2016.
Russia, by contrast, is closely aligned with Iran, which it views as a “strategic ally.”
According to Abdullatif bin Rashid Al Zayani, Bahrain’s foreign minister, the king’s visit to Moscow underlined the “historical friendship” between Bahrain and Russia.
It also served to enhance what the minister called the “political, economic, and strategic cooperation” between the two countries.
Following closed-door discussions between the two leaders, Mr. Putin asserted that Moscow and Manama maintain “similar positions on a range of international issues.”
Diplomatic Thaw
With a native population of fewer than 1 million, the Kingdom of Bahrain is a small island nation in the Arabian Gulf, sitting between Saudi Arabia and Qatar.Long regarded as a key U.S. ally in the Middle East, Bahrain hosts the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet, along with elements of Britain’s Royal Navy.
While Shiite Muslims account for the majority of Bahrain’s population, the Al Khalifa family—the country’s ruling dynasty—are Sunni Muslims.
In the past, Manama has accused Shiite Iran of fomenting unrest among the kingdom’s majority Shiite population.
During the 2011 “Arab Spring” uprisings, Bahraini security forces—with Saudi help—violently quelled demonstrations by Shiite activists who had called for the monarchy’s overthrow.
At the time, Manama accused Iran of provoking the unrest—a claim denied by Tehran.
In 2015, Saudi Arabia’s embassy in Tehran was ransacked by an angry mob after a prominent Shiite cleric was executed by Saudi authorities.
Riyadh and Manama both responded by severing diplomatic ties with Tehran.
But early last year, Saudi Arabia signed a landmark agreement with Iran, reestablishing official relations and ending years of mutual hostility.
Since then, Bahrain has remained the only Arab Gulf state not to have diplomatic ties with Tehran.
Bahrain is also the only Arab Gulf state to openly support U.S. and UK military strikes against Yemen’s Ansar Allah group, popularly known as the Houthis.
Late last year, the Houthis began attacking maritime traffic in the Red Sea in response to an Israeli offensive in Gaza that has left thousands of Palestinians dead.
Gaza in Spotlight
On May 16, Manama hosted an Arab League summit devoted almost entirely to Israel’s ongoing Gaza offensive.In a final communique, the 22-member Arab bloc called for the deployment of UN peacekeeping forces to Gaza pending a “just resolution” of the conflict.
The summit also backed a Bahraini proposal for an international conference, to be hosted by Manama, aimed at resolving the Israel-Palestine conflict “on the basis of a two-state solution.”
During his subsequent visit to Moscow, Mr. Al Khalifa briefed Mr. Putin on the outcome of the Arab League summit.
He also requested Moscow’s help in organizing the proposed peace conference.
“Arab countries appreciate Russia’s role in resolving Arab problems fairly,” the Bahraini monarch said before meeting with Mr. Putin.
“Russia will be the first country on which I call to support the idea of holding such a conference,” he added.
Moscow has yet to respond to the Bahraini proposal.
But after the meeting between the two leaders, Yury Ushakov, a top Putin aide, described the discussions as “very interesting.”
Quoted by Russia’s TASS news agency, Mr. Ushakov said the two countries had agreed to “step up cooperation across the board.”
Moscow has consistently backed the idea of a “two-state” solution to the decades-long Israel-Palestine dispute.
“Before it ceased to exist [in 1991], the Soviet Union recognized the State of Palestine,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on May 22.
“This is in line with relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions and an approach based on a two-state solution,” he told reporters.
“As the legal successor to the Soviet Union, Russia maintains its consistent and transparent stance regarding this issue,” Mr. Peskov added.
