ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Imran Khan will visit Bahrain on Monday (today) on the invitation of King Hamad bin Isa Al-Khalifa to attend the National Day of Bahrain as a guest of honour.

The prime minister will be accompanied by a high-level delegation including members of the cabinet and senior government officials, the media wing of PM Office said on Sunday in a press release.

This is the prime minister’s first visit to Bahrain and during the visit Mr Khan will have one-on-one meeting with King Hamad and will hold delegation-level talks with Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al-Khalifa. The exchange of views would cover the entire gamut of bilateral relations and matters pertaining to regional and international issues.

Bahrain’s highest civil award will also be conferred upon the prime minister.

The prime minister’s visit to Bahrain will enable the two sides to explore ways and means to further deepen bilateral trade and investment ties.

The visit will boost up closer and multifaceted bilateral relations the news release said.

Pakistan and Bahrain enjoy close cordial relations based on commonalities of faith and culture marked by mutual trust and understanding. The bilateral relationship is broad-based and multifaceted, covering diverse fields including political, trade, commercial, defence and people-to-people contacts, it said.

Pakistan and Bahrain closely coordinate in multilateral fora including the UN, OIC and GCC.

The two countries have established institutional mechanisms, including bilateral political consultations and joint ministerial commission, to bolster bilateral cooperation in diverse fields. The two countries also enjoyed close inter-parliamentary cooperation.

Published in Dawn, December 16th, 2019