MANAMA: Mahmood Rafique, Editor: The Federal Republic of Germany and the Kingdom of Bahrain are close allies and both countries have an unanimity of views and understanding on regional, international, and bilateral issues.
HE Dr Tobias Lindner, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Minister of State, Federal Foreign Office of Germany, who was speaking to Bahrain News Agency on the side lines of the Manama Dialogue 2022 and said that this was his first trip to the Gulf region and indeed to Manama Dialogue, said.
“I am very happy to be in Bahrain and to participate in the IISS Manama Dialogue Security Summit 2022 and you know the dialogue itself is a very important tool in the global diplomacy as Germany always supports dialogue.”
Talking about the German perception of the region, he said Europeans have a perception about the Gulf think that all countries in the GCC are same but to Germany each nation has its own stature on the global stage and Bahrain stands out due to its commitment to peace, security, and policy of dialogue. By attending sessions and bilateral meetings to explore opportunities by talking to counterparts to deliberate on all issues of common interest in general and issues related to security and peace, in specific. Also, there will be a rare opportunity to get the first-hand information on challenges face by the region.
“The bilateral relations with Bahrain and the Federal Republic of Germany are outstanding. Bahrain has always been a great partner for us. When it comes to upholding the writ of the international law, for instance, Bahrain supports the global community including the developments in our region.
“Bahrain supported various resolutions in the General Assembly of the United Nations, which makes Bahrain a dependable partner when it comes to protecting and also enhancing peace in the region,” he said.
“Germany has always supported the Abraham Accords signed by Gulf countries and other countries as we believe in supporting the region those pursuing peace and pursuing cooperation. There are ways to enhance our cooperation with Bahrain and other nations and open to discuss of approach for diversifying the supply chains when it comes to fossil fuel. I believe also in the future of Bahrain can be a part of and when it comes to diversifying our supply chains, be it on fossil fuels or renewables in the future liquid nitrogen.
“The theme for this year’s Manama dialogue is rules and competitions in the Middle East. And we are dealing with a time where the topics on three C’s, the conflict, the COVID and the climate. “There are two lessons learned and that’s good reason that is the topic of this year’s conference. We must get better in looking ahead and in predicting crisis. You know, over the last few years, you mentioned COVID We have just been reacting than acting and COVID will not be the last pandemic in this century. I am convinced. So therefore, when it comes to the switch and through World War Two, we must get better and how we can predict crises and how we can act preventively. And be it be dealing with a crisis we cannot avoid or trying to avoid that the crisis has happened. So, when it comes to this region, I think we also must see to the impact of climate change. And climate change is true. It is happening. It is an accelerator for existing crises all over the planet. And for sure, it also changes business models of countries, especially in that region, you know, in Germany, we are now looking for suppliers of fossil fuels. That is true. On a mid- and long-term basis, we are trying to speed up the green transition of our economy. That does not mean that the country is here in the Gulf states.”
To a question he said that the Manama Dialogue Security Summit is an important platform which provides a rare opportunity to global leaders, decision makers and security experts to deliberate on regional stability and seeking a defence sustainability through dialogue and mutual understanding.
“The in-person attendance of IISS in Bahrain after pandemic it is a great feeling for attending such a conference. And as I said at the beginning, you know, I am a chair, we have the Munich Security Conference, which is for sure. An important conference attended since. But at the same time, there is always a risk if you only look from a European perspective or from an American perspective, or from an Asian perspective to religion. And so, therefore, the conference here it’s a very important forum also to learn and to see the regional assessments, regional views on different situations and the title of the conference also makes clear if you want to protect and preserve international rules based order, order given by the strength of the law and not the law of the strongest to say so if you want to do it, we need to apply it all over the world. Therefore, my visit here in Bahrain also should emphasise for the German government, the rules-based order is important all over the world and especially also in this region here.
